The long journey for Scott Thomas from awkward, troubled teen to rocker isn't incredibly dissimilar from fellow suburban garage-rocker-to-tour bus stories, but the real kicker is the sacrifice and the irrepressible blue-collar ethic that went into now-Los Angeles native Thomas' project, Ringside, who come to Detroit's State Theatre Thursday, where they will open for rock geek-faves Weezer.
While some aspiring rockers quit their lucrative day job to become a rocker and call it sacrifice, Thomas didn't exactly have an envious day job. Stuck between working as limo driver, roofer, baker and even a clothing designer, he undoubtedly had a steady stream of paychecks coming in, but no place to put his heart.
"I had every single kind of job and it's not like I was any happier," says Thomas. "I'd rather be broke and making music." So Thomas did just that; cashing in a bulk of his personal property so he could fund the production and pressing of his own album, where he would hit the road in a used Cadillac.
Fortunately for Thomas, amidst the cluttered L.A. scene of hopeful celebrities, things took off rather smoothly for his project. "It all started in a garage with this thing we called Ringside," he says. "All of a sudden we had takers. Now here we are on a bus."
Ringside started as, and still is, in essence, two people; Scott Thomas, joined by friend Balthazar Getty, both with extensive backgrounds in theater. Getty would create electronic beats, while Thomas would concoct guitar arrangements. The result is a confident dance-rock sound with angular pop hooks and artistic flair.
In addition to catching the ears of locals, it also impressed Geffen imprint Flawless Records. While providing the financial backbone the band needed to record a commercial-quality album, the band opted against larger studios and recorded a bulk of the album, appropriately, in a garage.
While far from the trite, over-produced fare often heard on rock radio, Ringside's self-titled debut is a lush, thick record that bares Thomas' soul, yet offers few hints of its shoestring production value. While imperfect at times, its raw approach is a refreshing testament to the do-it-yourself mantra that so many bands today overlook.
Ringside performs with Weezer at 6:30 P.M. on Thursday, May 5 at The State Theatre, located at 2115 Woodward Ave. in Detroit. Tickets are $29.50 and are available through Ticketmaster or at the State Theatre box office.
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