Advertisement

Season of change for venerable band Missiles of October

Share

For more than two decades, Laguna Beach’s beloved band Missiles of October has built an avid following at its home base, the Marine Room Tavern, where locals gather for a stiff drink and live entertainment.

“I’ve been listening to these guys for 20-something years, and they’re still one of my favorite bands,” said bartender Rob Boyd. “They do a great job bringing in people in the afternoons.”

The four musicians, three of whom are now in their 60s, have survived longer than many other bands, but tough economic times have thrown the enduring group a challenge like no other.

Advertisement

The strumming of guitars, the beat of the drums and the sound of men singing still fill the air in the cavernous bar. But for the past few years, the gig has changed and it no longer pays the bills.

The only option has been to expand to other local venues.

An option not on the table: stop playing.

*

‘It does make us open’

Missiles of October, made up of four veterans of the Orange County club scene, played every Thursday and Sunday night for two decades at the cozy Marine Room Tavern.

Fans listened to the voice of singer and founder Poul Finn Pedersen, the sophisticated riffs of lead guitarist Richard Bredice and the low notes of bass player Jimmy Perez, while tapping their feet to the beat of Frank Cotinola on drums.

But the band wasn’t immune to the recession. Falling revenues and other business changes led then-Marine Room Tavern owner Kelly Boyd, Rob’s uncle and a current Laguna Beach city councilman, to scale back on live entertainment four years ago. Missiles of October was told its numbers on Thursdays weren’t high enough, leaving Boyd to eliminate the band’s weeknight slot.

The band continues to play from 4 to 8 p.m. Sundays.

Live performances are the main source of income for the musicians, and they have been working hard to expand to additional local venues.

“It does make us open for more places,” Cotinola said Wednesday afternoon.

They started playing at the Sandpiper Lounge on Pacific Coast Highway, but the gig didn’t lure audiences. Cotinola said the lesson the band learned was to stick with one Laguna venue at a time.

Then the four thought they had found success at the Black Marlin Restaurant in Tustin. The dinner crowd was large and quick to compliment the musicians, asking for their return. But Cotinola said the restaurant asked the band to quiet down. They can’t, he said, play a whisper.

But six months ago, the Missiles learned of an available concert time at Pierce Street Annex, a nearly 40-year-old sports pub in Costa Mesa. So far, they’re liking the atmosphere.

They perform there the second Saturday of the month from 5 to 8 p.m. and have reunited with fans from San Clemente and Laguna who are willing to drive to hear their beloved band.

“I like Pierce Street Annex,” Cotinola said. “I think the music sounds great, it accommodates dancers and it seems like a cool place. It just hasn’t taken off.”

Pedersen agreed.

“So far, not as many people,” he said by phone. “But it’s a good-sounding room, and it’s been around for years.”

*

A randomly chosen name

Missiles of October was formed in 1991 by Pedersen and then-guitarist Bob Hawkins. The two would play acoustic guitar at the Marine Room Tavern.

When Cotinola wasn’t on the road, he’d drop in with a drum machine and sit in with Pedersen and Hawkins. He then joined the duo full-time. The band at the time was nameless, but to fans, Cotinola was known as the “Rocking Stenographer.”

He’d use his fingers to tap out rhythms on a percussion synthesizer. And his long hair and cowboy boots fit the moniker.

After some months as a trio, they recruited Perez on bass. The four players were forced to adopt a name for themselves after landing an opening slot at The Coach House, in San Juan Capistrano.

Until then, as a joke, Pedersen would create a name on the spot each night he introduced the band. “I would blurt out whatever popped in my mind,” he said. Out popped “Missiles of October.”

The Missiles’ mix of originals by Pedersen were drawn from influences including Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, John Hiatt and Richard Thompson.

In 1997, the Missiles self-released their debut album, “Tropic of Soulfolk,” to positive reviews. The Los Angeles Times called it “near-perfect” and named the band one of Orange County’s best-kept secrets.

The band flirted with mainstream success a number of times but bumped up against an immovable mind-set. Cotinola recalled a Sunday when representatives from three record agencies were in the house to hear them play.

“They looked around and saw a band of older guys, not any Eric Claptons or Van Morrisons, and they didn’t have much of a barometer of what was done,” Cotinola said. “They couldn’t understand that so many different cross-sections of ages liked this music.”

Their mix of young and old listeners, said Cotinola, made record labels think it would be too difficult to target an age group. He said they were looking at trends rather than finding potential in something new. Cotinola believes this rationale is still in practice today.

“As a result, a lot of bands are being ignored,” he said.

About eight years ago, Hawkins left the band.

“It was difficult at the time, but he is great,” Cotinola said of Hawkins’ departure. There was no falling out, Cotinola said. Hawkins just wanted to pursue a more folksy sound.

Hawkins, known as a veteran guitarist and fixture on the Orange County music scene, plays in rock band Hautewerk and with Shana Morrison’s band. Pedersen and Hawkins are currently playing together on the side as members of 133, a nine-person band named after the winding road leading to Laguna Beach. The band opened for the Beach Boys at the Irvine Bowl in September.

Today, Bredice is lead guitarist of the Missiles. “He’s a world-class guitar player,” Cotinola said.

At a recent Sunday concert, the band continued to play favorites, the tunes carrying emotional sounds of Southern rock.

“I’ve known them for quite a while,” said Priscilla Riggs of Costa Mesa. “Once I heard them play, I thought, ‘Holy cow. How come I haven’t been watching them all the time?’”

Riggs invited her friends, Vicki and Lee Scheley, to join her at the Marine Room. Sunday night was the Scheleys’ second time hearing the Missiles play.

“They’re just really good,” Vicki said as she danced in her seat. “We’re really enjoying them.”

*

Hoping to heal

For more than two decades of playing together, the Missiles have avoided the fate of many bands. It’s not just that their music endures. They also get along and respect each other’s talents.

“We have such a great rapport with each other, and people see that,” Cotinola said. “That doesn’t happen overnight.”

Cotinola said he admires Pedersen’s way of taking an obscure or well-known artist’s track and interpreting it his way.

“We’re doing what we like to do and appreciate it,” Pedersen said. “It was a lot of fun, and it still is.”

As the Missiles gear up for a variety of performances throughout Orange County, Cotinola said he will have to take a brief break from drumming after recent surgery on his hand for a severe arthritis condition. He said a substitute has been hired for upcoming shows.

Cotinola hopes to be able to drum again in six weeks, in time to rejoin the band for a wedding Jan. 10.

As for the Missiles adjusting to the hurdles thrown in their path? They said it’s all just part of their journey.

“I liken us to the cockroach,” Cotinola said. “You know, they’re the only insect to survive the ice age. We just won’t give up.”

Advertisement