Mix of rock, electronica, punk sounds keep veteran musicians fresh, relevant
These days, there’s a fine line among rock, electronica and punk.
Walking the tightrope among all three of these genres is Nicos Gun, a funky fresh Philadelphia quartet that’s quickly becoming one of the best new bands to watch in 2011.
A group of self-proclaimed “music nerds,” Nicos Gun has managed to make a name for itself in the music world in a relatively short amount of time. After all, the band has only been playing together for about a year now.
But that doesn’t mean the players new to the music game. All of the band’s members had already cut their chops in the industry long before they joined forces to form Nicos Gun. Lead singer and guitarist Barney Cortez worked with hip-hop aficionados The Roots before pairing up with guitar and keyboard player Nick Bockrath, who had done previous stints in American Babies and Elevator Flight. Nicos Gun also has another special weapon in its arsenal: drummer Harry Zelnick. Zelnick, a Grammy award-winning producer at the age of 17, worked cuts with Lil Wayne, Ludacris and a variety of other artists before hooking up with Bockrath, Cortez and eventual bassist Andy Black.
“Barney and I started getting together with Harry about a year and a half ago to work on a Gorillaz-type album that he envisioned with different guests and whatnot,” Bockrath said. “But that morphed into what is now Nicos Gun.”
In describing Nicos’ music, one word comes distinctly comes to mind: psychedelic. In fact, if you were ever to take a strange journey filled with yellow submarines and blue mountains a la The Beatles, Nicos Gun would certainly be your soundtrack.
The guitar-tinged melodies and gentle cooing lyrics of “We Are Fluorescent” are perfect for watching a slow day drift by without a care in the world. The sound is very ’60s rock, equipped with a modern kaleidoscopic edge that even John Lennon himself would approve of. Other cuts like the ’70s-infused “Dirty Girl” play like an indie disco: upbeat, stylish and complete with rocking guitar riffs and smoldering electronic backup.
It’s clear that Nicos Gun enjoys the experimental aspect of its music, and each track dabbles in elements of rock, punk and electronic that when played back-to-back are distinctly different from the last. And perhaps just as eclectic as the sound are the artists the members draw inspiration from.
“We’re super inspired by artists like Prince, the Talking Heads, Bowie, The Rolling Stones, LCD Soundsystem and a lot of old soul and funk,” Bockrath said.
And what about that name? After all, all unique band names have an awesome backstory, (Butthole Surfers or Meat Puppets, anyone?), and Nicos Gun is certainly no exception. According to Bockrath, the name stems from a place not many would expect.
“Harry and Barney used to work in this shoemaker’s store, repairing leather shoes and stuff like that,” he said. “The owner’s name was Nico, and he always used to keep this gun behind the counter of the store. One day, Barney and Harry were playing around with the gun when it went off in the middle of the store. Nico fired them, and that’s where we got the name from — Nicos Gun.”
The members are always coming up with new material, even keeping a recording setup in their RV as they head out on their first tour. And when they’re not writing and recording, they are creating new music videos, which Bockrath says the band plans to release plenty of.
“We love making music videos. It makes things so three-dimensional and adds images for people to attach to the songs,” he said. “It’s also the most fun to do.”
Currently, the band is touring with Morning Teleportation and enjoying every minute on the road. They also plan to release lots of new material soon and are shopping around for the right people to put it out there.
Nicos Gun will be playing at New Brookland Tavern tonight at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 at the door.
