Tonight: The Non-Worker Party III w/ Pow Wow, The Loom, & More (Open Bar)

We're having another party at Red Star Bar tonight with The Music Slut. It's going to be pretty killer yo. We got Pow Wow, The Loom, Holler Wild Rose, and Lemming Malloy playing. BSC contributor and Radio America frontman Tom Stuart will be on the decks. We also have a Stoli open bar from 10-11PM! Yeah, that's right VODKA, no light beer or malt liquor this time around. So tonight when you're already in Greenpoint or the Burg, might as well come get drunk with us.

The Non-Worker Party
@ Red Star Bar (37 Greenpoint Ave)
Doors 8PM, Bands 9PM
Open Stoli Bar 10-11PM
$5

w/
Pow Wow
The Loom
Holler Wild Rose
Lemming Malloy
DJ Tom America

Wild Yaks, The Brooklyn Ski Club Interview

As you may have noticed Wild Yaks have quickly become one of Brooklyn Ski Club's favorite bands. In fact, they might be the only band we can all agree on. Tom sat down with boys from Wild Yaks the other day at their practice space, keep reading for that and make sure you check Wild Yaks out tonight at Matchless and tomorrow at Public Assembly.
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Prologue...

It’s 7.15 and I’m waiting outside Wild Yaks rehearsal space on Meserole and its starting to rain. I’ve been here since 7 o’clock and I am really wishing, right about now, that it will not really start coming down. Rob (singer, frontman) has assured me that he’s due to arrive any moment and that he is very sorry for the wait. I have taken him at his word.

Now it’s 7.20

Now it’s 7.25

I’m just about to call Rob again – I’ve got the phone in hand and every call I make is precious to me right now because I’ve got virtually no battery life left until I make it to a wall socket – when the man himself, on his bike, miraculously materializes on the horizon like a streaking gazelle. In short, he is fucking flying.

“Sorry man,” he says. “work was crazy…”

“What’s work?” I ask. I have no good idea what I am asking at this moment.

Apparently for Rob, work* as it were, concerns something that – for the sake of prudence – I am not going to plainly state. Let’s just put it this way, there was a delivery involved, and he was the delivery man. And he had to make a presentation of sorts. And today, this took, em, a little longer than expected today. And he is sorry it took a little longer, but it couldn’t be helped. And no, if you catch my drift, he doesn’t ride around Brooklyn on a fixed-gear delivering and installing Verizon Fios.

We’re riding up to the space and the interview, whether I like it or not, has already begun. I don’t have a pen in hand, but I have a captive and animated subject – to say the least. Upon entering the door to the space we find Dan (bass player extraordinaire) tuning up his instrument between bites of an organic salad bowl. He’s alone apart from an obnoxious alarm bleep that goes off at regular interviews every two minutes or so.

“Hey Dan. This is Tom from GQ Magazine,” Rob says introducing me, “he’s here to interview us today.”

Dan politely introduces himself. We shake hands.

“Wow! You’re eating a salad!” Rob says, and immediately picks up the bowl and takes a bite. “You gonna eat this egg…”

“Nah,” Dan says, “It’s cool, I already…”

“Thanks man,” Rob says, devouring a hard-boiled egg.

Suddenly, Rob appears pensive. “Wait,” he says to Dan, “you didn’t get this at Hanna Foods did you?”

“No, why?”

“I didn’t tell, you? I had an altercation with those guys.”

“No, what happened?”

Evidently, Rob had wondered in late one night with his backpack on and disturbed a bottle of maple syrup. The maple syrup then seized its opportunity to plunge to the floor and explode. This irked the late-night Hanna Foods crew, who became determined to charge a “tense, weird, [and] stoned” Rob for what they described as a “15-fucking-dollar bottle of maple syrup.” It didn’t help that Rob was carrying a backpack full of, ahem, work samples. Fortunately things were resolved by Rob “going [fucking] bananas” and giving flight. “It was ok,” he explains, “they were all smaller than me.

“A $15 bottle of maple syrup,” he concludes. “Those guys are just fucking war profiteers. War profiteers. Who [in this neighborhood] can afford that?”

Things quiet down and I situate myself with my note pads. Rob becomes occupied with rolling a spliff (tobacco and pot, for those unfamiliar with the term) and searching for an “A” string for his guitar. He does not have one. We all hope that Zach (lead guitar player) will have an extra string when he arrives. Dan wants to know who else I’ve interviewed. I mention a few acts that I’ve met with.

“Ah, the Muslims, that’s cool.”

“Yeah,” I say, “that was even back (early last summer) when they still had a cool name.”

What?” Dan is surprised.

“Yeah,” Rob chimes back in. “They changed their name to ‘The Soft Pack.’”

“That’s lame.” Dan says. We all agree that this is very lame. In fact, I go one step further and intimate that money, specifically other peoples’ money invested in them – they appear to have a lot of PR behind them and that ain’t cheap – had something to do with it.

“Yeah,” explains Rob, “We played with them last summer at Union Pool. They bumped us from our slot. It was our show. We were suppose to headline….” Rob goes on to relay yet another anecdote that I don’t have the space to recount ensues regarding this particular show. “I don’t know. I don’t mean to slam them [The Muslims, er, that is, The Soft Pack]. I’m tremendously supportive of anyone playing live music, anyone writing songs. But it [The Muslims, er, that is, The Soft Pack] just seemed Packaged.

“But as long as you mean it,” Dan chimes in.

“The name was awesome,” Rob concludes. “You dare to call yourselves that [The Muslims]…and then the change [of the name]…well that was the last…I dunno, I never believed it. I saw them, and I was like, ‘I don’t believe this.’”

INTERVIEW...

Brooklyn Ski Club – Your songs are almost all presented as anthems of sorts, is that something you strive for?

Rob – Yeah. Well actually, I went to military academy at Valley Forge, actually. And I discovered marching music there. We’d march and sing cadences…[he starts singing] “she wore a yellow ribbon!!!” The company next to us for years, which would march with us, they were called “Field Music.” They did like, trumpet and percussion. We would march with them and they would hit the bass and the snare. And the songs were spiritual, you know? Like a communication to the GOD. And we’d sing songs in church [too]. [Starts singing, again] “ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS, MARCHING AS TO WAR!!!” I loved that shit!

Dan: I was an altar boy. We didn’t sing.

BSC – Would you hold up a particular Wild Yaks song as THE anthem. THE song that represents that ideal?

Rob – Well, “River May Come”…that’s one of the core ideas of my life. It’s a celebration of life and also, of death. It’s really about a fascination of death; and a celebration of it as well. It’s about spending time with meditating upon mortality and the fragility of life! You know, the moments of our life are NOW. And there’s no tomorrow. Typical rock shit! You know…

BSC – What’s the songwriting process like? How are songs developed?

Rob: I’m trying to write hits, man. I was talking to Quinn from Suckers recently, and they have this song that goes in the chorus “it gets your body moving!” And that was a real influence for [Wild Yaks tune] “Angel Eyes.” (Editors Note: The chorus of “Angel Eyes” goes “She’s my real locomotion”). So it’s like, man, let’s write some hits and get our of this grimy misery! I’m over it! Let’s get to the beaches of Paris!

BSC – How much collaboration is involved in the process of creating the tunes?

Rob – I played guitar by myself for ten years. But [pointing at Dan and Martin, Wild Yaks’ resident drummer] the three of us learned to play together. And now, with the lineup, for me, it’s like Iggy said about the Stooges, when they would play together. I just go nuts. And, when Zach gets going, it raises the bar for all of us! He can shred. But yeah, anyways, the band fleshes [things] out. It gives the feeling, it brings the mayhem.

BSC – Well, what’s the brief history then, of the current group here?

Zach – well, I’m the longest standing!

Dan – about 8 months

Rob – about 6-7 months, starting in December/January. Look, there are so many dramas and stories that led to the four of us being in this room. Ultimately, it’s about commitment. [All four guys here] are going to be doing this regardless…

BSC – Could Wild Yaks exist outside of New York City? Would this group even come together?

Rob – you know what? I’ve been thinking a lot about Nirvana a lot lately – and the Minutemen – and those groups had…well, Nirvana the three of them would get together every day of the week. And I read that for the first hour of practice they just jammed. They just jammed the first hour of every practice! That’s so hard to do in New York City.

Martin – yeah, so maybe [being in a group] might be easier elsewhere.

Rob – well, it might be easier when we were, that is, if we were younger. But, I didn’t get anything done in my 20s…it might have been easier [then]. But I was just…hanging out.

Martin – but, then again, it couldn’t have happened any other way.

Rob – yeah. Much of our sound comes from us being older.

BSC - Actually Matt [Ski Club founder/editor] and I were just talking the other day about the current NYC/Brooklyn music scene. Our opinion is that something special is happening at the moment, the likes of which neither of us have seen before since we’ve been in the city. So as kind of a follow up to the last question, what do you make of the current music scene/climate and where do you see things heading from here?

Rob - things are really exciting at the moment in New York. Or really, in Brooklyn. But at the same time, no one’s broken yet.

Martin – still, everyone’s [in it] for themselves. It’s not really a…

Rob —but! Team Robespierre, and NinjaSonik…they love us and the come to our shows so there’s support. But yeah, [as far as the scene goes] the world at large doesn’t know yet. There are a lot of things I am curious to see happen. Team Robespierre is a big part of why I wanted to be in a band. Suckers, the band I mentioned before, they have a new record and Pitchfork is behind it. And Shilpa Ray, I curious to see if what she’s doing has any legs on it…and other kids are coming. They are going to come here like me. So yeah, I’m curious about the next crop of bands.

BSC – on the other hand, do you think Manhattan is dead – for all intents and purposes – in terms of being a center for music?

Rob – I don’t really give a shit about Manhattan. I mean, I like the way it looks and I like the pretty girls, but…well, I like seeing shows at Cake Shop and Lit and Mercury Lounge. But, I don’t think…I don’t think that they’ve produced any kind innovation out of Manhattan in a while. Even the restaurants that I am interested in going to! Most of them are in Brooklyn. And as far as artists and stuff. Well, when weirdos come to town, they have to go elsewhere. They don’t go to Manhattan.

BSC – Well, that said, do you see any correlation between the tanking economy and the vibrant artistic scene that is coming into being? Do you feel like, because of the shift, that a band like yours might have a better opportunity to reach people it wouldn’t ordinarily be able to get an audience with?

Rob – actually, I think if there was more money changing hands we’d be on a record label. If this was ten years ago, we’d be on a label. For example: a label, a few weeks ago, told us they were interested but that “all of our budget for 2009 is spent.” They said if we would make a record and hand it to them, they’d consider it for 2010…but yeah, the economy! Well, I wonder how, well, that is, if things will get kind of like the 80s. In the movies and shit people were fighting cops and authority and stuff. Class consciousness was a big part of popular art then. That would be cool if that came back. Now that the economy is what it is, shouldn’t the “alternative” be cool again?

BSC – Lester Bangs once said something along the lines of – and I believe this is when he was slating Blondie in a live review – that people go see music performed to see pure emotion. And he compared Blondie’s performance with that of Van Morrison (who I am personally, not crazy about). Is that something that you guys can identify with?

Rob – I LOVE Van Morrison!!! He was in a band early on called “Them.” Ever heard them? Them was FEROCIOUS! It was ferocious white boy blues. And he, he was, is, a deeply soulful dude.

BSC – So I gather you identify?

Rob: Well, it’s not surprising that Lester didn’t like Blondie. Blondie was fashion. Me, I’d like to be a punk rock Jarvis Cocker!

BSC – Jarvis Cocker? He’s pretty fashionable, man.

Rob: No-no-no! I’m sorry, I mean Joe Cocker. That’s what I want to be. But I do like Jarvis though (laughs)!

BSC – So it’s not about fashion. Well, and this is something I ask every group I speak with: given the economy and the relationship between music and technology, and the death of the labels and all, can you imagine ever being able to make a buck off of music?

Zach – well, maybe a buck. That is, maybe we can make dinner. A meal.

Martin – yeah, dinner…maybe you can find a girl who’ll take you home and feed you!

Rob – I don’t know man. You know what I say? WRITE A HIT SONG! Something that resonates! If you write a song, that song, maybe it’ll get used in a movie or whatever. Maybe that’s corny. But I’ll take the money and go to Amsterdam for a week.

THE END

MP3's:
Wish I Had A Whip - Wild Yaks
River May Come - Wild Yaks

Some pics from Wild Yaks playing the BSC show at Red Star!

Tonight: Tom Is DJing @ Hugs

Michael T is having a party at Hugs on North 6th tonight. I don't know what the party is called since I can't find it listed anywhere but it is happening. Since you'll be in the hood anyway for Northside you might as well stop in and drink, there's no cover.

BSC contributor, Tom (Radio America), will be DJing. I'm off to see The Albertans play na acoustic set on the street in front of Cameo.

Tonight: Brooklyn Ski Club Hosts & DJs Rock N Roll High

Hey assholes - broke, depressed, & lonely? Well then come out tonight and party with Brooklyn Ski Club. I'm hosting and Tom is doing a guest DJ set. There will be two, count 'em, two open bars! Get drunk for free, keep drinking for memories (your friends memories, you won't remember shit). There will be go-go dancers, great DJs, and Mr. Photog will be there taking pictures.

And don't give me that "work night" shit - no one has jobs anymore.

RSVP:
Rock N Roll High

Tonight: Bastards Of Young @ Royal Oak (Tom BSC, Hosts & DJs)

You guys know Tom right? He does the occasional album review and interview for Brooklyn Ski Club. He also helped put together Super Party Fun Time over at Castle In Hell, which was the best BSC party to date. Well tonight Tom is launching his new dance party, Bastards Of Young, at Royal Oak. The whole crew is going to be there drinking and dancing (those of us who care to, myself excluded - I'm no fun at all). So I'm inviting you to join us and turn this party into the thing to do on a Friday night in Brooklyn, well at least one Friday per month.

Link:
Bastards Of Young

We Are Scientists v. Rage Against the Machine

So I've got a a dispatch from today's NME online. I'm sort of following up with Matt's blurb about Rage Against the Machine at the DNC which you can find below...

Anyways, NME was talking to the jackasses from We Are Scientists about playing Reading or Leeds or some big, rainy festival which RATM had headlined. Rather than be gracious (hey, I'm not a huge Rage fan either) or intelligent, the favorite sons of Brooklyn went for glib and basically, ignorant.

The whole thing is here

The choicest bit:

Murray added: "This is an argument I have with myself a lot because I really hate political statements coming from bands. I feel like the last person I want to hear you know a philosophy from is someone whose one credential is that they can play the guitar."

Murray admitted Rage Against The Machine aren't all bad though, saying: "On the other hand it's good to have bands like Rage Against The Machine, who no matter whether or not you think they're a bunch of fools who are trapped in freshmen year of university, are at least speaking their minds and like trying to make a difference. Although, were they spouting fascist ideas then we'd all be condemning them." (my italics)

This is what disturbs me so much about our scene in this city sometimes...apparently, it's funny and immature to give a damn about anything. Maybe it was all of my formative years in the punk scene, but I always thought it was badass that certain groups were really committed to certain ideals. And it did me a lot of good to hear to hear what they had to say...

Look, obviously, a group like Rage Against the Machine isn't above pageantry, sure. But in the quote above, it sounds a lot more like we are disqualifying guys from speaking out just because they have guitars; as if that makes them junior citizens.

Ten Questions with Dynasty Electric

Recently, the Ski Club sat down in the West Village with Jenny singer and cofounder of Dynasty Electric. The following is a (very) abbreviated version of the conversation.

Dynasty Electric is currently awesome and on a nationwide tour which features stops from coast to coast and a featured spot at Burning Man. When not out setting hearts afire in the desert, the group is one of the bright lights on the greater Brooklyn music scene. Look out for their upcoming record and enjoy our talk about group dynamics, space, and the irrepressible power of pop music .


Brooklyn Ski Club: We’re currently in the underground lair of the Ski Club. Having a good time so far?

Jenny: Having a great time!

BSC: One of the things that your group, Dynasty Electric, is becoming best known for is space travel. Can you tell us a bit about your collective passion for the solar system and how it’s reflected in your music?

J: Well, a couple years ago I got pneumonia, and I basically stayed at home and watched, like, blacksploitation soft core porn for like, several months, and a lot of that was Sun Ra’s “space is the place” and (laughs) um, that’s when I started getting interested in space travel. And one of my favorite quotes from sun ra was, when people would ask him do you like musicians that are trained or untrained, and his answer was like: it doesn’t matter to me if they are trained or untrained, what I want to know is, have they been to Pluto. That’s what he told major publications! Pluto, that’s what I care about…so I don’t want to speak for the rest of the band but I know that they are interested in the Solar System.

Everytime I go to the loft – the music place where we rehearse – they’re watching the sci fi channel specials on space and solar system formation/planet formation and the formation of the milky way…

…but all of the specials, all of it comes off as so authorative, based on all these calculations…but it’s all theoretical, and in that vein, we can all make any idea we want about how the universe started.

BSC: What’s the Dynasty Electric prevailing theory about the universe’s creation.

J: It was a vibration! A sound vibration. One that vibrated at certain frequency that started everything going. And I think that there’s a scientific theory that backs that up.

BSC: Sure, string theory. It’s very similar.

J: Yeah, so vibrations…for sure, that’s how it started.

BSC: In keeping with this theme, can you give us some background to the press photo of the group on Mars?

J: Well, I’d like to say that we actually have a new bass player since that photo – that was Valerie (recently departed bassist for the group) – we have (a new bass player) he’s come in and he’s doing our tour with us. So I’m sure we’ll go to the moon or something and take a photo with him, because we’ll need to have photos on the surface of the moon with the sun behind us. But we haven’t had time to go there yet because there’s so many other things going on.

BSC: Isn’t the moon a bit of a regression?

J: No no no no! The moon is a great place for photographs. Like, I don’t want to live there, I just want to take photos there.

BSC: Before lightspeed travel and Theremins (you guys are big on Theramins and stand-alone saxophones), what was the origin of the group? How long have you been toiling away ? I can see from your bio materials that it all began as a duo. So how long has the large scale lineup been intact?

J: We’ve only been doing…Dynasty Electric has basically had a bunch of incarnations. We started off as an experimental jazz trio. There were no vocals. It was just insane, improvised saxophone with punk rock bass lines and drums – I played bass with a bow.

And we traveled all over the country doing that and then we started adding vocals and worked as a duo and started programming the drum beats. And then we were kind of taking that all over the place – went to Japan, Taiwan, Canada and all over the US again. And then there was a period of time when we had 6 people in the band and in this short period of time we recorded some material…then it was 3 again…

But the current lineup with the rhythm section and some programming has been going on since (late 2007), for six months or so.

BSC: So this whole chronology takes place over the course of?

J: 5 years…ish.

BSC: As the band grew and your sound expanded, how did that come to affect the approach to your work?

J: It’s true that having it be a duo, we really experimented…all of that we have taken with us to this next incarnation. But the difference being that there’s just a real power and energy to a live rhythm section; of a good drummer and bassist just locking in and really powering something. Originally, well, I was friends with the guys from TV on the Radio years ago and originally they were just doing a programming thing too and it was just the there of them, and you know, the songs were really good…

But once they got their rhythm section, for some reason, people just (started to) relate, they really related to the live songs. It just gives it some power that you can’t have with programming alone.

BSC: When you’re actually working on compositions, do you think differently now, with the group? No offense, but you’re talking about experimental jazz and basses with bows and you play Pop Music now.

J: Yeah, well, first of all, Seth (the guitar player/co-founder/co-songwriter) came from an experimental (background). He was playing with Anthony Braxton…and I think he started to realize that he really wanted to talk to a LOT of people. He really wanted to communicate to a lot of people and you don’t do that with experimental jazz. You know? Even if you are the top of the top. The amount of people that you can actually send a message to (are limited).

I don’t know! Music, pop music, is what’s POPULAR. It’s where it’s at. And I think there’s a lot that you can do with that. And it’s actually a lot harder to write a good pop song that makes people think. It sounds so simple. But to put all of those elements together , musically, and in a way that really hits someone…

So, I love pop music.

BSC: Well…the Beatles…

J: The Beatles! And it was totally the era that they were in, but they dialed into something. Something metaphysical. And they were just tuned in. And everyone responded.

I was watching a documentary (on the Beatles) and to see everyone’s reactions to their concerts… Holy Shit!

"9 out of 10 Questions with the Muslims"

Brooklyn Ski Club talked recently with Matty McLoughlin - guitarist extraordinaire - from the Muslims, our favorite indie rock bar band from the greater San Diego area. For more info on the Muslims, check out BSC's review of the group's June shows or simply check out their myspace page at www.myspace.com/themuslims

Matty McLoughlin: Tom, k here we go.

BSC: What's the origin story of the group? You guys seem to give-off a last-gang-in-town vibe. Is that description accurate?

MM: Matt and I went to the same high school in San Diego but didn't become friends until after high school through a mutual friend. After I finished college in Virginia I decided to move back to San Diego to start a band with Matt. We played our first show in January of 2007. Dave (bass) joined in January of 2008, he also went to our high school and we've known him for a very long time. Brian (drums) also joined in January of 2008, we have known Brian for maybe five years now. Regarding the "last gang in town" thing, maybe that comes off because we all get along and no one is a butthole.

BSC: I've always thought that it was great that groups like Replacements and the Clash (re)defined punk rock as an expression of freedom. Stopping short of sticking you guys with the "punk rock" label, your group performs with a hell of a lot of abandon. Do you see yourselves in the same, err, tradition as these groups? Should a little recklessness trump musical precision in rock n roll?

MM: We have fun playing live and don't really care if its perfect. Whatever is exciting or funny at the time we do. Playing music is fun, goofing off with your friends is a good time, we are better when we don't think and just react. I think genuine recklessness is good, preconceived recklessness is the worst.

BSC: Listening to the songs, they don't seem to be politically-minded. Would you say that you named the group the Muslims as a lark then, or was there some plan in place to make a big statement?

MM: We didn't start the band to be political at all. We wanted to play music that we would want to hear. The name was something that just sounded good to us, we were in no way trying to make a statement or be offensive. We don't see it as offensive. I like the way it sounds, I think the letter M is great.

BSC: On this theme again, do you manage to get all kinds of interesting email as a consequence of your name? Any good anecdotes about this or other complications that resulted from the handle "the Muslims." I can imagine a scene where your group's name is hanging on the marquee of a club in the
Midwest/rust belt and all hell breaks loose…

MM: We haven't really gotten too much guff about the name through emails really. People will ask why it is our name, then we respond and its over. The only people that think the name is offensive or stupid are our parents, the dentist, people like that.

BSC: You're a young band in a new music world. Can you ever imagine making money off the sales of your music? Is this just a fact that you accept and have to just sort of shrug off?

MM: Everyone in the band works day jobs. Everyone enjoys being in the band and its our favorite thing to do. So not making a ton of money off the band isn't a problem for us. It would be nice not to work so much but personally, I write better songs after a day of making burritos and taking shit from morons. It sustains the edge. If I didn't have to work I would probably watch baseball all day and not get anything done.

BSC: I was pleased to see a lot dancing going on at your show at Union Pool in Brooklyn. It was really refreshing. I think a general impression is that New York crowds can be a little standoffish and aloof. But you guys got 'em dancing…am I wrong in seeing this as a major victory? Your thoughts?

MM: All of the shows we played in New York were great. We couldn't have had a better trip. It's a great feeling when people are jumping around and having as good a time as you are.

BSC: I noticed that you guys have a collection of pretty classic guitars. Are the Muslims closet gear-heads? Are you the only indie rock band in America we features a Fender Mustang and a Mustang bass onstage at the same time? More seriously, do you see a connection between classic instruments/gear and a more classic "sound"?

MM: No none of us are gear heads, We don't really know much at all about amps, guitars etc. David has had that music master bass since he was 12 or something, and that music master guitar that Matt plays is something I traded for in college. I think the reason we have a classic sound is that our songs are simple and we have reverb on our amplifiers.

BSC: I might speak for many East Coast types when I ask "what is the music scene like down in San Diego?" Honestly, anything in California south of Los Feliz/Silverlake is a black hole in terms of my musical knowledge, please enlighten me:

MM: I feel that the music scene in San Diego has gotten a lot better. San Diego ruled balls in the 90's (with Drive Like Jehu and Black Heart Procession, etc). After that time period things got pretty stupid and unoriginal and self conscious or something. But now with bands like The Sess and Kill Me Tomorrow things are good again. I think that's how it might work- great stuff, boring stuff, back to great stuff.

BSC: You guys had an impressive run storming through New York last month. One of the bills that you played was the Vice party, which turned out to be a pretty controversial event (there was a lot of buzz all over town afterwards about how poorly managed the whole thing was). As much respect as I have for Vice and other magazines and taste-making companies – they contribute a lot to the scene and help release music after all – is being a part of an event like that a bit surreal? On the other hand, does it make you feel a bit confined or pre-packaged? Like an item on an airplane menu?

MM: The Vice party was probably the most people we have ever played in front of. We had a great time and were treated really well. I didn't notice anything unorganized really but I was also not paying attention to anything and dicking off with my friends. I didn't feel prepackaged or anything like that, because we were just playing a party with free beer that anyone could go to.

We are coming back to New York August 18th at the Bowery Ballroom with The Walkmen and are playing a few more dates as well. Thanks.

2008. Tom Stuart (BSC)

THE MUSLIMS TAKE MANHATTAN (&, umm, BKLN)

What’s the use in referring to anything as punk rock anymore anyway? First of all, punk rock – a phenomena, a movement, a genre, a moment in time – as a concept has been completely divorced from Punk.

And by punk, we all know that I’m referring to the graphic t shirts and long shorts and warp tours and the like that blanket the walls of the Target nearest you. Punk as a commercial – and almost purposefully – cartoonish brand identity is one of the enduring images of our time. For my part, I can’t say it’s something that I saw coming the first time I heard the opening chords of “Basket Case.”

So the question is, what clever identity can we assign to indie groups who are too defiantly un-noodley and un-spacey and generally too ramshackle to impress the editors at Pitchfork? Is “indie” good enough? What about that old chestnut about “alternative rock – a term that hasn’t carried water since radio dials ran from left-to right – should we break that one back out?

Basically, what do I call a band like The Muslims? Somewhere in The Muslims bio someone makes a reference to The Replacements, and frankly, this is why I go down to see them on a Monday night in Manhattan for an early show at the Mercury Lounge. At this point, I’ve only heard their recordings online, though I don’t know exactly what to expect because the songs on the myspace page were both (a) terribly recorded and (b) suitably ramshackle to confirm those comparisons to the ‘Mats.

Keeping these two things in mind I was hoping for the best and prepping myself for the worst, as usual. The guys from The Muslims were milling about the club before they went on – goddamn was it early and goddamn was everyone so, so, sober – and from the look of the group, they seemed reassuringly relaxed and self-confident. Good, I thought. They took the stage and the show was a blur. The set wasn’t terribly long but it impressed in that each song seemed to buzz in and out with enough force and abandon. The singer was off to the side of the stage, letting the bassman take the middle ground – a good move on a night when dude was clearly the most animated man in the entire club.

I began to recognize the songs from the band page and I was pleased that my two friends, whom I’d dragged down – had enjoyed themselves. There also was a cool vibe around the audience of “hey, we’re the first gang in town to check out the buzz-band of the month.” We all new knew they were due to play several more high-profile gigs later in the week. Towards the end of the set, the band broke out their version of that song that every classic punk rock group was supposed to have. It’s the one where everybody sings a couple of lines with the frontman, and then obliges him by going “woah-oh-oh” on cue. They finish curiously on a rave up to end the night. Everyone kinda wishes they had finished with the anthem instead...

Friday night, myself and a different battery of friends find The Muslims again, this time at Union Pool. Even after the show kicks-off, my friends and I linger outside the hall for a while as the singer from the first act seems less stable than Daniel Johnston, so we cower over a few beers and smokes in the ‘garden’ and wait out the return of the crowd faves. Tonight, The Muslims – judged against the first show – kill.

Sure the bassplayer still knows how to make a move, but significantly, the singer’s moved back to center stage. He goes so far to even perform a few songs straight up, sans guitar, like a showman. It’s just as well, because although the vibe is leagues ahead of the Mercury show, the sound is muddy as hell and the rhythm guitar can’t be heard either way. The crowd is mixed and well into the music, if nothing else.

My friend Nora and I have the pleasure of standing behind a group of tall kids with Asian girlfriends, while the couples next to us argue about whether or not they think the Buzzcocks are “a classic group” (verdict? They decide that their first album was totally awesome if nothing else). The set is identical to the show the first night – and so are the band’s loved-and-lived in polo shirts – except for the addition of what Nora decides is a Spiritualized cover (which is really awesome) and finally, a one-song encore. Which means that tonight we get a set that closes with the woah-oh-oh song then the rave-up, then another rave-up on the heels of the first one.

At this point, my roommate, Jesse, concurs with my opinion from the first night that despite the overall quality of the source material, that the set’s pacing leaves something to be desired. And they do have the tunes. It must be said. And we all agree that they are a reckless and joyful act – which suits the image of the Pool’s manic, painted proscenium stage. Basically, the bottom line is that everyone leaves happy, and fairly satisfied; no one is obviously disrocked. No crimes against truth or beauty to be reported...

It’s also nice just to see a band swigging beers and tuning their guitars between songs by ear (when they bother to tune at all). So was that a punk rock show? I’m not sure what that means anymore, but I am pretty sure that's what we used to call it.