Milhouse: Days of Future Passed

Roots.

It is a really unique thing to see the roots of a band. That was the experience I had, as did many others, at Maggie Mae’s in Austin a couple of weekends ago. Mark del Castillo and Mike Zeoli sat in with their old band, Milhouse. The group was something of a musical throw-back, harking back to the early 90’s and Pink Floyd around the mid 80’s. I would’ve been intrigued with the guys currently in the band, but then Mark and Zeoli got up there.
Whoa. All the positive things I could ever say about those two as musicians were massively amplified, literally and figuratively. Mike is a maniac when playing with DC but letting him loose doing heavier rock, well, all I can say is he is proof that drummers are nuts. I would love to have heard the experimental jazz band he was in at the same time he was doing Milhouse!
and Mark....the two brothers of the DC blow me away quite often, and I wasn’t surprised to recently have been impressed by both of them on electric. However......I heard such possibility this night at Maggie Mae’s. His wife looked at me and grinned. “This is when I met him.” I had to laugh, because I could hear exactly what she was attracted to. If it had been any place but the overcrowded Austin scene, I daresay Milhouse would be a big name by now. Had I been a fan back in the late 90’s –early ‘00’s, I would have been unhappy about the forming of Del Castillo, at least for awhile.

you see, this is where the roots come in. Not only did brother Rick produce both of the CDs this group has put out, but the beginnings of what would be DC are on the first recording. There is this amazing piece called “Para Mija Linda” that is nothing but acoustic Spanish guitar. The credits say it is only Mark, but I could easily hear the two of them playing it. It would fit into the current repetoire quite well. It startled me when it came on, because I could see the future, being played in the past.

It is curious thing to watch a band grow and change, solidifying slowly into what the world will finally know. It is even more unusual to be able to kind of back up and see where it started. I will cherish this, because many people will come in when DC has progressed a long way down its destined path. I will try to remind them of the roots of this band, the steps they had to take to get where we now have them. And may their growth, and their ever growing audiences growth continue on the path of peace, love and the Light.

namaste.