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In the late 1970's former Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna bassist Jack Casady stuck his toes in the waters of New Wave when he partnered with vocalist/guitarist Brian Marnell, drummer Bill Gibson and keyboardist Nick Buck to form SVT. The quartet hashed out a sound that incorporated elements of pop, rock, New Wave and towards the end, metal. In 1979, SVT recorded the single, "Heart of Stone," which garnered airplay on San Francisco's legendary FM institution, KSAN. This was quickly followed by another single, "New Year," which upped the band's buzz factor substantially. But before SVT could capitalize on that initial success, Bill Gibson left to become part of Huey Lewis' band, the News. Paul Zahl was recruited to replace Gibson and the new line-up went about re-establishing their name, and they were quickly snapped up by local label, 415 Records. In 1980, SVT released a seven song EP on 415, cleverly titled, Extended Play. This EP included revved-up versions of "I Walk the Line" and "Red Blue Jeans And A Ponytail," which lent a rockabilly flavor to the otherwise New Wave-leaning release. The EP garnered massive amounts of airplay on college station KUSF, and got some significant spins on San Francisco's fledgling commercial station, KSFX. By this... Read More ... time, any expectations that SVT's sound had anything to do with the noodling, free-form sounds of the Airplane or Hot Tuna had evaporated. Instead, SVT staked out their niche by opening for such bands as the Ramones, Nick Lowe and the Tubes. One of the hardest working bands in San Francisco, SVT played in small-sized venues regularly, diligently trying to expand their audience, but for some reason, the band never seemed to take off outside of the Bay Area. The following year, the band parted ways with both 415 Records and Nick Buck. It didn't take long for the trio to get signed by another local label, MSI. SVT's first and only release for MSI was No Regrets, an 11-song album which boasted a tighter, harder rocking sound than their previous releases. Gone were Nick Buck's new wave-ish keyboards and any touches of rockabilly, replaced by squalling guitar riffs that bordered on metal. Around this time, Brian Marnell's dependency on hard drugs was taking its toll on the band and live shows became less frequent. By the time SVT disbanded, Marnell was no longer a band member. Sadly, Brian Marnell died in 1983.
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