Last Monday I managed to damage my hearing just a little more with White Cowbell Oklahoma invading the Slice for a night of rock ‘n’ roll debauchery.

No Other Way came on strong as the openers, looking and sounding like the offspring of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. Their heavy metal tunes are very carefully constructed with lightning swift changes between feels, styles and tempos. An incredible amount of showmanship oozes throughout their stage show. They were constantly running around the stage with synchronized rock outs and harmonized two-hand tapping guitar solos. Each and every member was extremely talented; perfectly tight drumbeats drove the band steadily during their 40-minute set. They swung smoothly from song to song, either segueing without pause or stitching songs together seamlessly, leaving the crowd duly impressed.

Rock music is best enjoyed at extreme volumes and White Cowbell Oklahoma definitely had their amps dialed to 11. In fact, they commenced their set by apparently blowing out an amp which sent them into an extended instrumental jam while the problem was fixed. They then turned up the temperature with an excellent cover of Edgar Winter’s 1973 hit “Frankenstein” and ended the song with the cowbell player pulling a metal grinder out of his back pocket and taking it to his cowbell, shooting sparks all over the room. The grooves that WCO provide are so thick, heavy and fuzzy that you can’t help but just get into it like a fly on shit. More material was featured off of their latest release from earlier this year, Bombardero, including “Piece of the Action” and the odd time signature riff of “Keys to the Universe.” Making full use of their three guitarists, “Ground Down” had some monumental three-part guitar harmonies which preceded the opening of a forty of Jagermeister and pouring a shot down the throat of nearly every single audience member. That was followed up by lighting the cowbell on fire and shooting flames from it with a spray bottle of lighter fluid – they do know how to entertain a crowd visually as well as aurally. They closed things out with the awesomely titled “Put the South in Your Mouth,” and sent people home with ears-a-ringing and heads-a-spinning; they are still a force to be reckoned with now in their tenth year together. I managed to speak with front man Clem C. Clemsen prior to the show and here’s a bit of what he had to say.

Q: What have been the best and worst shows in the past decade?
A: Every White Cowbell Oklahoma show is unmatched by any other past time. Even fucking pales in comparison to even a small WCO performance. The band has played with Iron Maiden to 40,000 Dutch people and also played to a handful of people one night in Lethbridge. Either way, all present were hypnotized, amazed, astounded, on their knees in a state of rock n roll wonder

Q: What prompted you to record a cover of Edgar Winter’s “Frankenstein” on the new album ,and are you planning to do more in the future?
A: White Cowbell Oklahoma enjoy albino rock. WCO also embraced a prog-heavy sound on the new Bombardero album. Still some twang and southern rock, but a lot of 70’s psychedelic wizardry too. Edgar Winter is the ultimate rock n roll magician, so we thought it would a good idea. We also wanted to show everyone how easy it is to play all those complicated notes when you’re White Cowbell Oklahoma.

Q: Who are some of the most influential artists, past and present, on your writing and playing?
A: We enjoy the caveman idiocy of KISS, and the regal minimalism of ZZ Top, but also like the nosebleed maximalism of Frank Zappa. We’ve since purchased them all. Gene Simmons works for us.

Q: What is your preferred poison?
A: Strychnine — it’s poisonous and sometimes comes with the LSD. It gives you some amusing shakes.