The Lowell-based band which plays SpeakEZ Lounge next Wednesday was featured for Local Spins on WYCE, which also debuted tracks by several other Michigan artists.

High-Energy, Theatrical Shows: Vernon Potts (Photo/Brady Olson)
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There’s more to Vernon Potts than meets the eye, or the ears.
At its core, band frontman Ryne Clarke, otherwise known in the outfit as guitarist and singer Kacy Lerner, likes to say the emerging West Michigan group plays “psychedelic-punk music.”
But those are just the basic underpinnings.
“We are rooted in rock, but try to sway between fast tempos and noise sections surrounding the core of the songs,” he added. “We get a bit more jammy live.”
Oh, and their original music gets hatched in “very spur-of-the-moment” and “off-the-cuff” fashion.
And speaking of “live,” fans also can expect Vernon Potts to expand the visuals of its stage show in coming months.
“Our goal for next year is to play more shows and write as a band,” said Clarke, who also has helped propel bands such as The Preservers and The Ryne Experience over the years. “With this project I want to hold out for shows that call for our kind of music and make performances more theatrical for 2024.”
VIDEO: Vernon Potts, Live at Upstairs, Man Studios
That theatrical approach extends to band members’ stage monikers, created from anagrams of their real names: Ryne Clarke is Kacy Lerner, guitarist-singer Jeremy Kargl is Al Germ Jerky, drummer Patrick Kargl is Al Garrick Pkt, bassist Dan Christmann is Mr. Chad Tannins and saxophonist/keyboardist Joe Shimmellmann is Jen Ilk Skim Mom.
“I think we wanted to set it apart from The Ryne Experience,” Clarke said of his band that disbanded after four years, thus opening the door to Vernon Potts. “We thought it would be fun to play a different character live.”

Ryne Clarke: Impressed by Grand Rapids’ music scene. (Photo/Brady Olson)
Andrew Teed, who partners with Clarke in operating Midwest Gold Records (which represents Vernon Potts and several other groups), says the band simply stands out: “It’s the personalities. They’re all such goofy dudes.”
Recorded at Clarke’s Upstairs, Man Studios in Lowell, the band released its self-titled debut album earlier this year and headlines the next Local Spins Wednesdays show at SpeakEZ Lounge on Dec. 6. Common Molly will open the 7:30 p.m. show with an acoustic set.
“It’s a reuniting of us playing again,” Clarke said of the SpeakEZ show, where fans can expect a fair amount of improvised jamming by Vernon Potts on stage.
For its debut album, the band called on West Michigan musician and producer Conrad Shock to spin the dials and give the collection an unusual milieu.
By incorporating hip-hop elements and movie samples, Shock wrapped the album “into a sound collage” and made it “more of an art piece,” Clarke said. “It turned out really cool.”
“A lot of the samples were from the 1973 horror slasher, ‘Horror High,’ where we got the band name,” Clarke explained.
In addition to releasing more singles over the next year, Clarke said Vernon Potts would “primarily work on meeting weekly to practice and write for the next album.”

From the Ground Up: Vernon Potts aims to rise up in 2024. (Photo/Brady Olson)
Of course, Clarke — who embraces his “folkier side” with the Clarke, Reed & Meadows trio — will also continue his work with Midwest Gold Records and run his recording studio, which has hosted bands such as The Tube Socks, Small Foreign Faction, Short Panic, Common Molly, The Dangercode, St. Joe Jack, Ficus, The Mollusks, The Cosmoknights and many more.
“We pride ourselves on a three-room setup with isolation from room to room, allowing bands to live-track with ease without sacrificing the sound of the recording,” the Lowell High School grad insisted.
“We have also started filming live sessions from the studio, which we will continue to release and film into 2024. … The Grand Rapids music scene continues to amaze me.”
In addition to showcasing music from Vernon Potts, this week’s edition of Local Spins on WYCE featured tracks by other regional artists, including Handturner, Chris Collins, The Mollusks, Short Panic, Virga, The Hired Hands, Drew Jacobs & Caitlynne Curtis, Secret Millionaire, Phabies and Joe Johnson & The Bluebacks. Listen to a podcast of the radio show – which airs at 11 a.m. Fridays on WYCE (88.1 FM) and online at wyce.org – here.
PODCAST: Local Spins on WYCE (12/1/23)
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