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Troy, NY: Kenny Hohman picked up the guitar as a young boy after hearing Eddie Van Halen's mind-bending tracks on the early Van Halen records. Joe Daley's two older brothers were already established musicians in their home town, so when Joe was a teenager, he cut his teeth playing the drums with them at dingy clubs and blues joints in and around Troy. After high school, Joe and Kenny moved to New York City, then Woodstock, in the hopes finding the right bass player and establishing a Rock and Roll band. The pair had spent hundreds of smoky hours hypnotized by the magic of Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Blind Faith, Led Zeppelin - the music that was made for young souls to discover and devour. Their travels left them unsatisfied and Hohman and Daley returned home. They joined the house band at a local Monday night jam, where one night, bassist Lori Friday walked through the door. Lori had been on a quest of her own - she lived on the heavy rock and soul sounds of her heroes and was searching for her musical match. At the insistence of a mutual friend, the three got together one afternoon to jam in a Troy warehouse. The sound made them smile, and they became a band on the spot.
The three friends immediately began long jam sessions that lasted for days, searching for a sound and feel that would develop into a breathing entity. Super 400 takes the classic 'power trio' approach: three instruments taking up the sonic space of an airplane hangar, rocking to the heavens - but their vocal dynamics and spiritual synergy cause the sounds to swell to the bursting point. In the band's first year, Geoff Travis of Trade 2 Records brought them over to London, and they were signed by Island Records. Island planned to herald the return of Rock and Roll with Super 400 as a flagship force in the new millennium. The young band had their first album in the chamber, ready to take on the world. In a twist of fate that would foreshadow an unstable music biz, Polygram Co was soon bought out, folding the hierarchy at Island. Release plans collapsed and the Super 400 album was shelved. Shortly afterward, the band's management decided to call it quits. The band kept on; they began writing the second album, and learned how to book their own tours up and down the East Coast. Slowly, fans began to surface; first in the States, then Europe. Encouraged, Super 400 released their next two albums on their own, gaining momentum through word of mouth and countless live bootleg trades. The buzz earned them a slot on the Azkena Music Festival in Spain, the response from which brought them back to tour packed houses in Europe last Fall. Their reputation as top notch players has put them in demand as session musicians, both in the States and in the UK. They have toured as the band for British pop star Jaime Benson and American superstar vocalist Mike Farris; Kenny has performed on Saturday Night Live as a member of Lenny Kravitz's band, and the three have made friendships and shared stages with several heroes who they are now proud to call friends. This past year, Super 400 recorded their new album, 'Sweet Fist', at the legendary Ardent Studios in Memphis, TN. It will be released by Response Records on September 15, worldwide, with cover art by Klaus Voormann, the renowned creator of the Beatles' 'Revolver' album cover. A double vinyl LP package will also be available.
It's been five records, three vans, thirteen years, and thousands of miles since that first day in Troy, NY, and the band remains true to the city that has stuck with them through it all. They align their home town shows with local charities, and arranged the first video for 'Sweet Fist ' to be shot entirely in the city. In 2006, the mayor of Troy gave Super 400 their own official holiday, 'Super 400 Day', to recognize the band's musical achievements as well as the love and support the city has shown for them.
