ChumHuffer
Hometown: NYC, NY
Album: Orgy of Hate, out April 21st via Self-release
RIYL: Orgies. Hate. Surf Punk.
One doesn’t normally associate surf punk with NYC, but we can clearly thank the internet (thanks Al Gore) for the ability to be influenced by things outside our immediate jurisdiction. Honestly, if you hit play on Orgy of Hate, you’d be hard-pressed to guess the members hail from within the five boroughs. You’ve got that classic Cali sound in spades here, with echoes of Dead Kennedys, The Dwarves, Black Flag, and TSOL. That salty whiff of surf rock is the seasoning on top. Does all this mean that ChumHuffer (what a name) rule? Why yes it does, if you’re into that sort of thing. Thematically, there’s the same sense that the more things change, the more they stay the same, but while we do have some more modern takes on punk classics like “the world still sucks” and “why do we hate one another,” we also have riffs on very prolific friends, whether that’s in the writer’s room or the bathroom.
“We approached this record that we were going to make honest songs by what inspired us, whether it is griping about the state of the world today or recounting a funny story about a co-worker that had explosive diarrhea,” guitarist/vocalist Blackout Matt says. “I always hesitate to have any songs that are political, because in order to be a political band the members should generally agree on politics, and that doesn’t happen in real life, but sometimes the songs go where they go. No matter your politics, you can see faults in the world and share in the collective angst that punk music has been harnessing for nearly half a century now.”
“Society will always have problems and punk bands will always be there to point them out,” guitarist/vocalist Joe Dorane adds. “We’re not super political, but our heads aren’t in the sand either. We see what’s going on around us. And how bad it is depends on your level of cynicism. Can we change what’s bad about the world in a day? Probably not. Can we change someone’s mind a little? Give that person the push to question certain things or think differently? I hope so.”
Photo courtesy of ChumHuffer.
