#da comrade

“Don’t judge me.”

...sorta

oh and of course: the facebook event

Check out this video from Da Comrade on tour! 

A few of my roommates/favorite dudes, Da Comrade.

Via City Paper Da Comrade! has all the earmarks of a classic West Philadelphia ensemble. Their Dadaist lyrics dovetail nicely into their honking Captain Beefheart-like art-punk. (One of its singer/songwriters, Fletcher VanVliet, has even adopted the Captain's real last name.) They have a weirdly folksy and loud offshoot, On the Water, whose demos were recorded by a member of legendary area mainstays Radio Eris and an upcoming full-length produced by Ugh God. Plus Da Comrade! is part of a diverse menagerie of crusty aesthetes who, until recently, had their own house. They have uniquely bushy facial hair. The only thing more West Philly than Da Comrade! is the 36 trolley. And the same must be said for Chernobyl Collective Arts (CCA) — a tight group of creative types with Da Comrade! at the forefront — which is putting its mouth where its (limited) money is this month. CCA is releasing a handsome zine and a compilation CD called Long Live Chernobyl. Noisy West Philly neighbors Mose Giganticus and TJ Kong and the Atomic Bomb do the sonic side. Abstract painter/collagist Steph Cisso, photographer Stephanie Ricci, sculptor George Cosgrove and others supply the weird visual end. "This collective was raised from the ashes of our now-defunct venue house," says VanVliet, referring to Chernobyl Haus (near 45th and Locust), which hosted house parties and shows between '08 and '09. The place also acted as an arts and music studio for its members and like-minded visionaries visiting from out of state. "We all agreed that even though that era had passed, we would still work together and mutually support our seemingly endless stream of projects. We've been sitting on the idea for some time, so this zine/compilation release show is our big way of bringing ourselves onto the radar." If their own music doesn't do it first. There's just as much shouting and punchy strumming as there are tender, softer moments to the sea shanty folk of On the Water, which is sometimes just VanVliet and Stephen Landis, the violinist for Psalters who used to crash the couch at Chernobyl Haus. More often, OTW swells to nine members. Meanwhile, Da Comrade!'s debut full-length, Chariot, is radically heavier than its previous wifty recordings (the sprawling War from Your Living Room EP, the haughty home-recorded CD Da!Da! ). Panicky songs like "Who Is Jawn Galt?" and a set of eerily screeching strings add to Da Comrade!'s usual messy drama — what VanVliet calls the band's Dadaist ethos. Still, there's something gently refined about the proceedings even when its guitars skronk and its drums tumble. "Everything we're lining up do to this year, including some truly epic theatrical videos, aims for high art," says VanVliet. ([email protected]) Long Live Chernobyl zine/CD release party with Da Comrade!, Mose Giganticus, TJ Kong and the Atomic Bomb and No One and the Somebodies, Sat., April 2, 2 p.m., Dock Street Brewing Co., 701 S. 50th St., chernobylcollectivearts.com. See you Saturday! - Stephanie