LOCAL BAND SPOTLIGHT
The Go

Drummer Marc Fellis, left, singer Bobby Harlow, guitarist James McConnell and bassist John Krautner make up the Go. The band's new CD is "Howl on the Haunted Beat You Ride."

The Lowdown: For the past 10 years, scuzzy, grimy Detroit gutter rock has been the hallmark of the Go, charter members of Detroit's garage scene. So following the band's unofficial 2-year hiatus, it's something of a surprise to hear vocalist Bobby Harlow say, "We've got more in common with the Jackson 5 than with the MC5."

Fans will understand where Harlow is coming from after listening to the band's third full-length record, "Howl on the Haunted Beat You Ride" (Cass Records), which is already out in Detroit and is getting a national release at the end of July. Although Harlow's prowling cat vocals and James McConnell's flame-throwing fuzz guitar remain the band's sonic anchors, the Go skips its typical scorched-earth attack on the new release in favor of colorful, pop-like arrangements saturated with nuanced vocals and three-part harmonies

"We're going back to a time before the Gold Dollar," says Harlow, referring to the Cass Corridor dive bar that, before it closed in 2001, served as the incubator for Detroit's garage movement. It's "back to when John, Marc and I played in Marc's basement, and our influences were the Beatles and Steve Winwood and girl groups and the Banana Splits. This is the kind of music we've always loved to make. We've got a colorful sound, and it sometimes feels like people have always wanted to paint us gray. Don't get me wrong. Detroit rock 'n' roll is in our blood. We love it, and we love the super-huge amplifiers and the beer and the fun. But you can get worn out playing heavy rock 'n' roll all the time."

The Go has played just a few local gigs this year. The band is bringing its music back to the streets of Detroit on Saturday when it plays at Comerica CityFest on the New Center Council Park Stage. "It's going to be a special show for us," says bassist John Krautner. "My family's going to be there, and the band's really looking forward to reconnecting with the Detroit fans that we haven't played for in a few years."

The Lineup: Three-fourths of the Go has been constant since '97: Harlow is the band's vocalist and main onstage spectacle. Marc Fellis handles drums. Krautner's on bass. After years of going through guitarists like the Gold Dollar went through cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon -- including the White Stripes' Jack White for a short time -- the Go secured McConnell in 2003.

Together again: Though there was never a formal breakup, the Go did cease and desist in early 2005. "We were on the Lizard King label, and we really liked those guys," Harlow recalls, "but they were looking to impress the bigwigs. We had three publicists with ideas of what kind of band we should be. The head of the record label wanted creative input, and we'd been touring too much. We just burned out."

After band members went their separate ways, Harlow was working on a solo project and called his old buddies for input. "It was clear that the creative spark was still there for us," says Harlow, "and the result is this record that's totally written, performed, produced and recorded by the Go, and just the Go."

By Christopher Walton, Free Press special writer