The Incredible Casuals

A four piece merseybeat and r&b influenced power pop rock group with an emphasis on crafty songwriting and off the wall humor once described as "The Beach Boys meets the Who" ("Up in Heaven, Keith Moon is no doubt delighted" - Rob Tannenbaum, Rolling Stone Magazine) from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, The Incredible Casuals were created from the remnants of Travis Shook and Club Wow, a comedy duo that opened for George Carlin, Martin Mull and others (in fact, legend has it that Bruce Springsteen actually was the "opening act" for Travis & Shook at The Main Point in Philadelphia just before he broke big) and they even appeared on "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" and "Midnight Special" in the '70's.

Eventually bassist Chandler Travis (of The Chandler Travis Philharmonic fame) and guitarist Steve Shook were joined by drummer Rikki Bates aka Vince Valium in 1978 and began performing as The Incredible Casuals in the Boston area in 1980. The trio released two 45 rpm 7 inch singles (Money Won't buy you Happiness and That's Why on Red Rooster Records) prior to the addition of guitarist Johnny Spampinato, brother of Joey of NRBQ fame. (Johnny himself joined NRBQ when Al Anderson left in 1994, although he has remained active in The Incredible Casuals.) After the addition of Johnny to the band, the single "Picnic Ape" was released as a Casuals single on Eat Records, although the recording itself does not contain the complete band lineup but rather comes from a hometape made by Chandler and Rikki in 1979 prior to the actual formation of the band. The revised lineup including Johnny also released the "Let's Go" Maxi-EP, also on Eat records. This lineup of the band was also featured on the USA Network show "Hotspots" along with NRBQ.

Steve Shook left the group prior to the release of their first LP "That's That" (originally released on Demon records in the UK and on Rounder Records in the U.S), although his song writing and guitar playing are prominently featured throughout the album - the band honored their former member by beginning and closing the album with his compositions.

In 1988, the band competed in the WBCN Rock and Roll Rumble--knocking out Rhode Island punk legends Neutral Nation.

The band's current make up includes guitarist Aaron Spade who has been with the band for many years and has placed his own mark on the Casuals scene with ripping songs like "Burn Me Up" and "Tearin'My Hair Out" as well as "That's How Strong My Love Is".

The current line up has Johnny Spampinato shredding his guitar, Aaron tearing his heart out, Rikki Bates slamming the drums like you've never seen and Chandler Travis laying the bass down and being the ultimate ring master. With their powerful sound, infectious beat and uplifting spirit the challenge when seeing them is to try and not dance your brains out and have a good time, a task that usually proves impossible (rumour has it the band can actually levitate entire audiences for several seconds at a time, through sheer bliss, which usually happens during their second set at their legendary summer gigs at the Wellfleet Beachcomber). Despite the lineup changes, The Casuals have maintained one constant through their career — playing the Wellfleet Beachcomber every summer Sunday afternoon from 5:00 PM to 8:00 since 1980 - 28 years and running. Merely the fact that they have maintained the Beachcomber gig as long as they have with their huge and constantly evolving repertoire of original songs (in the multiple hundreds and counting) puts them in a rare category shared by very few other bands throughout the history of rock and roll.

CD releases include That's That (Japanese only CD release), Your Sounds (Sonic Trout Records), It is Balloon (Akers Records & Japanese release), The Future Will Be Better Tomorrow, Nature Calls and World Championship Songs.