THE NORTH ADAMS TRANSCRIPT: Ozzy tribute band postponed at Brannings

Ozzy tribute band postponed at Brannings

By Bruce L. Whitney - Article Published: Friday, March 21, 2003 - 10:00:57 AM EST
Special to the Transcript

NORTH ADAMS, MA -- Adams native Michael Mikutowicz won't get to play Ozzy Osbourne tonight. His locally scheduled show, Believer, has been postponed due to inspection failures at Brannings.

"We are looking at April 11 for a reschedule as long as Brannings re-opens by then," Mikutowicz said of Believer, his nationally popular Ozzy tribute band. "We are actually playing here in support of some young local bands."

Mikutowicz has performed as Ozzy for 10 years side by side with John Novak, who plays guitar in a style close to Randy Rhodes (the late guitarist of Osborne's band). The singer's portrayal is physically and vocally haunting in its closeness to the original Ozzy Osbourne.

Believer has performed at The Station, the music club in Rhode Island that burned recently due to pyrotechnics usage.

"We played at The Station over 20 times in nearly eight years," Mikutowicz said. "Was it a dangerous place? That isn't really something that most bands look at first in a room."

Mikutowicz feels local officials are the ones who make such places safe. "But the (pyrotecnics) technician was an idiot. It's their responsibility to determine the ultimate safety before shooting anything off. There are variables in every stage. This is the person who needs to call it off if risks exist," he said.

"We have never used pyro," Mikutowicz continued. "Once, a light technician set off a couple of simple flashpots but nothing as elaborate as Great White used that night at The Station. I didn't really like them and I don't even like fog machines other than dry ice. That stuff really bothers my throat," he said.

According to Public Safety Commissioner E. John Morocco, city inspectors were not checking out Brannings or any other area nightclubs in reaction to the Station fire in Rhode Island that killed 99 people. He said the local violations were discovered as result of a regular, yearly inspection of the business.

While several violations were discovered at Brannings last year, Morocco said more violations had developed over the course of this past year. It is hoped the problems will be fixed by this weekend.