The Story of On the Take

A Collection of Memories

Chad Pry and Joshua Carpenter met in 1999 when they began playing in the new-wave/proto-punk/electro-clash band Piedmont Charisma. Like all bands, Piedmont Charisma had its shortcomings, and even though they were immensely popular and wildly successful, the band decided to call it quits because they were all addicted to amphetamines and could no longer bear the company of one another. It was 2004 when the members went their separate ways, Pry starting a lucrative law firm and Carpenter becoming a "home bum." Two years passed....

It was during this time that Pry met Justin Whitlow, who had cut his teeth in the bands "Reductio ad Absurdum," which is Latin, and "Cannibal Unicorn," which is not. At the time, Whitlow was desperately seeking a creative outlet, as both Reductio and "Tha Unicorn" had recently been dismembered, which is to say, all of the members of both bands quit being in the bands. Pry went up to Whitlow one day and was like, "Duder, do you want to start up a band where I play guitar and you play drums, and we'll call it 'On the Take'?" Whitlow was all, "Yeah, that would be totally awesome because when someone says that someone else is 'On the Take,' they mean that the person is a kidnapper." Pry knew that Whitlow was wrong, but he laughed good-naturedly and said, "You are so right about that, Justin!" Right then and there the two decided that this "On the Take," whatever it meant, would be their destiny. History was about to be made.

But first, they needed a bass player, preferably an extremely attractive woman. Someone matching the criteria was impossible to find, however, so Pry and Whitlow were forced to broaden their scope. But times were tight, and most of Asheville's bass players had sold their instruments to buy food and provisions what got them through the long, hot Carolina summer. Pry was walking under the bridge downtown when right there, protruding from the underneath of an emaciated dallywiddle bush, was the scabby, ant-covered foot of his one-time friend Joshua Carpenter.

Initially, Pry was filled with contempt for his old comrade; why should HE be able to sit there and get drunk all day and not hold down a steady job while upstanding American citizens (who were actually BORN here) should have to do all of the work? That gold-bricker! But then Pry thought, "Hey, you know, we used to make a pretty good team way back when, maybe he deserves a second chance at life." He pitched the idea to his drunken, illiterate friend. Carpenter's response surprised Pry: "Chadwicke Mapplethorpe Pry, look at me; I am homeless, penniless, and covered in scabs. I do not even know how to read or speak English properly. Why would you want someone like me to create beautiful music with you?"

"Because, old friend, you are the most strikingly handsome man that I have ever laid eyes on." Carpenter was in.

Then when Carpenter and Pry returned to the "On the Take House," where the band practiced and did most of their male bonding, they were surprised to find that a tallish man called "Andrew Riddle," after consuming seven 40-ounce containers of malt liquor, had inducted himself into the band. There was not much the other three members could do about it, especially Whitlow, who hasn't even been in this biography for several paragraphs. At any rate, the quartet, by adding a fourth member, was finally complete. It was time to bring the music to the people!

On the Take played their first show and it was sold out, just like all their subsequent shows have been and all of their future shows will be. Who knows what the coming years have in store for this fine group of talented young songcraftsmen? One thing is for sure: On the Take plays pop-tinged rock with hints of synth and can be compared to Guided by Voices, Brainiac, and the Unicorns. Also, they like to say that their glass is "half full."

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The Story of On the Take

A Collection of Memories

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