Stinkfoot is a real St. Louis band. Self-described as a “gritty collection of four up-and-coming rockers,” the group is Jon Valentino on vocals and rhythm guitar, Chris Komorek on lead guitar, Marshall Marietta on the bass and Mike Kunz on the drums. Professionals by day, musicians by night, these Missouri boys are putting in their time in local clubs all over the area and pairing with some of the newest acts on the St. Louis scene. But while they might be starting small, they are certainly not thinking small. The band recently wrote, recorded and helped produce their first EP, Picture Code System.

First, the band recorded just one track, “Smile,” with Brad Booker, producer for Stir, Gravity Kills and Apartment 26. Then the guys used that track to book live shows and built a fan base through relentless, hard-hitting self-promotion. Admittedly newbies, they hope that if they work hard enough, no one will notice. Marietta, a founding member, says, “We started out with almost no experience. We just wanted to write some songs and work together to put on a high-energy live show.” Stinkfoot got the opportunity to head back into the studio with Booker and record additional songs in the early part of 2010.