Trip Romeo

Travis LeRoy: Bass & Vocals, Kevin Larkin: Guitars, Hercules Castro: Guitars, Tom Giere: Drums

During the years I was not in a band, my musical taste began to change. I was becoming less interested in writing the most complicated bass line possible and more interested in writing good songs. Since it is somewhat limiting to write songs on the bass, I decided to learn a more melodic instrument. I chose to teach myself the guitar. Being a bass player helped some, but I still really sucked at first. Slowly but surely, however, I became proficient enough to get my song ideas across.

When I formed Trip Romeo, my goal was to form a band that played well written, commercial (but heavy) hard rock music. I was basically striving for a sound somewhere between Skid Row and Metallica. I also wanted to make sure everyone in the band looked the part.

The first person to join was a drummer named Tom Giere. I had originally met him in the Salem Spade days. He was a real good drummer who also came from a technical metal background. We seemed to be on the same basic page musically and he was a very cool guy. The next addition was a guitar player named Kevin Larkin. He came from a very commercial rock background. He was an excellent guitar player with a truly natural talent for the guitar. He was super funny and likeable, which is always a plus in a band. We looked for what seemed like forever to find a suitable second guitarist. Finally, I got a call from this seventeen-year-old kid named Hercules who wanted to audition.It took me about 15 seconds of hearing him play before I invited him to join the band. He was excellent.

With the band complete, we began rehearsing a couple of times a week. We rented out a really cool practice space. It was about the size of a five car garage. It had no windows and we painted all the walls and the ceiling purple. Tom set up his drum riser and we put two big Trip Romeo banners on each side of the drums. Our practice space essentially looked like a stage. Things were finally starting to feel like a real band.

There were not a lot of places to play in Colorado Springs, but we played when we could. We also went to Denver (60 miles north of Colorado Springs) a few times and played some clubs there. We probably played an average of once or twice a month.

Trip Romeo recorded two demo tapes between 1991 and 1992. We got airplay on the local rock station, which was awesome. By 1992, things were going fairly well for the band, but we were having a hard time moving beyond the local scene. About that time, I got a call from a friend in Denver. He told me about this band called "Valor" who were looking for a bassist. From what I heard, they were the biggest rock band in Denver and had an excellent reputation. I decided to set up an audition. To be honest, I initially just wanted to check out them out and see how Trip Romeo compared. I was not very interested in quitting Trip Romeo and joining a band in another city.

The day of the audition, I drove to Denver and was prepared to play three or four songs. The guys seemed cool and they were very good. After running through the songs, they asked me to leave for about 30 minutes while they had a meeting. When I came back, I was expecting them to say something like "We will be in touch." Instead, they told me I was hired! and told me practices were on Tuesdays, Thursday and Sundays. I was flattered and surprised. I needed a little time to decide if I really wanted to quit Trip Romeo and join a band in Denver.

Over the next few days, I wrestled with my conscious. In the end, I decided to join Valor. I realized how hard I had been working over the years to get in a good band. Without moving to Los Angeles, Valor was the best chance I had at “making it”. I had to make a move.

I remember calling the guys from Trip Romeo together to tell them I was leaving the band. Realistically, I knew that the band would not continue without me. It was a hard meeting for me but the guys all took it well. That night, Trip Romeo ended forever and I was about to embark on a life-changing journey.

I look back with much fondness when I think about that time of my life. It was a time when I had the perfect combination of great freedom and little responsibility. I was twenty-one, about to obtain my Bachelors Degree and playing for one of the biggest unsigned rock bands in the area. I can't imagine that life gets much better than that.

I was now the bass player for Valor and things were about to get interesting.