First/Last-Charm & Chain

"Charm & Chain is a genre stretching four piece rock band based out of Pittsburgh, PA. Pulling from a deep vault of influences,they take earthy rock, jam it out into a shimmery, spacey, psychedelic groove, and lay it all back down again with nod to bluesy, classic rock tinged pop."

Check out the band at their official Website, Facebook, ReverbNation, BandCamp and Twitter. The band have just released new music this week in the extended single, 'I Know What You Are' and are playing gigs around Pittsburgh so catch them if you can. I want to thank Ben Sukenik (Drums/Vocals), Laurie Kudis (Keys/Vocals), Eric Koester (Bass/Vocals) and Ryan Roseborough (Guitar) for taking a few to participate in this edition of First/Last.

The first album you ever bought?
Ben Sukenik: ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic "Dare to be Stupid".
Laurie Kudis: Beastie Boys "License to Ill". My parents took it off me because they didn't think the lyrics were appropriate for my age but I found out where they hid it and stole it back. :)
Eric Koester: The ‘Cocktai’ Movie Soundtrack.
Ryan Roseborough: “Get A Grip” Aerosmith.

Your last album bought?
Ben: Arcade Fire "Reflektor".
Laurie: Broken Bells "After The Disco".
Eric: Daft Punk "Random Access Memories".
Ryan: Probably some live Phish...

Favorite album of all time?
Ben: Daft Punk "Random Access Memories".
Laurie: Fleetwood Mac "Rumours".
Eric: Tough choice here, but I'm going with Pink Floyd "Dark Side of the Moon".
Ryan: Phish “Rift”.

Least favorite/most disappointing album?
Ben: My very first CD laser lens cleaner!
Laurie: A Van Halen CD someone gave me.
Eric: Limp Bizkit "Significant Other".
Ryan: I’m gonna have to say Weezer the “Green Album”, even though i never actually bought it. I used to say choosing between the “Blue Album” and “Pinkerton” was like choosing between your first and second born child. No offense to anyone born third.

First concert attended?
Ben: Vanilla Ice.
Laurie: En Vogue.
Eric: New Kids on the Block.
Ryan: Aerosmith ‘Get A Grip Tour’ (actually got to meet the band, Steven Tyler was nice to me).

Last concert?
All: moe.

Favorite concert ever?
Ben: Phish, Millennium New Year’s Festival in Big Cypress, FL.
Laurie: Seeing Paul McCartney with my Mom.
Eric: Again, VERY hard to pick just one, so I choose every New Year's Eve show I have attended (including Phish, Umphrey's McGee, moe. x2, The New Deal, and The Disco Biscuits)... it's just something about NYE!
Ryan: Probably the first big festival I ever attended: the All Good Music Festival in May of 2000. Personal highlights including, Leftover Salmon, moe., The Disco Biscuits, & Soulive just to name a few.

Least favorite concert?
Ben: Vanilla Ice (do I really have to explain why?)
Laurie: Stumbled upon Vanilla Ice performing in a bar post meltdown, so gross.
Eric: Bush at I.C. Light Amphitheater, 1994?
Ryan: Ozzfest June 12, 1999.  It took Primus featuring Buckethead playing with glow in the dark nun-chucks to finally bring my head out of a very bad space.

Favorite thoughts, experiences about Pittsburgh?
Ben: All of the wonderful people I have met since moving here 10 years ago.
Laurie: I love how Pittsburghers are down-to-earth, friendly, and supportive of other Pittsburghers.
Eric: The City of Champyinz!
Ryan: it's a source of comfort and pride knowing that my father and his father worked as iron workers on a lot of the bridges and buildings in the area. Yinzers are the best.

Thanks so much, guys. You definitely have a genre bending sound going. I hear prog, blues, jam and all kinds of other sounds in your music. Can't wait to see you play soon! And Ryan, how the hell do you get to meet the band at your first ever show? Very cool.