Love indie style

Yet as Caulk began to make an impact in Denton, it also became more and more difficult for the members to juggle the band with school priorities and relationships. After drummer Mike Malinin (formerly of Last Rites, now with the Goo Goo Dolls) quit in the summer of 1993--though he would return from Los Angeles to record Learn to Take that September--Holt and Bloom graduated from UNT and found themselves waiting on bassist Begue and drummer David Douglas to finish up. But when the rhythm section decided to devote more of its time and effort to classes, the two quit the band.

At that point, Holt and Bloom almost gave up themselves. Finally, last fall, they recruited the relatively inexperienced Schuman to play drums and found Sharp, who had played bass with such unknown local bands as the Tremens and Pail. The new hires rejuvenated Holt and Bloom and set Caulk back on its course. When the foursome entered the studio earlier this year to begin recording Love American Style, Holt and Bloom quickly noticed how their newest bandmates, especially Sharp, changed the ways the songs were written and recorded.

"That to me is what makes the sound that we have so interesting," Holt says of the songwriting process, which begins with Holt and Bloom bashing out an idea and then bringing in Sharp and Schuman to refine it. "It comes from so many different points of view. We all want our points of view to be represented. We don't all have the same vision, but the visions that we have complement each other well."

As they close in on the release date for Love American Style, they are anxious to see if reality lives up to their expectations--or their vision. They voice their hopes for extensive touring and gaining some name recognition, though their excitement about the album hints at a yearning for something bigger.

"We've written a lot of good music and we want to get it out," Sharp says, almost impatiently.

"If we pull off this thing--even if we pull it off moderately--to where we can get our record out," Holt says, "get it in people's hands, get people at our shows, and be able to say we did it completely and totally by ourselves, that's the shit for me.