Cape Girardeau is getting some Lojic

The testimonials on their website range from the frightening ("This band broke me off like an anthrax scare!") to the weird ("This band has more emotional baggage than Barbara Streisand!"). Their music sounds like the bastard child of Bob Marley and Alice in Chains. They are Lojic, and they are coming to Cape Girardeau.

Lojic is a band from St. Louis that merges "traditional hip-hop, thick driving bass grooves, and industry leading scratches" into a musical experience that is truly their own. The band has five members, and recently released their second cd, "The Manual," which was produced by Steve Ewing, former singer for The Urge.

"It's a step by step booklet for you to get, a do-it-yourself guide to advancing through the world of music, wrapped around the greatest songs in the world," said Helias, who works the turntables, of the album.

"It's kind of a joke concept album about how whacked out, but awesome at the same time, the music industry is," added bassist and singer Johnny O'Neil.

The recording process for "The Manual" with Steve Ewing as producer was an awesome, humbling, and very professional experience, said O'Neill.

"That's the man, right there. You would have had to been in the studio with us to really get a clear picture, but Steve in the studio was just like Steve on stage; hype as hell, carrying the sessions to new places, really remarkable. I love that guy," said Helias.

Lojic will be playing on August 20 as a part of the Tone Def All-Stars' final show. This will be the band's second trip to Cape Girardeau.

"I love Cape...I don't even have to say what's up to Tone-Def because they know we love them very much. This is the second time we have played with them, and I think it's going to be 9,874,543 times better," said O'Neill.

"I'm looking forward to having Lojic back in town," said Darren Burgfeld of the Tone Def All-Stars. "They are so talented and so down-to-earth, too."

Lojic has many things they hope for in next year or so, including writing more songs and getting signed to a major label, and they are also planning a big move.

"We are currently planning on moving to Los Angeles to break into new places we have never played and take it to the next level. A lot of people view signing to a label as selling out, but what they don't understand is that the majors are the only ones with international distribution, so you need that if you want to get your record into stores," said O'Neill. "There is nothing wrong with reaching out to people that wouldn't be able to hear your music otherwise if you were [on an] independent [label]. Silly haters."

"I hope we continue on the path of writing the best work of our lives. We have some new joints rolled up, so to speak, and they are the super-fire. Personally, I hope that we all continue being very good to each other, supporting each other like we do. It's rare in life that you get the opportunity to make incredible art and music with people you can really trust and count on. I personally feel very blessed," said Helias.

In addition to their show on August 20 at Breakaway's with the Tone Def All-Stars, Lojic will also be performing on September 23 at Breakaway's with the Steve Ewing Band and Zach Hexum. For more information on how to get a copy of "The Manual," visit the band's website at www.planetlojic.com.