The Songbird of His Generation - a kilted rocker with a cause

Damn Near Kilt 'Em: Mic check. Tell the good people who you are and what you do. 

Jason Proulx: I'm the lead singer of a local Connecticut cover band, Organized Chaos. We've been playing together for almost 10 years now. Our main focus is working with local charities and organizations to help them raise money to support their causes.

For those about to rock, we salute you. Members of Organized Chaos on stage. 

DNKE: What are the causes you guys help support? 

JP: We put a lot of energy in to giving back to our community. Our band has two veterans, myself included. We recently held a benefit concert for our local VFW. The concert helped the VFW collect more clothing items in a single night than they had the entire year prior. We were extremely excited at the generosity of our fans and the local public, and we're proud to provide much-needed relief for our local veterans.

DNKE: Looks like your uniform has changed since your days in the service. What drove you to get kilted up? 

JP: I started wearing Damn Near Kilt 'Em a few years ago. I was looking for a more comfortable clothing option to wear on stage, and found DNKE while looking for a versatile, bad ass kilt to wear to our first annual St. Paddy's Day show. Since then I've worn it on stage and off; around the house, local beer fest, and really anywhere I want to be comfortable.

Drinking beer, singing songs, rocking a kilt.

DNKE: And now it's part of your signature on-stage look. Tell us why.  

JP: I sweat, a LOT. When I'm performing I can be on stage, jumping and moving around for up to four hours at a time. The DNKE kilt is light, breathable, and helps me stay cool. I still sweat like crazy, but I definitely look way cooler doing it in a kilt.

DNKE: So you love rocking the kilt, how does your audience respond? 

JP: It's hard to say what people really think. I've never run into a person who didn't think it was cool to see me out in public.

The age old question: What have you got under your kilt? 

Most people seem to think I'm running around with my wedding tackle free as a bird, but I can't be jumping around on stage with nothing else between me and the world. There's got to be some mystery. Besides, we often play shows where kids are present, and I have no desire to be somebody else's story on the therapist's couch some day.

DNKE: What kind of person is drawn to ditch the pants and wear a kilt? Why is the kilt community so tight knit?

JP: I think it definitely takes a certain type of person to wear a kilt these days. I started off wearing a kilt as a part of a stage show, but it bled over into my daily life, so it isn't uncommon to see me meandering around the house in my kilt now as well.

"I have no desire to be somebody else's story on the therapist's couch some day."

I think the kilt community is so tight night for the simple fact that we are all very like minded, strong willed, independent, comfortable in our own skin, and more interested in being comfortable than worrying about what other people think.

You really can't beat a kilt, for so many reasons. Find your reason, then find a DNKE that piques your interest or tickles your fancy, then rock it hard.

The gospel of the kilt, according to Jason Proulx. Preach!

DNKE: How does the response you get change in day-to-day life, when you're not on stage? 

JP: Everybody always leads off with the same question: "Whatcha got on underneath that kilt?" I typically respond one of two ways; "Wouldn't you like to know..." or "Common courtesy demands that a man wear undergarments in the presence of ladies..." And if no one asks I do an acapella version of "The Scotsman" that has been quite the crowd pleaser.

"The kilt community is strong willed, independent, comfortable in our own skin, and more interested in being comfortable than worrying about what other people think."

DNKE: What's your kilt of choice these days? 

JP: I wear the Sport Utility Kilt. Firstly because I loved the look of the kilt, but also the affordability. I started off with a black, then went for the military green when we do benefit shows for our local VFW.

DNKE: Where can people follow you and Organized Chaos? 

JP: Check out our site, OrganizedChaos.rocks, or you can follow us on Instagram at @organizedchaosrocks and at Facebook.com/organizedchaosrocks.

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