McCain/Palin = Babylon

Recently while discussing the presidential race a friend of mine said that they were not going to vote for Obama for a pretty absurd reason... Regardless of what the reason was, it made me realize that despite all the factual info available online and through alternative news outlets, there are still people that don't know much about either candidate and base their opinions and eventual decision on bullshit fed to them by partisan mainstream media outlets.

It should come to no surprise that Destroy Babylon endorses Barack Obama, but I want to make this clear to all and encourage everyone to take a closer look at each candidate before making a decision. There's no need for me to go on about why I'm voting for him- I'm not a politician, journalist, or any sort of creditable resource. I've made my decision on several different bases, one of the main being judgment of character. A candidate can go on and on about what they'll do in office, but it's more important to see if they'll actually follow through or not. Looking at how many times McCain has changed his views (listen to Dicky Barrett!), I'd be skeptical to believe a word he says. The fact that he doesn't want to end the war (remember, that one in Iraq) and will most likely carry on yet another 4 years of the Bush administration makes it an easy decision. And I don't even need to say anything about Palin- her being second in line to the presidency is just scary.

So if you're really, really rich, I'd see how you'd want to vote for McCain. But if you're into human rights, ending pointless war, effective government spending, and just getting America back on track, join us and VOTE FOR OBAMA.

Some Dreams DO Come True...

[buy advance tix!]

When I first heard the Bad Brains, like everyone else, my mind was beyond blown- I never heard anything so intense in my life. I was 15 years old- I was listening to punk (Bad Religion, Tree, Bosstones), but nothing even came close to this. I had bought their self-titled ROIR album on a whim, just based on the fact that I heard they mixed hardcore and reggae (also being really into Marley, Tosh, etc). Just a few seconds of HR's primal scream was enough to send chills down my spine, but combine it with Doc and Daryl's ridiculous riffs and solos, very complex chord changes, Earl's faster-than-lightning drums, thought-provoking lyrics, and the fact they switched from blistering hardcore punk to really good, dubby reggae.... GOD DAMN. I could never listen to music the same way again. I was instantly hooked and spent years collecting any and everything that had their stamp on it (officially and unofficially). HR's solo records were especially intriguing to me, as he fused reggae with about every other style you can imagine.

Eventually we started a new band and not only took our name from one of their EPs, but borrowed liberally from the book of Brains. Last year for Halloween we did an entire Brains set, and it was one of the most fun (and most challenging) sets we've played...

...And now I get to realize a 10-year old dream of playing with HR. I know Tuesday nights are suppose to be lame, but I really hope everyone realizes how awesome of a show this will be and make the effort to see a living legend rock out and 5 other wanna-bes have the time of their lives.

Growlers Record!

So, it's been far too long, I know. But, Growlers is finally hitting the studio with trusted friend HB (ThoseGuyz, Gramma's) at the helm. You'll remember (hopefully) the amazing work that HB did with Destroy Babylon on DB's last recording, and understand why I'm so fired up to get him on board for the Growlers sessions.
We've actually already got all of the drum tracks in the bag thanks to a two hour blitzkrieg of efficiency from Marc. We did 9 perfect drum tracks in under 120 minutes, which is damn near unheard of, especially when working with an unflinching dickhead like myself (i'm a slight perfectionist when in studio). Still, HB, Erica and Charles (the producer and two engineers respectively) all did amazing work rigging up one of the most intense drum mic'ing patterns I've ever stood beside. Thank them profusely when you see them, especially after you hear these drums.
Growlers have more dates awaiting in early october and actually plan on finish the tracking of this long overdue behemoth in early fall. Stay tuned...
-Rob

DB: Tore Up

Tour wrap up...

Hartford- Even after only a year, playing with The Cool & Deadly is like a family reunion. These guys are our (band of) brothers from another mother... always killin' it with the best live dub-rockers-reggae around. Big up to Bimby and his crew for coming out, and our true brother Mike for letting us use yr GPS. CLUTCH.

Boston- An all ages afternoon punk/ska show. Enough said. Good ol' times with friendly faces.

Philly- I believe Jbo said that Tritone was Philly's answer to the Abbey Lounge. $3 PBR + shot o' whiskey. Being our first time in Philly, we had to try Jim's: the cheese steaks tasted like... a decent steak and cheese. Check out Wareika Hill, who closed out the night with a great roots/reggae sound. We were stoked to hear them play some of the classics- Barington Levy, a Skatalites medley, Mighty Diamonds, Soul Syndicate- who would ever think they'd hear two cuts from Harvest Uptown by 2 different bands... come up to Boston guys. Huge thanks to my boy Keith for putting us up that night.

Raleigh- The Pour House Music Hall was a pretty damn cool place- I bet it's awesome when there are 300 people there. When there's only 15... it looks like 5. Still, pool upstairs, a balcony over looking the stage, good local brews, good times.- Big up to Johnny from Big Boss Brewing Company. Angry Angel is one fine Kölsch, good looks on the sixer.

DC- You didn't hear this from me, but when walking up the steps to the capital building, one can spot tiny lil ads for the destruction of babylon. It's also rumored this crazy ad campaign has started appearing on the flags surrounding the washington monument....

The set at Wonderland was an absolute shit show. For once, no thanks to the i'ternals, for not showing up after radio silence for a week. Way to go. No biggie- we just played an extra long, extra drunk set. Shout out to the bartender and Sound Guy- you both were too kind with the extra helpings, and things did get a lil outta hand afterwards... hopefully we'll return to the area in the not too distant future so we can do it the exact same way all over again (keep in touch, Giggles!). Not quite banned in DC, but maybe next time.

Fairfax- This small Virginia bar/restaurant/venue was actually a killer club. Great sound, nice lighting, an extra riser on stage for drums- and a fuckin' bikini contest. Pretty much a guaranteed great show. Can't Hang were a nice bunch of guys, very Pepper-ish (you decide if that's a good thing...). All in all, we'll be sure to return there.

Queens- Fourth of July in NYC is always worth the trip. Backyard BBQ with a dub/freestyle session- all caught on tape- Priceless (except for those ribs, they're gone for good). Even the constant rain couldn't stop us. Look for audio in the next few weeks...

Overall, our first baby tour was a success. We are all reluctantly getting back into the swing of day jobs, knowing that maybe next time we get in that van, we won't come back...

THE SHADOW ARMY

The Shadow Army:

1. nuh skin up

2. shadow army

3. blackwater

4. thought is boss

5. barriers

6. dub fr hudson

7. shadow of a dub

on the horizon...

the shadow army cometh...

new diggs...

dig this... album artwork is in progress by my good friend Jesse Moore- expect a new site to reveal The Shadow Army cover June 1st! Weird new blogs themes to follow. Go here to see a strings of posts on a blog that Jesse (and I, on a much less cool basis) contribute to...

and if u like the jackhammering deathbot above, gama-go.

and seriously see iron man.

TOUR!?

Believe it or not, DB will finally be embarking on our very own tour for the first time ever! Rob, Cmo, Jbo, Mercer and myself have been playing together since 1998, and for the past ten years we have all dreamed of quitting our jobs, buying a van and hitting the road. Well a few months back I made the first step and traded in my truck for a van and we have starting booking shows along the east coast. It definitely has not been easy- the main reason why we haven't made it to this step yet is because we all work... a lot. And we still are working... a lot. But every spare minute we've been emailing, calling, emailing, researching, and emailing every good club and band we can find along the Atlantic. We only have time to go for one week, but we are making every effort to play every single night, Saturday to Saturday. I will post again once we have finalized dates- June is going to be a big month for DB, keep up!!

Studio Log 3/31

This weekend was productive considering half of the band could not make it. To sum it up: Lots of good vocal takes, crazy effects everywhere, and very little recording left. Sorry for the lame update, but hopefully we'll have plenty to report after the next session. Til then, another rough mix has been posted, check out the humanist dub preview.

Also, here are a few random pics from the Loft Party we played in Brooklyn in Febuary. Calamity from DXA grabbed the mic for a sick free style session over Shadow army. And yes, that is a Captain America blanket as the backdrop.

Thanks to Sam (left) for the pics, and Kristin for coming to the show- tho I'm curious why she's holding a beer bottle at a Keg Party.

Weekend Madness

Phew. This weekend was pure insanity at it's finest. Leaving Friday night to NYC, we had to battle with all New England weather has to offer: wind, rain, snow, sleet, mist, fog, cats, dogs, bumpers, buckets... still, the wet drive was only a foreshadowing of what was to come.

Saturday in the studio was all about the melodica. We also did some acoustic guitar licks, leaving us with only vocals to track, then mixing will commence full-time. We are hoping to have a couple tracks to start passing around within the next month or so.

Around 8:00 pm we depart from Queens to make our way to the city. This was our first venture to the Knitting Factory, and we rolled with quite the crew- 15 heads just from the studio, and met up with almost double that at the show. Things were looking great- we all got in fine (even those without proper id...), the place was packed, we finally met Django in person- we were absolutely pumped to play next. Just as we started bringing our gear on stage, the forces of nature that balance the universe gave us the finger... harder than it ever has before. As I walk by the sound board, stationed by the club manager/sound-woman, water starts pouring out of the lights directly above the console. Allow me to elaborate: this was no drip, no leaky faucet from above. Shit was pouring out of the lights, running down the wall like a waterfall, and shutting down everything it touched. The sound went out, the lights went out, half the power was gone. As the staff scrambled to grab towels and salvage what they could, the words began to echo: shows over everyone...

Our initial reaction was pure shock. A little chuckle of disbelief followed by the infamous stomach pit. Yet as we saw the resounding bummed look in everyone's eyes, we realized it was not over. We still had some power, dry amps, and I was ready to mash down the place with drums mic'd or not. "Don't leave... dub set!" As the staff continued to get the place dry and back in order, we start sound checking while lights still flickered and went out.


After jamming on "youth are getting restless" for a bit, the now sold out crowd was up front and ready to rock. Just then John's vocals came booming over the PA and we were back in business. Thanks to the Knitting crew, some back up gear was assembled and kept the house sound alive. Forty five minutes later, the place was drenched in sweat, smoke, and screaming heads, and we couldn't have been happier.


The rest of the show was great, and headliners Reegal Beagle put on an amazing set. Once again, HUGE thanks goes out to not only the staff that worked so hard to keep the show going, but everyone who danced their ass off while we blazed through our set. It turned out to be one of the most fun times we've ever had on stage. As always, Mercer came in clutch and filmed the whole thing, which will make a very entertaining video some day (hopefully) soon. BTW, thanks to Sam for all these pics!


After sitting in bumper to bumper traffic at 2:30 am (damn city that never naps), we finally made our way back to Queens with so many people that some slept on sound proofing foam on the studio floor... good times. After all, we needed our rest so we could wake up, drive to boston and do it all again.

As expected, it turned out that the next night couldn't quite live up the Saturday's debacle. The show was still fun, but apparently no one wants to come out on a Sunday night in March. The Cool and Deadly killed it as usual and it was great just to hang with those guys. We'll be sharing the stage with them once again next month at Sully's in Connecticut. Other than that, we have a few weeks off to hopefully get more work done on the record. Keep it here for the latest. Until then, cheers with beers.

Spend this weekend with DB

If you're in the NY area- we'll be playing at the awesome Knitting Factory as a part of King Django's monthly Version City Party this Saturday, March 1st. We'll be playing with Reegal Beegal and a bunch of other cool bands- we're up around 10:30pm.

If you're in or around Mass, check us out Sunday night, March 2nd at the Abbey Lounge on the Somerville/Cambridge line. We're playing with the Cool & Deadly, a band you should love. Again up around 10:30pm.

If you're not in either of those areas, check us out on Fearless Music TV performing "Dubblespeak" Saturday nite. Check here for channels and times.

more to come... check the the site for all the details.

You've won a date with DB!

Studio Log 2/5

Another trip to New York, another banging headache, and another batch of Destroy Babylon tunes to get excited about. Though this weekend might have been ultimately upsetting and disappointing to some New Englanders (ourselves included to some degree), DB have 7 new tracks to keep them in high spirits. It's honestly some of our best recorded material yet, even with a lot more working and refining to do. We've got a few new pictures of Gramma's Studio and we've already booked multiple returns to our friends' place in Queens so we can finish this record in un-ADD-like timing. Keep your ears out for new tunes and a bunch of shows on the horizon.
-Rob

Marc Update: Excited, indeed. This was also the first session where we digressed from recording "original" music. Three of the tracks we laid down feature riddims & lyrics from some of our biggest influences: Augustus Pablo, the Heptones, and Keith Hudson. Ideas are still brewing for the actual structure of the release, but we know it will have at least 10 new songs, a handful of them instrumental. It may even feature the beat conducting stylings of the producers themselves, HB and Icerocks. Next session is in t-minus 24... thank you source live.

... maw nice


PS. Happy Birthday to Babylon's lil sister, and original bassist (!), BIZ! We love and miss you and inspire us to tour farther than we can afford. Have fun ...don't hurt yrself.

It's coming...

The first single from Destroy Babylon's new Virtual 45 series is completed. This is Not a Bomb Side A and Side B (the dub mix) will be available for free download on Jan 31st. For your Tuesday fix, the dub version will be posted on our VIRB page on 1/29, which is also the bassmaster's bday. Cheers, rock the digital wax.

Studio Log Jan 008

Another weekend at Grandma's. Though hindered by the absence of our bassmaster Cmo, it was still a productive session. Arriving Friday at midnight (early for us), we managed to throw back a few before checking out- Rob was... seasoning his voice for the morning's recording. For those that don't know our beloved guitarist, I'll say this- RARELY is he seen in the morning hours. Part bartender, part sleepasaurus, he's just among the masses outside of "morning people". I have been known to have my own difficulties with the early am- but Rob's ability to sleep in is epic. Needless to say, capturing this in a recording studio was quite entertaining. The first few songs were rough around the edges, but that weary, deep tone works great for any acoustic, countryside tracks. I can't help but think of the Meat Puppets and their keep-the-first-take mentality they had on so many great releases. There is something innately satisfying with those tension filled deliveries. As for Rob going country- sounds more like Sunday morning punk rock to me. Rob eventually fired himself up and we got to hear the full range.

After 7 or 9 good takes we called it a day and watched the Patriots practice for the Super Bowl. Of course witnessing this in Queens was different than usual, and were forced to settle all squabbles over Beirut... We raged with the DXA crew long enough for the Style Wars dvd to loop 48 times. We placed our breakfast order and zzoonked.

Day 2 we dedicated to mixing. More specifically, we dedicated to mixing This Is Not a Bomb (ya, all day). We did manage to do 2 fairly different mixes of the song- the obligatory "single" mix as well as a cool and deadly dub version (big up fellas). Cool melodica and wet guitar mixed with deadly delay and war-like effects. We are excited about both and hope you guys enjoy them. We will be posting them for FREE download on the last day of the month in honor of Aqua Gate's anniversary (see 12/18/07 post). This is just the first single in a series we hope to continue each month, all year long. Cheers- and hope to see you tomorrow night at the Paradise.

Dream Weavers meets DBoys

Yesterday, the 10th of january in this year of our lord 2008, Destroy Babylon was set to play on Dream Weavers, a show on Cambridge Community television hosted by Jacques The Haitian Firefly. Little did we know that the "live room" we were playing was approximately as big as our bathroom on Gordon St.. If you don't already know, Destroy Babylon is heavily reliant on our rhythm section (marc and chris), and performing without them is just inconceivable. We panicked as all great minds do in time of crisis, things were said, punches were thrown and it was decided that I (rob) should just do some solo music on-air to cover the time. I've (rob've) been getting ready to record a solo record this weekend anyway, so I was pretty well rehearsed, but still suprised.
I ended up having a great time, as did everyone else. I performed Dry Drunk, Unholy Ends, Harvard Ave, Got A Feeling 21 and The Boys Who Might As Well for a projected audience of 30,000 people. It wasn't what I expected, but it was great, we plugged the show and the website numerous times and we made friends with Jacques who invited us back to promote future gigs in Boston. Thanks for tuning in if you did, if not we should be getting a copy of the performance (mine and Jacques') that you can check out. Thanks for stopping by, and for the love of God what the fuck are you reading for, it's un-American. Hallelujah heathens and pass me my ammo... I said good day!

Goodbye 007

All photos by Lara Woolfson
Dope T's provided by RockersNYC

Huge thanks to not only all who came out Saturday Night, but to anyone and everyone who supported DB in 2007. It was a fun year for us: we recorded a couple albums, played at some of our favorite places around Boston, watched our goofy asses on TV (twice), supported the English Beat, and made many new friends along the way.
2008 is gonna be another productive year for us. We are planning on releasing another full length, along with a "best of 007" live album. And believe it or not we're hittin the road for the first time and will destroy babylon across the states. First up however is a new single, available for download January 31st (see post below). Thanks again to our true and loyal fans- we love you guys.

ATTN BPD: THIS IS NOT A BOMB

You're looking at the art inspired by one of the most ridiculous events of 2007, The Boston Bomb Scare (aka AquaGate). We all know the events of 1/31/07 (if not, refresh here). Lets just say getting home from work that day was about as cool as MC Pee Pants rhymes. And the way the country viewed our own Boston Police afterward- cringeworthy.

We started working on the song only a few days after, and has now been a regular on our live set for almost a year now. I had the idea of seeing a crazed, super-freak version of the Moonintes a while back- part of me wishes they did look this way, then the images would at least be somewhat worthy of concern, right? Anyway, my good friend Matt Doughty is a huge Big Daddy Roth fan, and I simultaneously thought of Rat Fink when coming up with this concept. As always, Matt delivered. My sketch was silly at best- his drawing is delightfully revolting. I hope you guys like this drawing as much as we do. It also serves as a reminder of the insanity the BPD created over a fucking Lite Brite.

Oh ya, and we're releasing a new album next month. It's called This is Not a Bomb. Maybe a single, maybe more. Stay tuned, and watch out for 8-bit terrorists.

12/29 - Hometown Mashup

By now, everyone knows the Bosstones are back, and Hometown Throwndown #10 is underway. Of course, all 5 nights sold out in minutes. What you may not know is while the Mighty Mighty rock downstairs, the madness continues upstairs. Night #4, Saturday Dec. 29th, we are declaring the Hometown Mashup. Ricki Rocksteady and the Bad Ideas, Mile 21, and Interrobang!? will be joining Destroy Babylon for a night of dub, rocksteady, reggae ...even ska-core... You can bet we'll be playing new songs, Bad Brains, and some heavy heavy dub. This is the last show of the year and it is shaping up to be one hell of a night. Here are the details:

DB up third (10.15ish)
Buy tickets ahead of time for $9 (or online here).
Free for lucky bastards with Bosstones tix/wristband.
18+ kiddos, so bring everyone you've ever met.

Central Square is going to be a block party that night- get there early and be bad in plaid.

Growlers on TV this Saturday

Everyone's favorite drunk sing-along, "Harvard Ave", will be featured on the next episode of Fearless Music TV- one of the few shows not on strike right now- along with performances by the Dillinger Escape Plan, Tub Ring, Tokyo Rose, and Brenn. Unfortunately the show doesn't air in the Boston area yet, but click here for the full list of channels and times.

Coming Soon from Music ADD

I know we said that we'd have a new mp3 up by now, but unfortunately, you're gonna have to wait a lil longer. But, we're working on a new concept that will make it worth the delay. I can't say too much about it yet as it's in the early development stage, but it may be called "VIRTUAL 45" and will be just that... If we could afford to release actual vinyl records on the regular, you know we would. That would be awesome. Until the time comes when we're able to do that, Virtual 45 will allow us to make our latest tunes available to anyone with the internet at a much faster and cheaper rate. Each Virtual 45 will have an A and B side mp3, plus it's own sleeve artwork. We hope to release a new Virtual 45 once a month.

We also are planning on finally launching our "Dungeon One - Digital Dub" series early next year. This will coincide with Virtual 45, but instead of featuring our latest completed singles, it will showcase more experimental tunes recorded right in the dark, dank basement of the Music ADD headquarters.

What about the full length album? It's still in the works. Much like Oligopuzzled was a cohesive collection of songs with certain themes lyrically and musically, we want to make the next album like that only much bigger and better.

Enjoy your feast tomorrow.

No recording for you, Kermit

Marc, C.Mo and I returned to Grandma's studio in Astoria this past weekend to work on some more songs (Rob was busy kickin ass in his hockey game). I originally planned on finishing the vocals for the songs we have so far, but after a few attempts, I realized that my minor sinus congestion made me sound terrible (see the pic). We still were able to be productive, though, recording lots of overdubs with trumpet, melodica, and percussion, and playing with effects. Sunday we did a final mix for "This Is Not A Bomb" that came out pretty good- we have one more thing to do with it, and then we'll post it here for all to download and judge. We had lots of fun with the mix, resulting in a swirling, chaotic sound that may or may not point in the direction of where we're going. We'll hopefully have it up by the weekend Tuesday... (see update above)

Banned in BYC

Saturday night's show was a big accomplishment for us and tons of fun. Playing a full set of Bad Brains tunes wasn't easy, and we couldn't pay tribute to our favorite band without going nucking futs on stage, which I think we did. For those curious, here's the set we played:

Sailin' On
Intro
I Against I
House of Suffering
Supertouch/Shitfit
Re-Ignition
Leaving Babylon
Banned in DC
Gene Machine/Don't Bother Me
Secret 77
I & I Survive
Youth Are Getting Restless
I
Attitude
At the Movies
*

I think that's it- we actually left behind a gear bag with the set and all of our guitar pedals, cables, and my freakin melodica. Ya, that sucked. Luckily, the Welch Boys were nice enough and let us use their equipment, so a big thank you goes out to them. They also played a kick ass set. The Knuckledusters played a solid set of old-school rockabilly that really got the show off to a great start, and Devil's Rain rocked out some classic Misfits. The turnout wasn't huge, but that's expected with the Red Sox in the World Series (and shitty weather), and the people who did come made it all worth it (see below).

*You might have noticed that we didn't play the 'Brains song Destroy Babylon... we actually practiced it (well, Chris learned it all), but that song is probably the most difficult to pull off because of the weird timing and chords, and it wouldn't have been right to fuck up our titular tune. We will most DEFINITELY be playing another Brains tribute set in the near future, so we hope to do all of the other classics that we weren't able to do this time around.

COSTUME ROUNDUP

I think the DB crew were the only ones who were dressed up at the show (your loss, other people), but we had some pretty bad ass costumes. We'll get some pics up real soon (everyone that has pics, please send them to us!), but I think if I had to pick my favorite it would be Mercer dressed as Cavity Sam (from the Operation game), followed by Rob and Magellan as Axel and Slash respectively, and HB (Steeeve) as the most hilarious-looking nerd ever. Awesome. And I gotta toot my own horn and say that me and Sam as My Buddy and Kid Sister was pretty sweet, especially while screaming my head off. Thanks to all the people that came out and partied with us, I will always be your (Drinking) Buddy.

GO PATS, AND SOX; WORLD CHAMPS, BABY.

Arnie King, Through Barbed Wire

[I'm never sure if I should post non-band related things here, but then I remembered it's our page and I can post whatever I want.]

I learned about Arnie King by reading his fascinating articles in every issue of Whats Up Magazine. Mr. King's story brings up a lot of unwonted issues, and with his Commutation hearing coming up on October 25, I think it's something people should focus some attention on.

In lieu of my own summary, check out the article by Caitlin Currah about Mr. King,

"In 1971, King was an 18-year-old high-school dropout with a drug problem. He and two friends went to Newbury Street in search of drugs and, in a still-mysterious chain of events, King fatally shot a man named John Labanara. By June of 1972, he was sentenced to life without parole for first-degree murder. Clouded by a haze of addiction, King spent his first months in prison wondering how he’d gotten there, and how he’d become the kind of person that would kill another human being. Gradually, he began tutoring illiterate inmates. It was both didactic and therapeutic — teaching others how to read as a means of coping with what he’d done. Eventually, King earned three degrees, and kicked his drug addiction. He founded youth-counseling programs, and became a freelance journalist..."


Arnie King has been in prison for over 35 years. While there, not only did he earn three degrees (including his masters) through Boston University and become a compassionate and powerful youth counselor, he has become a living example of the real purpose behind our country's penal system; not only to provide fair punishment, but also rehabilitation.

You can find out a lot more about Mr. King at his website.

Looking closely at everything he has been through, and everything that he has contributed to society with his hands tied and legs shackled, Mr. King has proven that he has changed and can be a valuable member of our society. Mr. King committed the most heinous of crimes by taking another life, but after his three and a half decades of punishment and reflection, he has the unique ability to be able to teach others first hand about the value of life and to learn from his mistakes. If we were to deny Mr. King the chance to once again live in our society as a normal human being, we are saying that people can never change, that we can never learn from mistakes made as an adolescent, and that there's no reason to have hope because no one gets a second chance at life.

Arnie could use all the support he can get at his Commutation on the 25th to prove that our penal system fosters justice, rehabilitation, and hope for positive change.

Mosh Down Babylon

Saturday nite I started a new campaign called The One Man Mosh Pit. If you're interested in starting your own, contact me for details. All you need is various forms of alcohol, shot glasses, and a place with loud music. As with most ground-breaking experiments, it may lead to injury if not properly supervised. Anyone who was lucky enough to see its debut; you're welcome (and sorry... sorry you didn't join).

Free the Jena 6

[I posted a short blog about this on our myspace page and realized I should've put it here, too.]

Hopefully by now you've heard of the Jena 6. This article from Truthout.org sums it up and brings up a lot of important issues that this case raises.

We recently posted a video for our song "Granite State Challenged" which touches upon some issues regarding race relations in our country. Though we've obviously come a long way, our society was built on racist institutions and some of the injustices are still here, just hidden beneath the surface. The fact that a lot of (white) people think that racism is "no longer an issue" shows a gross misunderstanding of our nation's history and total ignorance to our reality. I hope that everyone takes interest in this and realizes that we can all do something to help.

Studio Log, 9/21-23

Last Friday we had one hell of a day; packed up the truck / drove to nyc / unpacked equip / recorded Growlers at Fearless Music TV / repacked equip / drove down to the LES / unpacked equip / played awesome show with the Cool & Deadly / rerepacked equip / drove to Queens / took an unplanned tour of Queens / unpacked equip / passed the fuck out.

It was a lot of work, but even more fun. Thanks to everyone- especially the Moran family (and the DXA fam) who represented in full force- for coming out. It's amazing that we can play over 200 miles away from our home base and still bring a great crowd and see some familiar faces.

Saturday we did absolutely nothing (but watch baseball).

Sunday was pretty productive- we laid down most of the tracks for "Blackwater USA" (potentially retitled "Shadow Army"), "Granite State Challenged" and a yet-to-be-titled dub that is pretty killer. Rob also recorded his parts for "TINAB" and "Give War a Chance", which are coming out nice. Of course a big thanks goes out to HB, who is doing an awesome job engineering, Brian (and his amazing Grandma) for giving us a complimentary place to crash as well as providing some tasty grub, and my wonderful girlfriend Sam for getting us back on Fearless Music, among other things... We're hoping to return to the studio in mid-October to keep the ball rolling... we may even release a 7" vinyl by the end of the year??.... stay tuned. Huge thanks to DREW for taking these lovely pics, more to come soon...

Happy Consitution Day

On this day 220 years ago, thirty-nine delegates in Philadelphia approved the United States Constitution. In honor of that historic event, September 17 has been designated Constitution Day. (thanks for reminding me, Truthout.org). So I thought this would be an appropriate time to inform all that I have an article featured in the latest Whats Up Magazine. The article is titled The Devolution of Protest, and is basically a rant about my favorite president and rallies for that magnificent charter that our society is based on. The issue also features a bunch of cool articles, all more interesting than mine, including one about a zombie parade, and it may be the last issue for a little while as WU goes through some changes. Read all about in the paper...

Whats Up can be bought by street vendors in the Boston area for a mere $1, or at Million Year Picnic and New England Comics, both in Harvard Square. I am very proud to be a part of the Whats Up family- so please; support the vendors, support the writers and artists involved, and support the awesome street paper that brings the whole community together.

Last Nite

I believe I can speak for the whole band when I say that last night's show with Pressure Cooker and the English Beat was probably the most exciting show we've ever played. Pressure Cooker was amazing and the Beat played one of the best two-and-a-half-hour-long sets I've seen in my life. THANK YOU to everyone that came out (especially the Beer Works crew, who always represent to the fullest, and our friends and fam that traveled many miles)- it was pretty expensive compared to our regular shows, but (I think) it was well worth it- I apologize to the few people that came to see us but were not allowed in because it SOLD OUT. Absolutely amazing- 575 people, all dancing their ass off.

Mercer video taped it and we got a recording from the board- check the new song above. More to come... maybe even DVD in the near future... stay tuned.

Show w/ THE ENGLISH BEAT

Hey all,
Just wanted to say to you guys out there who don't live in Allston or who haven't been witness to our dry humping of southern Boston via postcards and flyers... We're opening for the English Beat TONIGHT! That's right, 8pm tonight at the Middle East Downstairs DB plays a monumental show supporting UK legends The English Beat. We're videotaping the night and planning a really kickass set. So please come out and show some love so we can play with dopeass bands like the Beat more often... thank you for your time, please pull up to the second window...
Rob