#shawnzone

By Kurt Parker

Leaked from a Warner A&R rep late Thursday, FilmsCrewBand’s adora-drummer deluxe Aaron Housos James has been quietly recording a second solo effort with his former power couple heart throb bandmate Shawn Zone at the helm producing, lending his golden hand in the co-writing and playing with other members of Films Crew.  The chameleon time keeper Aaron shelved all but a single from his first solo effort which wasn’t up to snuff with high standards of his efforts with his bandmates, this time out he takes Films Crew which may make this an official Films Crew Release.  What we know, at a pre-NXNE panel week, the boy we swoon over Shawn Zone along with newbie Andrew Self, when debuting the upcoming Films Crew limited edition in a closed door insider session, the bomb was dropped about Aaron’s solo release and from what we’ve been able to gather it should be a FilmsCrewBand release under a different name.  What we know, Films Crew with Aaron are working under the name Symposis 0 and our Warner source told us that the album is titled Redemption dealing with themes of redemption, and that heart of the controls is sexy shred master Shawn Zone.  With details on Redemption still being sparse, a Warner A&R rep told The Village Voice the album consists of eight lengthy tracks written by Aaron and Shawn and hammered out by all members of Films Crew, the release is expected to drop early 2018 with a limited edition vinyl release to test the waters, note; all Films Crew limited edition releases have always sold out before ship date.

Films Crew Band’s psychedelic progressive post-metal masterpiece Crying To Crisis  from the upcoming Stigmatized vinyl limited edition hit the French and German streaming behemoth Deezer last Tuesday premiering at 19 and 17 respectively garnering over 600,000 streams within 3 days, quite the feat, with no social media promotion for the heavily digitally rights managed network, not in these regions, out of luck for now, though it can be streamed from the band’s site for a brief period.  A Warner managing official hinted the label waging a tug of war with Films Crew over the label’s push for a radio ready single which Films Crew is at odds with.  Crying To Crisis debuted April 10 as a personal message from Shawn to apparently very close and cozy Films Crew mate Cameron Drawmer is set to be a mammoth single for FilmsCrewBand in Eurozone, it defies genre, thanks go out to Cameron Drawmer for being the inspiration for what’s becoming a mainstream hit by the reluctant reclusive Films Crew.  Now if only ShawnZone would reappear on his section of his site, his insight has been missed.  Not to downplay Aaron’s wordplay, he has become a millennial voice, an often talked about must read even for people who don’t listen to Films Crew.  The Village Voice was also told that double kick wordsmith Aaron’s tonsillectomy was a more complicated throat surgery from which he will be on the mend for quite some time, but is working.  

Our source, Dallas Andrew, a gear tech to the band stated the band has had a stark year and a half with devastating personal losses, grueling schedules, and troubling relationships which caused blond bombshell guitarist to post, “If anything, I’m merely a novelty”, a provocative statement, repeated, and enough to double down, having himself mostly removed from his own site, dealing with his exclusive inner circle.  Dallas was emphatic that guitarist decision to remove himself from his site was not entirely his own, that the guitarist had been threatened by someone online to even remove himself from his quiet social media accounts.  The heavily trafficked website is a labyrinth maze with secret areas.  Dallas stated that the band had been completely honest with Aaron referencing this state of affairs’ complexities in his updates and from his understanding the golden boy Shawn had indeed suffered at the hand of some elaborate game playing on the heels of a devastating family loss.  Dallas confirmed that the blond heart throb’s whereabouts were sometimes only known to his exclusive inner circle.  Dallas also confirmed rumors of ongoing stalking incidents leaving the band on high alert.  The rumor mill placed Shawn at a leukemia fund raiser and other events in Manhattan within the last week, Dallas confirmed this adding that he had been extremely quiet and preoccupied.  Asked about the Daniel Lukas controversy, Dallas said that no one in Films Crew to his knowledge has no contact or dealings with the sometimes viral internet sensation, sometimes social engineer hacker, let alone knows who Lukas is and that it was likely the fault of social media hijinks.  Asked if Daniel Lukas’ alleged epic news he was about to drop would affect Films Crew, Dallas remarked that no one in the band would even be aware of it, the band wouldn’t know who that was, and that the band kept people up to date on their news.  We still think it would be wise for Films Crew Band and Aaron to heed Cameron Reyher’s urgings about dealing with Lukas in a less causal manner.

To put the puzzle pieces together, read Aaron’s last few updates, worthy reading material, voice of a generation.  And a pleading video to ShawnZone ProTip, on the Media tab, tapping on ‘A Sound’ takes you a hidden page of music.

Link to FilmsCrewBand’s and Aaron’s updates with a cryptic video message

Link to Daniel Lukas nonsensical news warnings

Courtesy Village Voice

By Kurt Parker

While even more rumor and speculation surround the missing blonde bomb shell guitarist ShawnZone, double kick hunk Aaron provides us with yet another massive update with a sense of frustration.  Again delving into the secret sauce of the Films Crew world we never thought we would see, somehow making the enigmatic post metal progressive band all the more mysterious.  Recalling their last performance at CMJ, even the after show being in their presence is a surreal experience as if speaking to a benevolent secret society of benefactors of wisdom, with looks you want to taste.   Aaron finally gives an in depth look at his fascination with the ultra far right extremist hate group the Alt-Right, comparing it to a cult, he gives credit for his talking points to the enigmatic ShawnZone, whom Aaron does more than suggest others get their talking points from, while at the same time Aaron is not pretending he is concerned about ShawnZone’s whereabouts, and you don’t have to read between the lines to find out why as he puts this puzzle together pointing to his last few updates where it all comes together that the heart throb guitarist fell victim to some nefarious plot of an insidious game player, and is now missing, last seen on the panel discussions for NXNE in Toronto.  

Screenshot courtesy NXNE

Films Crew Band’s chameleon time keeper Aaron gives the state of the union on the dark side of social media’s impact on mental issues and something tells us he wants to name names, and shares the mystery of some of the guitars sexy axe wielder ShawnZone shredded with on the upcoming Films Crew double platter release and some new details on different runs of the vinyl only limited editions.  A Warner rep stated the limited availability will be a larger and more varied pressing than previously thought with a single being pushed throughout Europe.  Aaron treats us to two teasers, Syndrome and Stigmatized, showing that Films Crew’s on target to become amongst progressive metal’s most influential.  We can’t help but wonder of the fate the enigmatic and missing ShawnZone with the rumor mill swirling overtime of a tragic end to the beautiful young guitarist, he is truly one of a kind.  The rim shot wordsmith Aaron again addresses the anomaly of Daniel Lukas downplaying the sometimes viral internet sensation and social engineer’s role in the scheme of things as a source has it that Daniel Lukas is about deal up a blast of epic news, we think Aaron should reconsider his casual approach to Daniel Lukas, and take some advice from Films Crew a cohort.  To put Aaron’s puzzle together, go back and read the previous entries and follow the links, there’s a lot to learn.

Link to Aaron’s latest update

Link to Films Crew’s Stigmatized

By Kurt Parker

Films Crew Band may hunkering down as the hunks work on their upcoming release Stigmatized but something else is afoot.  As we noted previously, in covering black metal musician Daniel Lukas’ presence, a Warner label rep has stated on the record that Lukas is an unknown entity to the band and the label taking us back to out original claims of Lukas’ past of alleged hacking and social engineering, including possible attempts on the band’s website due to an obsessive crush on FilmsCrewBand’s ShawnZone.  While Lukas may have some disjointed proprietary intel on the band, it will not have been gained through proper channels.  We may regret linking to his website, only opting for official word from label reps or the band, should they grant us access, Daniel Lukas has an elaborate puzzle that isn’t easy to decipher, but something is there.  Films Crew’s chameleon hunky drummer Aaron had made reference to the name, we apologize for any inconvenience this has caused readers or the band.   Still at issue are Aaron’s dances with words over the lack of ShawnZone’s presence.  The triplet master wordsmith’s indication that the blonde bombshell guitarist’s taking leave from the band was due to well founded emotion turmoil from someone in  his ultra private inner circle, defending but pointing a finger.  Stigmatized is due to be released in limited edition vinyl runs exclusively, likely being sold out before it is ever pressed.  No summer tour dates have been announced at this time, though don’t count Films Crew out for surprise appearances.

By Kurt Parker

With FilmsCrew debuting four massive mastery of progressive post metal tracks last month of mathematically precise heavy time signatures beyond the boundaries of imagination, yesterday they disappeared from the site along with hot blonde guitar god ShawnZone.  A Warner rep stated this evening that the tracks were to be released late this year in a limited edition vinyl package ahead of the re-recording of the enigmatic band’s debut re-issue.  The most requested track Crying For Crisis streamed over 250,000 times since its debut a few weeks ago is now  nowhere to be heard, undoubtedly the most intense tour de force Films Crew masterpiece to date with vocal by new vocalist Andrew Self and ShawnZone. Gone!  ShawnZone’s Exile is now imposed.  An alarming update to the ShawnZone Section of the site Films Crew’s new vocalist/instrumentalist Andrew Self states ShawnZone had all of his content removed and has probably quit his own band over what looks to be identical reasons from the devastating blow the band took during the very public 2014/15 break up over the then power couple ShawnZone and Aaron in which the double kick dynamo became erratic and abusive to his guitarist fiancé who took the blows gracefully taking its toll on ShawnZone who many ever wondered if he would rebound, it was the hot mess of a conversation topic from Manhattan to London, Aaron’s behavior was so bad no one in the NY music scene would touch him.  Films Crew replaced Aaron with the taunt German Kurt Vogl.  Down but not quite out Aaron was asked back into Films Crew while the band kept on Vogl.  It was common knowledge that the then former power couple didn’t even speak to each other while working at which time Aaron revealed through website updates a history of severe child abuse and his connection to ShawnZone’s family who had rescued him.  In those dark times the band became more mysterious, even reclusive taking their activities solely to Europe and The East after the disaster of the spectacle made out of them at the tender age of 18 with their debut Narcissus Echoes.  Talk from a Warner rep in the early evening was that someone in ShawnZone’s inner circle had pushed him too far echoing an Aaron scenario, and one needn’t look too far into ShawnZone’s recent updates and work to figure out who that someone at the hand of that turmoil is. But the sly guitarist had his work removed. Except there is the power of screenshots.  

Link to ShawnZone’s Page now abandoned to Andrew Self

Hot on the heels of the site scrubbing Aaron posted an update which provided many clues into the mysterious disappearance.  The double kick heartthrob opens an update by coming out?, when he’s been publicly ambiguous since FilmsCrew hit the radar, digging deeper into his update he does make many mentions of duplicitousness, and how some ghoul probably in the band’s inner circle had woven a web of deceit ensnaring an ‘unnamed’ band member, (obviously ShawnZone) and had gone to some great lengths in this psychopathic effort, Aaron’s description is not dramatic it’s downright ice-cold chilling.  As it becomes clear who is involved.

Link to Aaron’s Update 

Aaron and Levi take to Twitter to exchange the rare public but cryptic dialogue.

The Warner rep I spoke to had some much grimmer details to discuss involving a stalker shadowing someone in FilmsCrew and they were on high alert status over the band involving some internet hijinks and threats, as well as some concerns over the band’s political activism. With Newbie Andrew in charge of the band’s Twitter, it’s been silent until today.  While Aaron and Levi normally keep us up to date on the bizarre and have in the past publicly called out people, since last November’s site hack Aaron has been amazingly introspective delving deep into the psyche making him a bonafide writer well worth reading. While Aaron fought a tough road back to forgiveness it sharpened his senses keenly, calling out someone not to be the new Aaron and unfortunately that fell on some deaf ears given the current state of affairs. The site seems at a loss without the blonde bombshell ShawnZone’s insight and music previews.   With Aaron and Levi at the helm of their website, there will be blood, as we all remember they take no prisoners.  Andrew Self promises to keep us updated on ShawnZone however the Warner rep wasn’t on point with that, and was quick to point out that there were many unknowns in the guitarists life over the last year which haven’t been made public, the word traumatic was used.  Whether the break from the band is permanent or not, ShawnZone has always been one of the very few gracious and kind individuals in music, despite never willing to give an interview and walking out on the Village Voice, With that grace it’s only a matter of time before he was taken advantage of again, as it seems to be here.  To whoever would torment that soul, I hope you find your place in your own private hell

Update.  I reached out to the management for Films Crew and was told there was a possibility that someone from Films Crew will speak to me off the record, as long as there is no interview.  Meanwhile I don’t think Aaron and Levi will stay quiet in their discontent.

By Kurt Parker

FilmsCrewBand’s Levi Wall broke his silence with an update stating that Films Crew Band and its several projects were not in any way breaking up, contradicting the bassists mysterious and sparse Twitter feed, where between Levi and Films Crew’s Aaron announced new band member but as this recording has been considered to be an important work We are sure that Cameron Reyher must be highly qualified in those down-tuned polyrhythmic syncopations that are Films Crews trade mark.  Nothing is known of the new hire other than he is not part of the NYC music art scene.  Kurt Vogl had been referenced in Aaron’s last bombastic update, but wait, much earlier by ShawnZone himself as all of the pieces fall into place.  Nik Turner made no announcement of leaving but had announced at CMJ that he would be recording a solo or project album much different in nature than Films Crew or Peyrony.

By Kurt Parker

By Kurt Parker

Fresh on the heels of announcement of the possible departure of Films Crew Band’s Shawn Zone scandal has arisen in the the form of a leaked photo trying to laughably suggest Films Crew Band drummer Aaron James was a straight male escort servicing left leaning political functions.  the photo appeared on the Daily Stormer forum by a poster named Ben Salt trying to identify the nude musician.  This comes hot on the heels of a flurry of a Tweet-storm between FilmsCrewBand’s Aaron and Levi Wall and unidentified others over the possible departure of guitar master Shawn Zone, suggesting far more was afoot than were mysterious circumstances surrounding the bereft announcement of departure.  As mysterious as the Tweet-storm was it could reference tension between Aaron and French Sludge Metallers AmenRa with whom FilmCrewBand appeared with during many tour dates.  This isn’t the first time the Films Crew double kick extraordinaire has appeared in the buff having been featured in photo spreads and the band’s now censored videos just the latest time and how he was featured on an extremist right wing political forum is as mysterious as it is humorous.  Details of shred master guitarist Shawn Zone’s possible departure are still unknown but may be darker than imagined.  

By Kurt Parker

After a success of a FilmsCrewBand European festival summer tour, bits and pieces of snippets of new material started showing up on the Films Crew website.  Today Shawn announced the possibility of his departure from his influential musical post and it’s personal.  This was accompanied by an announcement from Aaron in an unusually clear statement.  This year was the first time we saw Shawn write on the website with his own section and the articles garnered great interest since they weren’t promotional.  Films Crew and associated bands don’t promote themselves on social media.  At the CMJ Music Marathon with their last appearance one of the panels they attended was about Periscope discussing of what merits it could be useful with a producer package that they inquired about on the panel,  Shawn and Aaron have had a presence on the app. Although Aaron’s tweets have vanished from the FilmsCrewBand Twitter account and most of his own mysterious feed vanished too.  Films Crew bests Tool at being enigmatic.  Shawn’s possible departure would be coming at a strange time with upcoming releases. This morning saw much of his content removed from his part of the website, not like the website outage breach they suffered in November, when not to mince words their webmaster named names about that.  According to a Warner music rep, Films Crew has been re-recording their debut album Narcissus Echo to release again replacing the absence of the original which they had removed from the market in a nasty dispute over the final product, and newer recordings have been under way, the snippets premiering on their site have featured jaw dropping guitar work amidst a flurry of multiple time signatures.  And while not at all their first foray into video, the most straightforward and personal featuring clothing, everything else still steeped in Jungian imagery.  In early fall after CMJ ShawnZone was nowhere to be found in the usual haunts in the Manhattan Villages and Brooklyn then the multi-instrumentalist PhD candidate fell off the map, the only sign of life was ShawnZone’s Twitter account then a burst of content on the band’s website.  Aaron as well, Levi had made an announcement he was spending time at Amherst, the three core members all have psychology and music degrees.  Kurt Vogl disappeared from Twitter after stating he would be spending time in Germany, Nik Turner and Logan Harris have haven’t had any presence since the tour.  Post tour wind down or so it was thought.  Shawn’s Twitter reflected a deep disappointment in the elections and in a coalition with Pelican to donate to the ACLU, later joined by Brian Cook of Russian Circles and Sumac and others that came on board, it was clear that Shawn had done the networking.  His end of year Top 10 list gave a moving but blistering editorial of the movement known as Gays for Trump, this was widely circulated and for the moment is still available on his section of the website.  These things aren’t a personal reason for a departure.  Just days ago there was a very strange controversy on Periscope that the young Shawn was caught in the crossfire of that he wasn’t a part of, but became the source of rancor for a 25 minute rant by a middle-aged political live streamer named FrenchGuy1 in his scornful rant gave out some correct and incorrect details of the young musician’s personal life and his entanglements with another Periscope member who is likely referenced on the band’s site.  Shawn was quick to fire back from the website, which is out of character and got immediate notice by music outlets.  Aaron tweeted he had the audio of the event then deleted the tweet from the band’s account.  Films Crew has always had political activism running through their veins since their involvement with Occupy Wall Street.  The last that is known of the event is one of Aaron’s cryptic tweets.