A group of 'fine-looking men'
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It seems as if every single story written about this band begins with a cereal reference, so why change now?
What may sound like a ë70s breakfast cereal that was later pulled off the market because its sugar content turned out to be rocket fuel is actually the name of one of the North Coast's more popular cover bands.
For nearly a decade, CoCoBeanOs has been rocking and rolling to a wide variety of hits in a fashion that singer-guitarist Scott Gast says turns an average bar, club or festival into an epicenter of high-energy fun.
"Everybody enjoys a CoCoBeanOs show," said Gast, a 2002 Margaretta High School graduate. "That especially goes for the girls, because we're a bunch of fine-looking men. We're just that good looking."
While Gast said he's kidding, it's this persona of vanity that actually plays into the CoCoBeanOs mass appeal. This confident bunch has good reason to strut these days, considering the quintet performs more than 100 shows a year to packed crowds from Cleveland to Toledo.
"People come out because we rock, and we're kind of a big deal in these parts," laughed Gast. "It's a joke. We say that over the mic and people laugh. But we go out there to have a good time, and I think that's part of the reason why we're popular. We just have so much fun at every show."
The outfit used the name CoCoBeanOs as a joke at its debut show in a Castalia talent contest with the full intention of finding a different moniker later. But from that one gig, more offers came in. Before the band members knew it, the group was on its way as a soft classic rock cover band (Jimmy Buffett, Van Morrison, etc.).
Since then, the five-piece band has added the last 30 years of pop rock culture to its repertoire, with a song list that ranges from AC/DC, Cheap Trick and Journey to Weezer, Green Day, Jet, The White Stripes and Buckcherry.
Gast said the long-term plan for the band is to record original material; however, being a highly sought after cover act has become quite lucrative.
"We've been packing every place we play, and because of that, everybody wants us," Gast said. "I come home from work and I have a dozen messages on the answering machine on an average day. Part of it is I believe a lot of the cover bands nowadays either don't have the right mix of music or don't have the right energy that goes along with it.
"When you come to see the CoCoBeanOs, we put on the show. We kind of take on the song as if it was our own song and breathe it into the audience. One of the things is that we'll get the crowd going. We'll move all over the place and get pretty crazy."
Crazy fun is what Gast is promising for the CoCoBeanOs' Erie County Fair debut Aug. 8 at the fairgrounds in Sandusky.
The band also is playing Aug. 10 at Cabana Jacks and Aug. 11 at Lyman Harbor.
Invariably, being in CoCoBeanOs allows the band members to enjoy glimpses of rock stardom.
"We all have our day jobs," Gast laughed, "but this is like turning from Clark Kent into Superman."
CoCoBeanOs
UPCOMING SHOWS: August 8 at the Erie County Fair; August 10 at Cabana Jacks; August 11 at Lyman Harbor
INFO: myspace.com/thecocobeanos
If the previous analogy is true, the CoCoBeanOs should wear blue tights and red capes at their shows this weekend. Make it happen, 'BeanOs. E-mail John Benson at jbenson@funcoast.com.
