From Boys to Men
Attagurl Rex began like many other bands, with a few teens jamming inside a garage.
More than 20 years, four careers, three wives, three children and a fractured skull later, the band that pulled its name from an episode of Nickelodeon's "Ren and Stimpy" is still playing together.
"We've definitely butted heads over time, but our parents all knew each other. When you're raised the same way you generally share the same values," said Scott Dittman, who sings lead and backup vocals and plays keyboards and saxophone.
Dittman returned last year to Karns City, where all four band members graduated from high school between 1990 and 1994. His goal was to start his own business designing military interfaces after spending five years bouncing from Colorado to Ohio to Michigan. He still drove to gigs every weekend, though.
"I wanted to get back here to have my little girl around family, plus my wife is from West Sunbury," Dittman said.
Although the band went on hiatus for a few years while its members finished college and established their careers, they never considered calling it quits.
"Even when we weren't playing we always considered each other a part of the band," said drummer Jubal Kelly.
"We kind of went our separate ways for about seven years," said bassist Matt Dittman, Scott's brother.
Attagurl Rex's longevity is even more stunning considering they do not practice together.
"Our personal lives come into play a lot. Having available dates is the toughest part for us," Kelly said.
But the lack of practice is countered by the chemistry built by the quartet over the years.
"I know what Darren (Miller) is going to do on the guitar before he does it a lot of times, and likewise," Kelly said.
Kelly, 32, who lives in Oil City and works as a funeral director in Franklin, spent time living above a funeral home, where practicing the drums "loud enough to wake the dead" was frowned upon.Even now, Kelly needs to be available every other weekend to pick up bodies, if necessary.In an emergency, Matt Dittman's eldest son could fill in. Matt said the 14-year-old is already an accomplished drummer who has appeared onstage with the band before, "just so he could see what it was like."Scott Dittman; his brother Matt Dittman, a computer programmer who plays bass and lives in Chicora; and guitarist Darren Miller, a visual designer living in Pittsburgh, are all married with children. Kelly will take the plunge in September."Obviously family takes precedence, but I don't see anything happening that is going to make us run in different directions," Kelly said.Progression in their lives is not the end of the road for these rockers, just a different path — one they welcome their families to walk."We play enough family things where the kids can go and have a good time," Kelly said.The song selection varies between modern hits to '80s chart-toppers and The Beatles."We decided basically we were going to play the stuff people sing in their car, but don't want anyone to know they sing in their car," said Scott Dittman.Matt Dittman added, "It doesn't matter what I'm playing as long as the crowd is into it. I enjoy the experience more than the song selection."Attagurl Rex handles sound and lighting on its own at shows, avoiding strobe lights, as Kelly is sensitive to them after taking a baseball to the head while playing for Seneca Valley as a teen in the Palomino League."We've minimized our setup time so we don't have to be at a gig all day," Matt Dittman said.But those gigs look to continue for a long time."We're getting so many booking requests, we're basically booked up for the whole year," Scott Dittman said.The band's playing schedule can be found on its Web site, http://attagurlrex.com/.
