[Ex]Band of the Week: The Blood Brothers

[1997-2007]
The Blood Brothers
Sounds Like: Post-hardcore / Art Punk / Experimental
Drinking Buddies: The Plot To Blow Up The Eiffel Tower, The Fall Of Troy, Foxy Shazam
Synopsis: Making twisted, grotesque, vile noise audible and invigorating.
Makes You Want To...: Wild out; SCREAM!; Break it down!
Evolved Into:

• Jaguar Love
• Neon Blonde
• Champagne Champagne
• Head Wound City
• Past Lives
  

[Myspace]




This month is one of old and new.
Voilà! is featuring bands that have broken up.
This week, the featured artist is The Blood Brothers.



Oh yes, dear readers, as they say - and "they" say a lot of things - all good things must come to an end. And just as the bands we've looked at, our segment on [Ex]Bands of the Week must also end. But don't be sad, because these features were meant to be celebratory! Voilà! wasn't just documenting bands that have broken up; Voilà! raising a toast to these former masters of music for their contributions to our musical culture. We were thanking them for their tours and achievements.

So let's liven up, shall we? Let's go out with a bang. I know just the band to do it with. Seattle has always spawned interesting, experimental, unique sounds. Soundgarden, Nirvana, Jimi Hendrix, Sunny Day Real Estate, Death Cab for Cutie, Minus the Bear; the list goes on. Even two of our previous [Ex]Bands - both Pretty Girls Make Graves and Some By Sea - have hailed from the the coast of the Puget Sound. Such an eclectic town which supports everyone from Daphne Loves Derby to Throw Me The Statue, always characterized for its influential, new styles of music.

But there is one band that we simply can't forget. One band that connects both Pretty Girls Make Graves and Jaguar Love. That band is none other than the notorious Blood Brothers. Oh yes, the post-hardcore quintet came from the rainy city of Seattle and made the term "experimental" obsolete.

The Blood Brothers turned words like "horrid," "foul," and "disgusting" into something you want to listen to. The Blood Brothers twisted your thinking with discordant riffs plastered amidst blood curdling screams and wails of political strife. The Blood Brothers thrashed through songs about mathematical division, peacocks, serial killers, scarecrows, blood thirsty zeppelins, and "Rats And Rats And Rats For Candy." But how does one explain this audible hell gift wrapped with a bow? That is a challenge, I admit. May I quote?

"These hot machine years burning time across your face/ See the smoke stacks rising up like fuck you towers?/ My girlfriend sang like a hummingbird today/ 'Til that cough stole her voice and fed it to the furnace."

The Blood Brothers are all about serving truth and raw fact, and by raw, I do mean a very raw, gritty, grungy slice of reality in the most surreal, vicious way possible. These boys set off on their mission of destruction with their low-budget debut, This Adultery Is Ripe, back in 2000, followed by March on Electric Children in two years. Their experimental style began to build notoriety for the collective, and in 2003 released their third album, ...Burn, Piano Island, Burn, drawing in many more fans and a fair load of media attention.

Prolific as always, The Blood Brothers followed their successes in 2003 with Crimes, which garnered more positive reviews, new fans, and success across the board. By the time Crimes was released, there was an audible switch in The Blood Brothers' style, from a more wicked, thrashing, violent, and heavy sound, to a more coordinated chaos that began to develop on ...Burn, Piano Island, Burn, and followed them through the rest of their career. In 2006, they released Young Machetes to critical acclaim once again.

But word hit the interblag, saying that the band was going on hiatus. In November of last year, the next of The Blood Brothers finally saw the light of day when they decided to go their separate ways, they left a twisted, torn apart genre of music, with many budding bands following in their tracks. Blood Brothers members are still very active these days. Of course, there's Jaguar Love, which you can read all about here. Then there's Neon Blonde, headed up by Johnny Whitney and Mark Gajadhar, while Head Wound City hosts the likes of Jordan Blilie and Cody Votolato.

Another Blood Brothers spin-off is Champagne Champagne, featuring the talents of Mark Gajadhar. Finally, Jordan Blilie, Mark Gajadhar and Morgan Henderson tend to have parties in Past Lives, which I've only heard good things about. Of course, The Blood Brothers still has their handy dandy Myspace up. If you need me, I'll be writing my short story relating to "Salesman, Denver Max." This year's [Ex]Band of the Week has concluded, but never fret, my friends! Just keep your ears to the music.