Marcy Playground performing Friday at The Alamo in Laurel

David Owens

Nov. 5, 2009 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- Do you smell "Sex and Candy"? Better yet, do you want to hear it?

Marcy Playground, the New York City-based rock band responsible for that 1997 smash hit, will be playing at the Alamo Sports Bar and Grill in the Sawmill Square Mall beginning at 9 p.m. Friday.

The band features singer/guitarist John Wozniak, bassist Dylan Keefe and new drummer Shlomi Lavie, and is touring on a new record, "Leaving Wonderland... in a fit of rage."

Wozniak calls "Leaving Wonderland," which was released in July, "by far the best thing I've ever done. This is the most personal record I've ever made, and I think it's the thing that will connect most with other people."

By phone from Canada, where he resides with his new wife, Wozniak said he's excited about getting back on the road to tour and playing venues he wouldn't have had a chance to before.

"This is one of the first times I've been to Mississippi," said Wozniak, a Minnesota native. "We toured a lot in the deep south, but those small rock clubs weren't a stopping point. We played Atlanta and eastern states like North Carolina and South Carolina. But, (Mississippi) wasn't on the record company's radar."

Now an independent artist, Wozniak said he can visit markets where Marcy Playground and other nationally-known acts haven't performed previously.

"We're always received there ridiculously," he said. "They're so stoked somebody came to their town because they've been ignored for so long. The kids are starved for rock music."

Wozniak said he "always marvels" when someone approaches him at those shows and asks why he decided to perform there.

"There's this whole other U.S. that doesn't have national bands traveling through there," he said. "The Alamo and smaller venues like that are more intimate. They're usually packed and the energy is always high. There's way more of a connection to what you're doing on stage. As a performer, it's really rewarding."

Wozniak said the fans are coming back now that they've discovered the band has a new record that has been released.

"I've been five years since we put out MP3 (Marcy Playground 3), and we didn't even really tour that much for that one," he said. "1999 was basically our last big year of touring. That's 10 years since we really toured."

Wozniak said he and the band have grown up in that decade, and that personal growth is apparent on "Leaving Wonderland."

"These songs are much more about personal relationships and the things we deal with as adults," he said. "The songs I wrote before were whimsical, told stories or were straight up goofy like about the 'Chronicles of Narnia' (Ballad of Aslan). There's more life experience to put into the music and it's painful.

"There's definitely a lot of pain being expressed in these songs," Wozniak added. "I was going through some serious (expletive) at the time."

For instance, Wozniak said "Good Times" was a song that "helped me claw myself out of a 7-month depression that I didn't even know I was in at the time."

"I had always been a pretty happy person, but I found myself in a really, really dark place," he said. "My friend Jeff Dawson, who ended up working with us on the record, saw that I was (expletive) at the time and helped get me focused."

Wozniak said that as he worked the songs out and formed the record, he "felt a lot better."

That transformation can be seen in songs such as "Down the Drain" and "Must Have Been Dreaming," which Wozniak said is about a girl that caused a lot of his grief.

"When you share (what you're going through) with people, most people go through similar experiences and it becomes a bonding experience with the fans," he said. "I didn't even know that was a possibility."

So, what can fans expect to see Friday night when Marcy Playground comes to town?

"At our live shows, we've been covering 'Hallelujah' by Leonard Cohen," Wozniak said. "That's been covered by everybody from Jeff Buckley to KD Lang. We decided to throw our hat in the ring and cover it too. So far, the response has been overwhelming."

Wozniak said fans can also expect a 10 to 15 minute jam session, which he said for the band "keeps everything new and fresh."

"I look forward to every night and playing," he said. "One night, our drummer pulled out a giant rubber rat and just started bashing on the rat. It was completely pointless, but the crowd went nuts. It's just fun, weird stuff like that. It makes being alive and playing music fun.

"We like to get into the moment of it," Wozniak added. "It's not just about going up there and singing the record for the fans. We want to experience it with them."

For more information, visit www.marcyplayground.com or www.myspace.com/alamosportsbar.

Marcy Playground

When: Friday, 9 p.m.

Where: Alamo Sports Bar and Grill

Tickets: $15 advance/$17@the door

Newstex ID: KRTB-0408-39485845