Nellie Blide

Nellie Blide was a popular alternative rock band from 1999 to 2002 from Annapolis, Maryland. The band consisted of bass Player Justin Crown, drummer Darin Malfi, guitarist/singer Ronald Damien Malfi, and guitarist/singer Chase Scott. A later iteration of the band had Scott replaced by guitarist Ryan "Shredder" Fowler in 2001, placing all the singing duties on Malfi. The band was formed in 1999, following the disbanding of the members' previous band, Tangerine. Their high energy shows and addictive music brought Nellie Blide to the forefront of the mid-Atlantic music scene. Despite the band's failure to ever release an official album, a number of different bootleg studio and live recordings exist.

Biography

Hailing from Annapolis, Maryland, Nellie Blide exploded onto the mid-Atlantic music scene with weekly performances at Baltimore's historic Eight by Ten nightclub. Early shows found the band members wearing unusual, often matching clothing, such as hospital scrubs or basketball jerseys. Their music, humorously dubbed "[...] disco" by the band, was characterized by catchy, energetic hooks, eclectic melodies, and poetic lyrics. After winning a local battle of the bands sponsored by popular radio station 98 Rock, the band's popularity took off, and they began playing around the mid-Atlantic region, three and sometimes four shows in a weekend.

Plagued by inner turmoil and disagreements, Chase Scott parted ways with the band in 2001 to form a more urban/pop band called Masters of the Universe. Meanwhile, Nellie Blide recruited Ryan Fowler to handle the majority of the guitar duties. Fowler's addition to the band took their music from an alterna-pop, commercial-friendly sound to a more distinctive, dark motif, enhanced by shredding guitar licks, haunting vocals, and odd-tempo time signatures. The songs written and performed with this lineup, to include "Life," "Same Place," and "Catherine" quickly defined the band's sound.

However, continuing disagreements between bandmates inevitably overshadowed their growing success. In 2002, the band played a farewell performance in their hometown of Annapolis to a sold out crowd, which was recorded; bootleg copies of this concert, unofficially titled Live at Surfside, can be found, though the band did not release or support the album.

Currently

Since parting ways, the former members of Nellie Blide continued pursuing their MusicAL and artistic goals. Most notably, frontman Ronald Damien Malfi eventually became a successful novelist, whose books include The Nature of Monsters and Via Dolorosa. In 2007, Malfi, along with Ryan Fowler, composed and recorded the original motion picture score for the horror film Doomed to Consume. Justin Crown and Darin Malfi have been mutually involved in a variety of projects, to include forming their start-up record label, Original Life Records, and performing and recording music as The SP Thugz and Dr. Punch Jr. Likewise, Chase Scott enjoyed some time as the frontman for the Baltimore-based band Product before leaving the group in 2005.

Lineup

• Justin Crown - bass
• Darin Malfi - drums
• Ron Malfi - guitar/vocals
• Chase Scott (until 2001) - guitar/vocals
• Ryan Fowler (2001-2002) - guitar

Discography

While Nellie Blide never officially released any albums, a number of "unofficial" recordings were frequently distributed at concerts.

Albums

Side Two Performers (released in 1995 as Tangerine on Jelly Donut Records) - four song demo
LSP Cuts - 6-song studio album (unreleased)
Live at Surfside - 12-song live album (unreleased)