Sonic Parthenon Philadelphia: The A.K.A.s @ The M Room

We're starting out a new feature here on the blog, reporting from people other than Pennypacker. The first volunteer to the SP staff is Jack Firneno, drummer for SP faves the Yarrows and now instantly the head of the Sonic Parthenon Philadelphia Bureau. I encouraged him to take on the alias Winthorp D. Huffnagle but he declined. Speaking of aliases, here is his first report:


The A.K.A.s; Jena Berlin
@ The M Room
Philadelphia, PA - March 18, 2007


The A.K.A.s

Last night was the record release party for The A.K.A.s' new album Everybody Make Some Noise! on Metropolis Records. It's a consolidation of the band's strengths, a crunchy, riffy brew of art punk and swaggering garage rock, and features some surprise guests - most notably a cutting (and mercifully brief) monologue from Jello Biafra on the anti-consumerism "Everything's a Commercial."

The only other time I'd seen the band was about a year ago at a small show at Long In The Tooth, a great record store in Philly. Unfortunately, I was behind the amps for the set and I couldn't hear one word that front man Mike Ski sang (the music was solid, though). This time I was positioned pointedly in front of the band, but the perils of small clubs persisted and Ski's slightly nasal, slightly sloganeering vocals hardly cut through.

Other than that minor quibble the set was great, and the 400-plus shows the band's played has paid great dividends. Onstage the A.K.A.s are a ball of tightly controlled energy that releases in quick blasts, be it via Ski and guitarist Vegas Davis looming over the audience, or bassist Justin Perry occasionally punctuating his lines with stomps and kicks.

While the backline's not as flashy, drummer Chachi Darin and keyboardist Josie Outlaw are constantly moving and propelling the music forward. Unlike other drummers I've seen mistake brute force for loud drumming, Darin can come down hard on the skins without choking the sound, and Outlaw is always dancing to her striking Farfisa keyboard lines.

The room was jumping, but as a side note we also had to contend with the kind of moshers that Mr. Pennypacker likes to point out whenever we argue about whether or not a pit is appropriate. Personally, I'm a fan of some well-contained lunacy, but last night just wasn't the time or place. There was already a fight during Jena Berlin's set, and also a girl in a wheelchair positioned at the side of the stage.

During the A.K.A.s' set, a small pit broke out and quickly dissipated - save for one fat bastard who seemed to take the crowd's cue to knock it off as an affront to his manhood. He kept careening towards us and then ricocheting dangerously close to the girl in the wheelchair, getting more rowdy as a couple of us pushed him away and slammed him into a wall. But cooler heads prevailed, and one dude had a quick word in the guy's ear (he used the same tone I do when I tell my two-year-old to quit acting up in a store). Said d-bag looked up with a dazed "I still eat glue" look on his face, did the math, and slunk off.

But despite a few small setbacks it was a great night. The M Room may not be as well-known a venue as Johnny Brenda's down the street, but the A.K.A.s definitely made the place their own and I think some of their energy wouldn't have been as appreciated had they been playing a stage four feet above the ground rather than two.

The A.K.A.s will be back on the road next week, and are coming to the Knitting Factory on May 1st. If you're looking for some high energy, garage punk it's a show to see.

-Jack Firneno