The Legend of the SM58 Tattoo

Frank is the lead singer of the band Sladicidal, a Suicidal Tendencies cover band. Frank grew up around music, so when it came time for him to pick a mic he knew it was going to be the Shure SM58 dynamic vocal microphone. And when it came time for him to get a tattoo, it was his wife who suggested he go with the legendary microphone.

We also get into the history of the St. Augustine musical scene, specifically at Shanghai Nobby’s who were gracious enough to let us record the podcast live at their bar and also happened to be the spot where Frank and Sladicidal first performed.

About Frank Sladhish Jr

Frank Sladish is the lead singer of the band Sladicidal, a Suicidal Tendencies cover band, based in Florida. His choice of microphone is the Shure SM58, which he holds in such high regard that he got a tattoo of it on his forearm. Growing up surrounded by music, Frank's affinity for the SM58 was a natural choice. Frank's dedication to music extends beyond his performances with Sladicidal. He is also deeply connected to the St. Augustine music scene, a vibrant community with a rich history. Shanghai Nobby's, a local bar, holds a special place in his heart as the venue where Sladicidal first performed and as a hub for live music in the area. 

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Hi, I'm Clinton Muntean, and welcome back to another episode of the Sound Connections podcast. Today we're venturing outside the studio. This episode came about because a few months ago we were hunting around Facebook, reading comments to a post that Shure had made, and one of the comments was from a guy named Frank who posted a picture of his tattoo. That tattoo was a giant SM58 on his forearm. Jen, our marketing director, sent me the link showing how cool it was. Well, when we clicked on his name we realized he was in Florida. I told Jen, we've got to meet this guy. So she reached out, and he was up and game for anything. So we asked him if he would be on our podcast. It turns out Frank is a performer and the lead singer of his band, Slaytacital, a Suicidal Tendencies tribute band. So of course, I pretty much dropped what I was doing and the next day grabbed one of my team members, and we drove to St. Augustine to interview him. We want to give a big shout out and a thank you to Nobby's, which was the bar where Slaytacital first performed and they were nice enough to let us take over the bar for a few hours, so we could sit down and interview Frank and get to know him better and hear his story. So without further ado, here's our interview with Frank recorded at Nobby's Bar in St. Augustine, Florida. Hope you enjoy it.

Clinton

Hi everybody. Welcome to the Sound Connections podcast by Mainline. I'm here with Frank from Slaytacital, a tribute band here in St. Augustine, and he's got a great story for us. This is one of our origins episodes to kind of learn more about, you know, people's backgrounds and music industry and the SM58 and Shure. So this is Frank, and he's got a cool story to tell. So first of all, Slaytacital. So what is it?

Frank

Well, my last name is Slaytish. So and I'm a big fan of Suicidal. Our tribute band is a Suicidal Tendencies Tribute Band. So I put the two together and I got Slaytacital. It's been pronounced Slatical, Slat-icidal, Slaytacital. But as long as people show up to hear the music, that's all that really matters.

Clinton

I made that mistake earlier.

Frank

And that's okay. That's what life's all about.

Clinton

Cool. So when did you guys start? How long have you been playing?

Frank

Well, I've been listening to Suicidal Tendencies since ‘83, and professional life really took me away from music for many years. And about six or seven years ago, friends of mine who've had bands for many years and stuff, they knew my dream was to play some Suicidal Tendencies out. And unfortunately for the person, they had cancer. So cancer kind of, like we know cancer sucks, of course. So more importantly is they asked if I could use my big mouth to help out in any way. And my friends said, “Hey, we know you love Suicidal. Why don't we get together, practice a set, and we'll play a set of Suicidal Tendencies, and you can live your dream set.” And at the same time, we'll have an auction and do some things for the folks that need it. And of course, I jumped at that at the moment they said that.

Clinton

So your first gig was a benefit gig?

Frank

Almost all of our gigs were or are benefits. The last show we had for my birthday, which is January 6th, was probably the first in years that was actually for pleasure. And over those benefit shows in the past six or seven years, we've raised over $16,000 for friends who basically, you know, at my age, 53, things start happening. Health kind of goes out the window here and there. People have, you know, things that are unfortunate in life that happen to them, addictions and stuff like that. So I just looked around and saw friends having some problems, and there was a need. And the need to me was, as my wife says and as I told you, is to use my big mouth to help other people. So what a better way than throw a couple F-words around, sing songs that I love and get in front of a microphone and raise money for people who need it.

Clinton

Nice, nice. So speaking of the microphone, so one of the things I wanted to mention is how we come to know Frank. So we are perusing the interweb, looking at social networks, and he actually posted his tattoo of an SM58 in response to one of Shure’s posts. And I happen to notice he is from Hastings, Florida. So here we are, this is actually our first episode that we were recording of our podcast. And this just happened just a few days ago, and I thought, I got to meet this guy. So we kind of dropped what we were doing, drove out here to St. Augustine, not far from Hastings to talk. So tell me about the tattoo.

Frank

Well, growing up around musicians and music in general, that was literally the microphone you saw on every stage, even going back, I'm talking the early 80s. And I'd like to say again, and this is a perfect example of what we talk about with the SM58 is that it doesn't matter if it's 10 years, 20 years, 30 years, this microphone is still going to work forever. And every dent and ding in this SM58, just like all the others, tells the story of all those years and all those shows. So when I saw other people utilizing them, I said, “Hmm, well, I love those microphones.” I really didn't know much about them at the time. But when I was younger, I finally started using a couple and the sound quality was great. And everybody who used them at that time was really talking very well about them. And now many years later, I bought my own in 2010, and I wasn't even doing any music, but I know I wanted a Shure. And one of my other favorite parts about the SM58 particular is it's affordable. You don't have to be a rock star celebrity. You don't have to be, you know, somebody with millions of dollars. You can be a poor college kid. You could be a middle aged guy who loves Suicidal Tendencies, but you're talking 120, 30 bucks and you can get the best microphone there is in the world, in my personal opinion.

Clinton

Well, not only that, but I mean, some of those guys you're talking about, those millionaire rock stars, they choose to use this microphone anyway.

Frank

I'd say more than anybody I know, and especially in the genre of music that I like, it is the microphone. And as evidenced by most of the videos you see, you can see it. You know it's a Shure SM58 when you see it. And you know that every microphone that is a Shure SM58 like this one has a story to tell about that person and the situations that they've been through. And more importantly to me, as a person who is a front man or a vocalist, it's like your security blanket. And when you know if you're going to use it, abuse it, and bruise it, and it's still going to keep your voice strong, and it's never going to give up on you, you're never going to give up on it. And it's proven time and time again to me over the years that I will never ever choose another because the one I use still works fabulous. It looks a little rough, but I think again, just like our bodies and our lives, you know, we have dents and dings and chinks for a reason. And those reasons are the stories and the things that we've lived through to tell about. And that's what Shure to me represents. Every show tells a story and every little piece that's either in that microphone, whether it's pristine or dinged up and smashed like this particular one, it really tells you the quality of Shure is there and will be there forever. And in my case, again, knowing and watching those guys perform with those microphones and never hearing feedback, never hearing static, never hearing them go dead, it was a real easy choice for me to pick them up. And as I said, I just took the quarters out of my piggy bank, basically, and was able to buy the world's best microphone, in my opinion.

Clinton

Yeah, yeah. Well, I happen to agree. Yeah, I am wearing the shirt.

Frank

So I'm sure. Are you sure? Because we're sure, you know, and the reality of it is, again, is never in the history of rock and roll, punk rock, classical, has SM58 or Shure ever let any musician down that I'm aware of. I've never heard a bad statement from any person or anyone about it. We've used them for crowd control. You know, sometimes we use them for teeth chipping. We've used them for sometimes better or worse for things that you probably shouldn't use them for. But time and time again, they've given their voice to the voiceless and given people like me the opportunity to make sure that for forty-five or fifty minutes of music, it was not going to cut out, and it's going to be the best sounding vocal microphone for me personally. And I know again, if it says, “Use and abuse as I've seen them from other people and musicians,” that's the story. The story is, there's many of them out there for a reason. You can afford them, and you're going to keep them. And as I spoke to you a little earlier, I have a pristine one that I've had for years that I've never even pulled out of the bag except to make sure it's still in there because I can't. I have to use my friends. Yeah. And my friends tell me, hey, hey, Frank, you know, I'm your microphone. Keep me going as long as you can. And I'm happy to do it every day.

Clinton

That's cool. Cool.So how many members are in the band?

Frank

Truly like Suicidal Tendencies, we have a revolving group of folks, which is kind of amazing to me, because as I said, I don't come from really a musical background. I come from a big mouth and again, a guy with a story. And I've found it more amazing to me as people who've come out of the woodwork to volunteer their time and are truly talented musicians to be a part of me. So probably to date, we've had probably four different guitar players, few different bass players. My bass player actually had a heart attack the day before we were supposed to do a show. And we ended up doing the show the day after with another friend who never played Suicidal Tendencies in his life, who became a member for several years. So and then drummers, we've had a couple over the years. So it truly is kind of a community band. And it really brings back to, again, for the reasons of helping others and for what we are standing for and what we're doing, particularly in Slaytecidal, is, you know, to service others, to be a benefit to other people. And they've come out of the woodwork and their talents are diverse. You know, some classical trained, some punk rockers, some rock and rollers. So it's really been a hodgepodge of folks. But to probably give you a good idea, I'd say there's probably at least 10-12 members that, you know, I've always been the front man. But of course, I love all the people singing with me or doing backgrounds or whatever they want to do. But truly has been a group effort. And it still is to this day. I'll have particularly, as I said, hopefully we'll be having a show coming up June 26th. And two of my older guitar players from past days volunteered to play guitar for this show. So it truly is a kind of a full circle.

Clinton

Where are you guys gonna play?

Frank

Right here at Nobby's on the stage behind you.

Clinton

So that's a great segue into Nobby. So. So what's the story there? So this place definitely has a lot of character.

Frank

It's this is St. Augustine's, literally musical institution. I've been coming here since 1986. And Nobby, the original owner, went to school at Flagler College here in St. Augustine and in 1986 we were poor college kids, and we would come out here and have some beers. And Nobby would say, “You know, you guys aren't looking that good. You know, you probably should eat and stuff like that.” We're good at drinking beer, you know. So we did a lot of good drinking beer. So he ended up creating Tuesdays and Thursdays, two dollars, all you could eat, spaghetti and meatballs, so that he knew we were fed a couple of days during the week. And we would come and enjoy that. And we had back in again, showing my age, we had Spud's McKenzie mugs. He would hang it above the bar and it was 50 cent draft. So how could you beat two dollars? I can eat spaghetti and meatballs for 50 cents. A college student. Yeah. And we became very he became like a second father to a lot of us. And back in those days, again, the history of North Florida musicianship in general is varied and amazing. So a lot of those musicians who've gone on to great careers have come through here. The Outlaws, members of Skinner, members of Molly Hatchet, you know, like I said, Flock of Seagulls. We've had a great diverse group of people for 30 plus years coming here. And that's kept me coming back. And when Nobby passed it on to Dave, it drew me back in even more again because Dave's about my age or a little bit younger. So then we started kind of bringing together like some of the bands and stuff that were vintage, I guess you would say, to St. Augustine. And it truly gave us another reason to have reunions of sorts with a lot of folks and a lot of people that I hadn't seen in years because family, you know, family obligations, jobs, years go by.

Clinton

Yeah.

Frank

And then here again, 25 years later, music became a part of my life again in a major way. And those same people that were there 25 years ago are still here now. They're still enjoying music. And every one of them has a Shure. I can assure you. So it's an amazing story of St. Augustine.

Clinton

Yeah. I like how when we walked in before we arrived, there were Shure microphones already set up.

Frank

Certainly.

Clinton

Most of them look like this one.

Frank

Yeah.

Clinton

Gives you an idea of what goes on here.

Frank

Yeah.

Clinton

But but yeah, but they're still working and they were live when we walked in.

Frank

And they always will be here. And as we alluded to many times, that's the testament to not only music, but the history and stories that the walls hide, that the microphones hide, that every person has that could probably tell you every single dink and dent. And now he's is, you know, it's a typical dive bar. You're not getting that lobster and sirloin. But Miss Mama Jill makes excellent food. They're Greek. So they do a lot of homemade Greek meals and Greek things. But more importantly, what you're going to find is a huge mix of people, a place where you're going to see every genre of music. And Nobby's is an institution that hopefully I will never see go away. And it's a very welcoming to everyone. And that's the most important thing I think in music is sort of exclusivity. We should have inclusive place for all people to gather, whether they like country, punk, rock and roll, classical, whatever. You can come in, feel safe, enjoy the music you like. And then possibly again, the mics are always on it. Nobby's, that's one of the things he says. So if you're a poet or if you want to come up here and play some horrible music, like in my case, I can't play, so it would be horrible. But that would be the experience that you, I would hope, have when you come to Nobby's is you feel like you have become part of a family, and it will never leave you. And there's many places that are a little fancier. There's many places that are a little more highfalutin, but there's not many more places that are nitty gritty, real. And you will always have a true, real experience.

Clinton

Yeah, nice. So other other musical, other musicians that have inspired you other than Suicidal?

Frank

My dad was a clarinet player.

Clinton

All right.

Frank

So as a young child, I went and saw a lot of big bands play. I've seen Glenn Miller Orchestra play. I used to see Dizzy Gillespie play. I've seen Spyro Gyra play. So my musical tastes are all over the board. And I grew up as a kid listening to metal. A lot of it was metal. Judas Priest, Van Halen, stuff of that nature. SOD and MOD, which are two of the most well known of the thrash rock genre, did most of the recordings right in Pyramid Studios in Ithaca, New York, which is right outside of my hometown as a kid. So I'd sit outside and listen to those guys in there and just be like, “Wow, man, this is like the music that plays in my head that I can't get out, you know?” And so it became just a... It's like traveling, you know, to different countries. You know, I dabbled in every kind of music I could get my hands on. Roger Miller, I listened to as a kid. You know, I'm 45 and speaking my age now again, but to, you know, Rapper's Delight, my Sugarhill Gang.

Clinton

Oh, yeah.

Frank

I love to roller skate. So they would play a huge, you know, unlimited different music in there, from Judas Priest to Michael Jackson and everything in between. So almost any kind of music I love. Now, Suicidal spoke to me. That's the difference in my love for Suicidal Tendencies is when I heard the first album, it spoke to me. It was like, yeah, as a youth and as a male, you know, you have a lot going on in your mind a lot of times. And that's what brought me to listen to that album for the first time. And then a friend of mine, Pete Deal, Fireman Pete, you call him, said, you gotta hear this stuff, man. This is the stuff that I know you would love. And when I put that record on, I said, holy crap, this is it. And I fell in love with it. And then, you know, of course, over the years, as I said, I wasn't a musician, musician at the time even. So I just got to enjoy that music as part of my life and as being a skater and a surfer. It really had meaning as well as in the activities that we would do. And then, as I said, I love all that genre, Pennywise, Millin' Collin. As I said, I'm a huge Judas Priest fan. I'm a huge, well, Sepultura, some of the old school Slayer, thrash music, Beastie Boys. I mean, I really am all over the charts.

Clinton

Yeah, yeah.

Frank

And that, I think, as evidenced by music now in 2021, it's the culmination of all those genres anyway.

Clinton

So what about what about Suicidal Tendencies themselves? Have any of them reached out to you?

Frank

I've had some great times with those fellows. And as I can show your post later, I have some great pictures with Mike Muir, the leader of the Suicide Army, Dean Pleasance and I are friends, Rod Diaz.

Clinton

Where are they from?

Frank

They're out of Southern California.

Clinton

Okay, okay.

Frank

But funny story, Mike Muir, lead singer's grandparents lived in Live Oak for many years. So he had a true connection to Florida for a long time. And they've passed away, unfortunately, over the years. But I was able to have some good talks and hang out with them. And in the early days, it was unfortunately a little bit more rugged than that. I had a tendency to get a little everclear in me and charge the bus a few times. I told in no uncertain terms to get the hell away from the bus. There would be some trouble. And I said, I want to meet the band. I want to meet the band. And so over the years, again, starting to see them in the 80s, I was able to find small enough shows where I could kind of talk to them and hang out with them, watch my football with them after the shows in Rochester, New York. And that's with a lot of the old lineup of Rocky George and Luigi Mayorga and Mikey Clark. Those guys were kind of the original folks in Suicidal Tendencies to the lineup they have now, which brings us back to the question before they have a large turn, not a turnover, but a large pot of people to pick from that are fantastic musicians that play with them now. And so it's kind of funny, even though I never thought of it like that, but that's what happened to us. So it's kind of a not a diverging tale, but a tale of like very similar things in some respects. And again, in my case, I've been so blessed in the music industry to be in the right place, the right time, and never be afraid to like say, “I'm with the band.” You know, in the old days, I would just make laminates. They wouldn't even have the band stuff on them, and I'd flash them to security and 90 percent of the time it wouldn't work. But there'd be that time that they weren't even paying attention, and they'd let me in there, and I got to meet some great bands like that because I just had a laminate of some sort. So that 1999 for that laminating machine was probably one of the best investments I ever had. And Suicidal again is to this day, as evidenced by their longevity, you know, here 35 years later and still playing strong, and Dave Lombardo joining them from Slayer. I mean, one of the best drummers in the world. We're still seeing them make good music, having good times, and when COVID's over, I fully anticipate getting to enjoy a few more shows with them. And last time I came, I had as a joke, kind of had a sign I made up, let me sing one. So I put it up there in front of Dean and, you know, and finally maybe they will. So after they hear this, Mike, Dean, Rod Diaz, Dave Lombardo and Mr. Ben, if you're out there next time y'all come to Florida, I'd love to do one with you.

Clinton

You know what, we got to tag them, right? So when we post this, we'll tag them and see if they respond.

Frank

That's fabulous. And they're good guys. So I'm happy to know people that I enjoy and listen to are actually good human beings and good folks. And Suicidal for me, again, it's like a brotherhood. It's more than just a band. It's really people like mine and Suicidal for me and as I say at every show, really, it's a family. We're here together when we do music to enjoy a collective experience. And that experience should, you should want that in music. And most people come to want that. And my message is always the same. Together we're strong. You know, we could always pick each other up. We can always put a hand out, put a hand up, pick your brothers up, get everybody to the next level, keep on reaching for a higher ground. You know, that's what my message is. And that's what Suicidal has been always said to me. Of course, people here the name and say, “It's death metal, those guys are bad.” That's the total opposite of what their message is. So again, really, it boils down to positivity and togetherness. And mosh pits and stuff are nothing new. It's just guys’ way and girls’ way of getting a little energy out and making sure that we're enjoying life. And if it comes to somebody gets knocked down, we pick them up. If it comes to a little bumps and bruises, hey, man, those are great stories in the end. And as I said, I've got crowd control here just in case I get a little too close to the stage. So I'm going to welcome everybody to come up and sing with us too. You know, that's what the best part about life is. And if you've seen Suicidal Tendencies over the years, you'll see they invite the whole crowd up on stage at the end to just have one big hanging around, shindig together, to just promote unity, togetherness, brotherhood and positivity. And that's why I think in 35, 36 years later, it still is the same message to me. And that I try to give to others.

Clinton

I think it's great what you guys are doing and giving back and helping friends and lifting them up. I think it's a great way to celebrate music and the microphone. So sure, sure. Yes.

Frank

And you know, this as you know, representing Shure that it's kind of easy sell. It truly is, you know, it's the best.

Clinton

Well, don't tell him that.

Frank

Well, to me, it is. So you know, and again, as I stated earlier, it's not that it's not affordable. So let none of that stuff will ever hamper you from getting the best microphone, in my opinion, in history. And as a matter of fact, you know, with if you got COVID funds, pick up two, because that way you can have a friend join you. I mean, what's better than having you and a friend?

Clinton

We should hire you.

Frank

Hey, we don't got to worry about it. Because every time we have gigs, I tell them the same thing is, all right, you know, I'd say the same thing I got my sure member that thing hurts if I whack it. So keep yourself a little bit back from the mic, and give me a little few feet. And they, you know, of course, people laugh and stuff. But truly, truly, it is a grateful feeling to have equipment that never fails on you to have something that's literally like Linus with his blanket. It's my true friend. I'd sleep with it if my wife would let me, you know, but she won't, of course, because like I said, I'll turn over and whacker. Yeah, and the bacteria is my spit. So at least she's used to my spit. You know what I mean? That wouldn't be too bad. But really, it all bows down to Mr. Clinton is what we said is even conversations like this. The reason we're having it is we all have a mutual love for the same thing, which is music. And in some cases, church choirs, some cases, poets, some cases, you know, the spoken word comedians, but the same will always hold true. You're going to be heard. You got SM58 and you're you got that thing on some volume, you're going to be heard. And your voice will be clear and crisp and crisp and ice. Even when it's mangled and mangled like this. There's just no way around the quality of Shure. And and again, you know, I say this stuff, because I'm a fan, I will always be a fan, I will always purchase shares. But unfortunately, you know, they last so long. But it's sometimes hard to say I probably should get a new one now.

Clinton

Yeah. And you're gonna laugh when you see what I've got for you.

Frank

Oh, boy. But—and I love I love the fact again, that we can have this conversation today, which is alluded to when you first started this conversation with me is there's a story. And when you see something that's out of the ordinary, or you see something that's like, well, that's kind of neat.

Clinton

We got to know.

Frank

And in this situation, like I said, I started thinking, okay, as I was telling you, this is the first time I ever got an exposed tattoo. Because usually in the professional setting, my tattoos are unknown. Yeah. And I started thinking about my birthday coming up, and I wanted to get a tattoo. And, my wife was one of the people that really kind of push said, you know, you love you love your mic, you're good on that mic, people love you with that mic. And it's kind of identifies you. And I said, “Well, that's kind of interesting.” So I started searching on the internet. And there's very few people that have microphone tattoos, probably, and they do probably for valid reasons.

Clinton

And if they do, it's a Super 50. I don't know if when you Google the microphone tattoos, typically what you see is the Super 55.

Frank

That's right.

Clinton

Yeah, the unidirectional. So it's kind of a classic. Yes. But yeah, you're right. So when I saw that, it immediately stood out.

Frank

And same with me, I saw maybe two or three, but they were a little bit different. And then I started talking to my tattoo artist, Jesse Britton, who's a fantastic guy. And he said, “Well, why don't we just model it after your mic? You know, if you want a realistic tattoo, why don't we just take a picture of your mic and make a tattoo out of it?” And I said, “Oh, that's a very good idea.” And then I started thinking, like we joke all the time talking to the mic, you know, “Hey, how you doing, yo?” So that's kind of where it ended up in a perfect location. Of course, Slaytecidal, telling the world that we're together, we're strong, we're united, and through music, anything can be accomplished in this world.

Clinton

I mean, can you top that?

So I hope you enjoyed the interview with Frank. I certainly did. We had a great time together. So please subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts and tune in to our next one coming to you soon.