
Navajo metal band to tour Europe, record with Metallica’s producer

Navajo Times | Adron Gardner "I Don't Konform" band members Kyle Felter, left, and Brett Begay strum in unison during a practice session in Window Rock Friday.
WINDOW ROCK
In May, one of the bands in the Navajo metal scene could get their big break.

Navajo Times | Adron Gardner
“I Don’t Konform” band member and lead vocal Kyle Felter strums away on his electric guitar during a practice session in Window Rock Friday.
Band manager Jerald Cecil, 28, of Fort Defiance, said the local band “I Dont Konform” will travel to Denmark in March, but why take a Navajo band so far away from the Navajo Nation and their fans?
“It’s a proven technique that a lot of people use,” Cecil said. “Jimmy Hendrix used it. He was a guitar player for Little Richard and he didn’t do anything with his solo career until he went to England.
“Then he met up with Clapton, Pete Townsend, and those guys started hanging out exchanging riffs. He became the hot item, then America wanted him back. Same thing with AC/DC when they left for Australia,” he added. “They came back and got bigger.”
While in Denmark, they will record their first album with a legend in the industry.
The lead singer of I Dont Konform recently reached out to Flemming Rasmussen, the producer and engineer for Metallica on three of that band’s most well known albums – “Ride the Lightning” in 1984, “Master of Puppets” in 1986, and “…And Justice For All” in 1988.
Those interested in supporting the band, which will release the album in August, can go to www.gofundme.com and search the band or visit find them on Facebook by searching I Dont Konform.
To read the full article, pick up your copy of the Navajo Times at your nearest newsstand Thursday mornings!
Are you a digital subscriber? Read the most recent three weeks of stories by logging in to your online account.