Victor Victor Band Brings Good Rock Back to Philly.

Good blues-rock is not dead. In fact, some of the best of its kind is coming from our very own City of Brotherly Love at this very moment. Who are these soulful masters of instruments that keep the legend alive? Well, they happen to be a graphic designer, Jamie Victor, and his lovely accountant wife, Danielle Victor, from the Northeast. Now I realize that the thought of an average Joe, and his Joesette, rocking out in their basement may conjure images of airport-karaoke-type music, but I assure you the aptly named Victor Victor Band has something really special. The type of music they put out requires a shit-ton of soul, and these two have it.

The sound is big drums and big guitar. It’s rock-n-roll. No silly labels, no trendy experiments, just straight up rock-n-roll. Jamie’s lyrics are love, sex, pain and fear. Add to that a cornucopia of pedals and distortion, some sick natural-born-talent, and a pinch of salt, and there you have it.

To listen to Jamie is to know that he was born with music pulsing through his veins. It’s natural for him, and he makes you feel it. Danielle is another story all together. These days she knocks out a beat with one hand, while playing the bass line on keyboards with the other. I have even witnessed her shaking the maracas while performing this trick.

In 2005, as a joke, they decided to dress up as a rock band for a Halloween party they were throwing. Danielle had never played an instrument, couldn’t read music and wasn’t particularly interested in either. However, they both agreed that a drum kit was needed to complete the look. One Craigslist ad and $100 later, and Danielle had her costume accessories.

“We literally had to look at the Guitar Center catalog to figure out how to set it up,” laughs Jamie. “Then I just plugged the guitar in and started playing. Right away she just starts playing the drums like she had always done it, hitting the cymbals and everything. I couldn’t believe it!”

From there, they never turned back. They started playing shows at local music havens like The Fire, Tritone, and JC Dobbs. They quickly earned a name for themselves among other bands and those in the industry. Propelled by word-of-mouth and their own ferocious dedication they started to build a following. Before they knew it, they were receiving accolades from the press, booking tons of shows, were voted Philadelphia Style magazine’s 2008 Best Unsigned Band, and had their first album, Chatterbox, under their belt.

Without a doubt, Chatterbox is one of the best unsigned albums I’ve heard in years. The 13-track album is a dichotomy. It’s a driving-in-your-car-blaring-loud-as-hell rock CD, gently sprinkled with sound bites of the duo’s bickering while recording (hence the name of the album.) It works to reminds you of just how unlikely these two music stars are.

But as great as Chatterbox is, the real “gift” is seeing them perform live. Their chemistry is undeniable. The way that Danielle stares seductively at Jamie as she knocks on those drums is enough to make this hardened reporter blush. Jamie’s expressions alone are enough to draw a crowd. The man plays the guitar like he is birthing every note, every lyric. He scrunches his face, he wiggles his tongue, he gets on his knees and thrusts around the floor. With the energy, noise and enthusiasm these two produce, you would think they are The Who, playing Madison Square Garden in ’79. They maintain this energy and excitement through every show, regardless of how many they’ve played that month. They’ve never been known to take a day off.

If you’ve read anything about Victor Victor Band before, you’ve probably heard them being compared to The White Stripes. Yes it’s true, if you really dig, there is a similar sound, but mostly the comparison refers to the fact that both bands are coed rock duos with mad talent. Victor Victor Band’s guitar and lyrics scream Jimi Hendrix. Trust me, I don’t dispense that lightly.

Jamie recalls how he fell in love with rock. “When I was 13 years old I found one of my dad’s tapes. It said ‘Jimi Hendrix Concerts.’ I’ll never forget I sat by myself in my rec room and I just put the tape on. I had never heard any Hendrix before. The minute I put it on, I was like, ‘Oh my god.’ I was just obsessed,” he says.

“That’s how he is about anything that he is interested in,” says Danielle. “He just completely obsesses.”

It’s obvious this statement is true about Danielle as well.

“I am very goal oriented,” explains Danielle. “I’m not just doing it because it’s fun. I want there to be an end goal. So, we need to work really hard and get where we want as fast as we can. There’s still a lot we want to do.”

This is exactly why Victor Victor Band will continue to flourish. Nothing they do is ever half-assed, and they won’t give up the good fight until they’ve had the last word.

All photos by Steve Davis

VictorVictorBand.com

Victor Victor Band Shows

Hipsters Eat for Free Launch Party w/Saudi Arabia @ Kung Fu Necktie - 8 p.m.

10.9 World Cafe Live w/Downtown Harvest & Prowler -8 p.m.

10. 23 The Cherrywood w/TBA - 9 p.m.

10.30 Mischief Night @ The Fire w/ Sound of Urchin / Surgeon / Big Terrible- 9 p.m.

11.27 Black Friday at The Fire w/TBA- 9 p.m.

Mission Creep

Play this while reading to enhance pleasure.

Banned Books Mission Creep

You have probably never heard of banned books.  I hadn’t either until running into singer, Zane Kanevsky, while promoting my very own launch party.  I handed him a flyer.

“I’m in a band,” he spurted out. “We’ll play for free.”

I thought to myself, yeah sure you are. Who isn’t in a band? I gave him my business card and walked away.  Then, one jobless morning I got tired of blankly staring at my wall and decided to check them out. I am so glad I did.

banned books has existed barely a full year, although you would never know by the tight sound of their first album, Mission Creep.  A fresh album created by self-proclaimed, “immature white kids playing loud music.”

These three white boys, Ben Crouse, Matthew Dermond and Zane Kanevsky from South Jersey, have created a unique sound via synthesizers, drums, guitars, bass, vocals and other various and unidentifiable sounds.  They might be just kids, but their album reflects musical maturity.

Mission Creep, measuring in at a short 8 tracks, leaves you feeling full.  Reminiscent of a variety of sounds from Danny Elfman, to thumping camp songs you sang when you were ten, Mission Creep has it all.  Melodic yet dissonant, the songs on the album are only enhanced by, Kanevsky and Dermond’s chameleon like vocals.  At times they conjure Jack White, other times the little boy from The Shinning (red rum.)

Each and every track has its own appeal.  Some catchier than others like, “Supernatural Mongoloid.” Others are more sinister, as in “Trophy Wife Sings the Devil’s Fanfare.” But all are well executed and injected with unadulterated rock-n-roll. Banned books has created an album that you can sing along to, rock out to, scream to, push to and skip to.  Awesome!