Elaborate Show

Billing themselves as "the Jesters of Rock," Collage Menage has gone through two dozen members since forming in 1988, with identical twins Hans and Fritz Jensen as the constant core. "To fit in with this band, you definitely have to have a strong stage presence and be part of a whole elaborate show," says bassist Fritz. "It's like Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd, Kiss, but with a sense of humor. We dress up from head to toe. We have props, TV screens, and videos we shoot for all our songs...sometimes we wear a different hat for every tune. It's just as important to fit in visually as it is to fit in musically."

"We build our stage sets, and we make and hand-paint the costumes ourselves," says singer Hans. "There's a lot of cardboard, foam rubber, Elmer's glue, spray paint, and duct tape...we're going for an elaborate look with a very low-tech budget." Collage Menage has self-released three CDs. They appear Saturday, August 12 at Desi & Friends in Point Loma.

WHAT'S IN YOUR CD PLAYER?

Hans:

1. Aerosmith, Get Your Wings ("I wore out the vinyl album two times.")

2. Van Halen and Van Halen 2 ("I love the early years.")

3. AC/DC, Back in Black ("High school hard rock that's good for the soul, if you have one.")

4. Pink Floyd, The Final Cut ("I like to sit back with a rum and Coke, a smoke, and listen to the sounds and drift away.")

5. Bush, Razorblade Suitcase ("I like the lyrics and the guitar a lot.")

Fritz:

1. Van Halen, Diver Down ("Fun album. I love the mix of styles.")

2. Aerosmith, Live! Bootleg ("It all brings me back to when we were young.")

3. Willie Nelson, Greatest Hits (& Some That Will Be) ("'He ain't wrong, he's just different, but his pride won't let him do things to make you think he's right.'")

4. David Allen Coe, For the Record: The First Ten Years ("The original outlaw poet.")

5. Scorpions, Love at First Sting ("The guitars work so well together.")

DESERT ISLAND DVDs?

Hans:

1. Fast Times at Ridgemont High ("We used to party like that in high school.")

2. Kingpin ("Woody Harrelson is so funny. He's classic talent.")

Fritz:

1. Lonesome Dove ("A true cowboy story. When you're wounded, you're hurt or dead.")

2. Willow ("A cool quest.")

3. Unforgiven ("Clint did this one perfect.")

4. Ray ("What couldn't he see?")

BEST AND WORST THINGS ABOUT BEING A TWIN?

Hans: "I had to share everything from my bedroom to my toys, my bike, my car, and my girlfriends."

Fritz: "You get cheated on birthdays and Christmas, but he's a permanent partner, and the chicks dig it!"

WORST GIG?

Hans: "We went to Mexico, and the federales stopped us at the border to search us and harass us for cash. We didn't pay, so we went home with no show that night. Bogus."

Fritz: "At 'Canes, the amateur booker had his PA show up late, and when the show went late, he cut off our set by standing in front of the stage and waving his hands around, shouting, 'Cut the PA.' The drummer quit that night. He was a wiener anyway."

CHEECH OR CHONG?

Hans: "Chong, because he has his cool way, and he's still 420- [marijuana] friendly. Cheech became a TV cop [on Nash Bridges]."

Fritz: "Chong, though he probably had some downtime when the times changed and their party humor wasn't selling. He didn't talk trash about Cheech, but then Cheech became [fictional narcotics officer] Sergeant Stedenko. What a hack."