A brief history of Model Testing from Matt M
"With an appreciation of the early
goth/industro/techno sound coming out of Chicago and Europe,
Matt Hatch, Toby Kienle, Sid and Matt Mitchell forged Model Testing.
Toby, Matt M. and Sid were
already pretty good friends that hung out in the local gloomy/rivethead
scene. They were all
expeimenting with sound:
Toby (fascinated by Skinny Puppy and Kraftwerk)
had been experimenting with building his own
"electronic" drums at our apartment.
Matt M. (haunted by Alien Sex Fiend and
Bauhaus) was making obnoxious noises with a bass (soon to
be replaced by a "sampling keyboard").
Sid (enamored with Depeche Mode) was goofing around with keyboards and melodies.
Matt H. had already been a local scenester
with Burning Giraffe and had just returned back to
Boone after a stint in England.
The original scheme was devised by Toby
and Matt H. They probably discovered each other during
German class and began kicking around a few ideas - but they couldn't
do it alone. Sid was
recruited right off - he already had a keyboard and shared the
same sort of philosophy of what
they were trying to accomplish. The three got together at Toby
and Matt M's apartment and started
collaborating.
Matt M came into the band by accident.
At one of the practices, he came in and started playing
with Toby's drum machine. The fills sounded pretty cool - a bit
more industrial. He later picked
up a "sampling" keyboard and started to fill in the
minimal electro music the three were banging
out - the band was complete.
Model Testing played only two gigs during
their short life - both at the ASU Pub. The first gig
was an opening slot for Psycho Acoustics. The next, a headlining
show with Atomic Ghandi as the
opening act.
Model Testing pretty much fell apart after
the show. Matt H went one way and Sid another. Toby and
Matt M had a bigger, more devious plan however..."
Archivist's note - The more devious plan was Trauma Center and that will get it's own page next week.