The return of the Timmys
Well it isn’t exactly the return of the Timmys because the Timmys never really left. But it’s been a good while since the fun-loving and well-loved local punk-mock rockers graced the stage or floor of a Springfield club. According to Robbie Kording, a founding Timmy, their main singer and all around instigator of goofy antics, that is reason enough to make a comeback and a call it a triumphant return.
“It’s been over a year since we last did an all-ages show and we do well with them, “said Kording. “Plus we now have a new bass player who knows most of our songs. At least he should by Saturday.”
Kording wasn’t too concerned about whether Brandon Carnes, the newest member to the group, had all the tunes down or not, though he was sure he would. That seems to be the way of the Timmys; half laughing about who cares and half knowing it will be all right.
In 1997 Kording and other Williamsville hangouts Ian Kelly and Wes Selinger put together a music group with the lofty goal of having lots of fun and staying seriously irreverent. As they struggled to pick a name, this one kid kept coming to practice wanting to be a part of all the band happenings, and his name was Timmy.
“He just kept showing up and begging and begging to be in the band. He was the kid we always picked on,” says Kording. “So we called ourselves the Timmys.”
A few years later Timmy Costello actually joined the Timmys. Later he left and went with Park, a Springfield-based band that made a splash in the outer world. Costello now plays with What’s Fair, another area group getting heard other places. The sharing of musicians is not an uncommon occurrence among this bunch. Wes Selinger, the Timmys drummer, also does double duty on the skins for NIL8 and former bass player Damon Soper once played in Soul Pudding, as well as about a hundred other combos.
“We’re kind of like one big band in a way,” said Kording of the Springfield underground rock-punk DIY scene. “We’ve shared a lot of shows and members. Tyler Orton plays guitar with us. Brandon, our new bass player has been coming to see the band since he was 12 years old. It’s pretty cool.” Most all of the Timmys music is original, with a main portion of the set list from songs written back in those early, heady, Williamsville days. If it works, and it does, these guys are not about to fix it. “Those songs from back then, they rule,” said Kording. “To us they’re timeless —-and fast.” The boys in the band have had their fun through the years, including performing on a float during the Illinois State Fair parade a few years back while getting tanked. Known as a selfdescribed drunken comedy act, the Timmys rein it in for the all-ages shows finding all kinds of ways to have good clean, sober fun while making a scene.
“Our first radio interview was in Springfield, Mo., and the DJ was asking stupid questions,” said Kording. “So we just all nodded our answers and never said a word. Except for when Timmy got asked what it was like to be in a band named after him, he said, ‘It’s cool.’ That’s the only words the band said in the whole interview on the radio.”
After several trips out west over the years with stops in Albuquerque and other spots on route to sunny, southern California, the guys are doing the weekend warrior thing for now. A recent band RV purchase has excited some Timmys’ minds about traveling again, but jobs and relationships now weigh into the decision to hit the road. Overall after 12 years the Timmys are still going strong and sticking to the original idea of having some serious fun while playing music and being in a band. The group intends to write more songs in the near future and be recording by summer with a CD release planned shortly thereafter. What is it that drives these young men to continue the hard work and persistence needed to keep a band going even in the face of encroaching maturity and middle age? “It’s the most fun we’ve ever had” said Kording. “There’s no reason to quit.”
The Timmys return to the stage for an all-ages show on Saturday, Jan. 10, at Black Sheep Café sometime around 7 p.m. There will likely be a couple other bands playing first. For more information, go to www.myspace.com/thetimmys1997.
