Streetlight Manifesto

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Streetlight Manifesto
The Streetlight logo
The Streetlight logo
Background information
Origin U.S. flag East Brunswick, New Jersey, United States
Genre(s) Ska punk
Years active 2002–present
Label(s) Victory, RISC
Associated
acts		 Catch 22, Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution
Members
Delano Bonner
Mike Brown
Jim Conti
Tomas Kalnoky
Pete McCullaugh
Mike Soprano
Chris Thatcher
Former members
Stuart Karmatz
Pete Sibilia
Paul Lowndes
Josh Ansley
Jamie Egan
Dan Ross
Chris Paszik

Streetlight Manifesto is a ska punk band from East Brunswick Township, New Jersey, United States.

They released their first album, Everything Goes Numb, which was distributed by Victory Records, on August 26, 2003. The band headlined their first concert at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey on December 9, 2003. Several of Streetlight Manifesto's members were well known in the New Jersey third wave ska community for their roles in past ska punk bands from that area. The lineup included Catch 22's Tomas Kalnoky, Jamie Egan, Mike Soprano, and Josh Ansley, as well as One Cool Guy's Stuart Karmatz, Pete Sibilia, Dan Ross, and Chris Paszik.

The lineup has since gone through several changes, and as of 2007 consists of Delano Bonner on trumpet, Mike Brown on alto and baritone saxophone, Jim Conti on alto and tenor saxophone, Tomas Kalnoky on guitar and vocals, Pete McCullaugh on the bass guitar, Mike Soprano on trombone, and Chris Thatcher on drums. Kalnoky is the only remaining member from the original lineup.

Although the band has enjoyed no mainstream commercial success, they have received acclaim in alternative music circles, and their debut album was in Interpunk.com's top 100 items, even three years after its release.[citation needed] Their concerts have often sold out, and their first few shows at Rutgers and The Stone Pony not only sold out, but had fans coming from as far away as Minnesota and Canada.[1] Their second album, Keasbey Nights, a reworking of Catch 22's Keasbey Nights was released on March 7, 2006.

Contents

[edit] Musical influences and style

Streetlight performing at The Metro in Chicago, IL on June 12, 2005. From left to right: Mike Brown, Jim Conti, Mike Soprano, Delano Bonner
Streetlight performing at The Metro in Chicago, IL on June 12, 2005. From left to right: Mike Brown, Jim Conti, Mike Soprano, Delano Bonner

Since Kalnoky is responsible for writing most of the music, it is his influences that most affect the songs. He first writes them on an acoustic guitar and then fleshes out the song structure on the computer and hums basic hornlines, after which the rest of the band come in and add their parts to the songs, e.g. the horn section refine their parts and add harmonies.[1] In an interview he called the Stand By Me soundtrack his biggest musical influence, and says when writing songs that he looks to the 50s and 60s for inspiration. He also mentioned that Nirvana were a big influence.[2] In an earlier interview conducted in 2002 he mentioned the 50s and 60s, in particular specifying The Drifters as one of his favourite bands, and also describes the Squirrel Nut Zippers as a big influence.[3]

When listening to their first album, Everything Goes Numb, the similarities between it and Keasbey Nights are obvious, as they both share the same style of songs: fast-tempo and brass-lead with walking basslines and rapid-fire singing that is characteristic of Kalnoky. There are also lyrical similarities, particularly in the case of the third track "Point/Counterpoint," which is similar to "Keasbey Nights" (also the third track of Keasbey), as they both have choruses mentioning guns and (bulletproof) vests. In fact, Streetlight have performed the two songs merged together live, with "Keasbey Nights" in the middle. When played in this way, the end of "Keasbey" leads well into "Point" as the bridge seems to form a response:

"Keasbey Nights":

When they come for me I’ll be sitting at my desk with a gun in my hand wearing a bullet proof vest singing my my my how the time does fly when you know you’re going to die by the end of the night.

"Point/Counterpoint":

So I waited by the phone but that phone never rang
And I sang so loud so I wouldn't hear the bang
When the bang never came and I never got the call: Fuck it! Thank you! I love you all!

In an interview with Alternative Press, Kalnoky remarked that their next CD will "branch out in different directions. It'll have more of a world influence running through it, namely eastern European and gypsy sounds."[4]

[edit] Critical reception

Streetlight received a largely positive welcome when they appeared on the music scene and managed to gather a large following with little to no promotion or advertising. Instead the legacy of past bands and their reputation for strong live performances led to a fanbase that rapidly expanded.[5] They have sold out shows in America since their very first gig at Rutgers University and also played to packed venues when they visited the UK in early 2005. A large factor in their success was the fact that Tomas Kalnoky wrote most of Catch 22's Keasbey Nights, which is generally regarded as one of the finest examples of third-wave ska. In fact, after Kalnoky left, many fans were disappointed with Catch 22's later offerings, not viewing them as up to the same standard as Keasbey. As such many current and past Catch 22 fans awaited Streetlight's debut with anticipation, hoping for a return to standard of Keasbey. Everything Goes Numb was released in 2003 and received various positive reviews and numerous comparisons to Keasbey.[6] It even received some good reviews from people who otherwise thoroughly disliked ska.[7]

[edit] Rivalry with Catch 22

Due to Kalnoky's history with Catch 22 and Streetlight's rapid rise to success many fans have speculated that there may be some animosity and rivalry between the two bands. In fact, both bands have lyrics on their albums (Everything Goes Numb and Dinosaur Sounds that were both released in late 2003) that could be interpreted as hostile messages to one another. In Streetlight's "A Moment of Silence", Kalnoky sings "If you hate me so much then stop singing my songs", which many fans took to be a reference to Catch 22 still performing songs which Kalnoky wrote on Keasbey Nights. Similarly the Catch 22 song "So Cold" contains several lines, in particular

I can't believe you're still mad about that.
I can't believe you're still living in the past.

which many believe to be directed at Kalnoky in reference to his departure from the band.

While it is not known for certain whether any of these lyrics were messages, there were certainly some bad feelings between Kalnoky and Catch 22 at some point due to his departure. In an early 2002 interview Kalnoky's response to whether or not he kept in touch with Catch 22 was "I tried to keep in touch. then I read something on the net that surprised/hurt me, so I stopped trying. That's all I'll say, sorry."[2] However, since then both Kalnoky and members of Catch 22 have stated on numerous occasions that they are on good terms (in fact Kevin Gunther from Catch 22 is Streetlight's booking agent).[8]

[edit] History

Kalnoky, Ansley, and Egan first gained fame as one half of fellow New Jersey band Catch 22. Kalnoky became particularly notable as he was responsible for writing all of their debut album Keasbey Nights, which is regarded as one of the top albums of the third wave of ska. After Keasbey, all three left at separate times and for their own reasons. When Catch 22 recorded their second album, Alone in a Crowd, it was with a considerably different line-up; without Kalnoky, the band had a different sound.

Shortly prior to Streetlight Manifesto Kalnoky gathered a large number of musicians—including Ansley and Egan, several members of One Cool Guy, his brother Achilles, and several of Achilles' orchestra friends—to perform on the Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution EP, A Call to Arms. Included on the five track, independently released CD is "Here's to Life", a song which Streetlight Manifesto reworked and included on Everything Goes Numb, and a new version of Catch 22's "Dear Sergio", which includes a new verse and a minor renaming to "Dear Sergio:". Both Streetlight and the Bandits are members of The RISC Group, a collaboration of artists to self produce and retain rights to their music.

[edit] Recording to touring

Streetlight's first recording consisted of a four-track demo EP, featuring the songs "Everything Went Numb", "Point/Counterpoint", "The Saddest Song" and "We Are the Few", all of which were re-recorded for their debut album. The line-up that recorded the demo consisted almost entirely of musicians from the project Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution: Josh Ansley (bass guitar), Jamie Egan (trombone & trumpet), Tomas Kalnoky (guitar & vocals), Stuart Karmatz (drums), Dan Ross (alto & baritone saxophone) and Pete Sibilia (tenor saxophone). It was this recording that got the band signed to Victory Records, the same label as Catch 22.[1]

After the demo was recorded Stuart Karmatz left and was replaced by Paul Lowndes and Jim Conti took the place of Pete Sibilia. This line-up then recorded Everything Goes Numb, but changed again before the band could perform any live shows. Paul Lowndes left so Chris Thatcher joined the band as his replacement, and has been with Streetlight ever since. On the album, Jamie Egan played both trumpet and trombone, but as he would not be able to do this live Mike Soprano joined on trombone. This line-up then performed at Streetlight's first ever show: headlining at Rutgers University on December 9, 2003. They also played several other shows before the year ended, and in 2004 embarked upon the TNT (They'll Never Tour) Tour.

[edit] More lineup changes

Streetlight had grown more successful than they had anticipated, and in September 2004, Josh Ansley announced his departure to pursue an acting career.[9] Although a September 19, 2004 concert was listed to be his last, he was not at the show. Chris Paszik performed in his place. The concert, held at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, New Jersey, is notable for being the first live performance of the BOTAR version of Catch 22's song "Dear Sergio:".

The next departure was Jamie Egan, who left on January 22, 2005; right before Streetlight Manifesto began the Ska is Dead 2 tour, headlining alongside MU330 and the Voodoo Glow Skulls. Egan left to spend more time with his family and concentrate on his music teaching job at North Brunswick High School in North Brunswick, New Jersey.[10] Delano Bonner came in to play trumpet starting on January 25, 2005, performing at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. Dan Ross had planned to leave after the The Ska Is Dead 2 to pursue a business career, and was forced to leave early just before the end of the tour due to a family crisis.[11] He has been replaced by Mike Brown, whose first concert was at the start of the European tour. Brown's first concert in the United States was on May 31, 2005 in Baltimore.

[edit] European tour

In April 2005, the band headed overseas to Europe for their first tour outside North America, however they were to be wrought with personnel difficulties. Before the tour had even started they were a man down as Delano Bonner was unable to fly out due to not being able to attain a valid Visa. He was eventually able to obtain a Visa from the British Embassy and fly out to perform the last few UK dates, however just after he got there Jim Conti had to return to America due to a family emergency. This meant that Streetlight only played one date with the complete line-up, and after they had finished the UK portion and headed over to mainland Europe had to make do with a 2-man brass section as Delano's Visa was only valid for the UK. The band also mentioned having received no label support for the tour, and that it had therefore set them back financially.[12] Rob Thatcher said in a post on the unofficial forum that it might be due to the fact that Streetlight were doing things by themselves. Despite these setbacks the band said they had thoroughly enjoyed the tour and vowed to return later that same year.

[edit] Robbed

On the night of October 2, 2005, (in Orlando, Florida) while the band slept in their hotel rooms, their van was broken into and emptied by robbers. The thieves then proceeded to detach the band's trailer—containing their instruments and merchandise—and drove away with it. In total around $80,000 (£45,540) worth of instruments, merchandise, and personal belongings were stolen.[13] Following the robbery, the band was forced to cancel their following four shows. At their show in Washington DC on October 7, 2005 they announced that they were basically “starting at square one again”. On their website, they announced that they were probably going to have to get “real jobs” to work off the cost of the stolen belongings.

On the night of November 9, 2005 Streetlight Manifesto were robbed again while on tour in Paris, France. This time only their rental car was broken into and about $4,000 (£2,290) worth was stolen, including "the one expensive piece of equipment that wasn't stolen in last month's debacle, a 24 track hard drive recorder we've been using to document our live shows". This robbery had nothing to do with the riots taking place in Paris at the time.[14]

[edit] Current projects and the future

The band is currently in the middle of recording new material, both for Streetlight and the Bandits, as well as touring in support of other bands. So far Streetlight have teased a few new songs at live shows, two of which were recorded at a show at The Crazy Donkey in Farmingdale, New York on October 9, 2005. In a news post on the Streetlight site, Kalnoky also hinted at plans for a future tour of Australia and Japan,[15] although not even a rough date has been announced. In an Alternative Press article about the most anticipated albums of 2007, Streetlight's new CD was shown with a release date of January 23rd, however, a post to their website dismissed these rumors. In the article, Kalnoky said "We try not to work on any deadlines. We're just trying to make it as good as possible, [and] letting it grow more organically." The new album is also said to be darker than the last album. The band's main site was updated on the supposed release date of their new album, saying that nearing release they would upload snippets of songs for download, and they made a cryptic comment about revealing the identity of "bunny's kidnappers." This is in reference to the movie, "The Big Lebowski." According to a March 15, 2007 update of the band's official website, the newest record will be finished before the summer of 2007. This update also told plans of a 2 month summer tour with Reel Big Fish and Less Than Jake in North America.[16]

[edit] Discography

[edit] Song samples

[edit] Members

Streetlight performing at the Ottobar in Baltimore on February 17, 2005. From left to right: Chris P., Tomas, Dan, Jim, Mike S.
Streetlight performing at the Ottobar in Baltimore on February 17, 2005. From left to right: Chris P., Tomas, Dan, Jim, Mike S.

[edit] Current

[edit] Former

(In order of departure)

  1. Stuart Karmatz - Drums
  2. Pete Sibilia - Tenor Saxophone
  3. Paul Lowndes - Drums
  4. Josh Ansley - Bass Guitar
  5. Jamie Egan - Trumpet/Trombone
  6. Dan Ross - Alto and Baritone Saxophone
  7. Chris Paszik - Bass Guitar

[edit] Crew

[edit] Tours

[edit] 2004

They'll Never Tour Tour

[edit] 2005

Ska is Dead 2 Tour

Europe Tour

Tour Between the Other Two Tours Tour

No One Quit Since Last Tour Tour

No Child Left Behind Tour

Please Stop Robbing Us Tour

[edit] 2006

The Bamboozle Festival

This Better Work or We Are Dead! Tour 2006

Summer Tour

Fall of Ska Tour

Light of Day 7

[edit] 2007

Untitled North American Summer Tour

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Audio interview by Tyler Rodgers for Charles Bronson Radio on December 20, 2003 mp3
  2. ^ a b Interview with "The Wezzul" for a now defunct fansite. Archive of interview.
  3. ^ Interview conducted by Tom Schulte for Outsight Radio [1]
  4. ^ Volume 19 Issue #200 March 2005 Page 76
  5. ^ Punknews.org review of a 2004 show
  6. ^ Rate Your Music Reviews
  7. ^ Ink 19 Review
  8. ^ Interview with Kevin Gunther by Sinzine on July 20, 2004. [2]
  9. ^ "we made it! (kind of)" post on September 14, 2004 on news page
  10. ^ "3...2...1..." post on January 21, 2005 on news page
  11. ^ "so then that happened..." post on March 20, 2005 on news page
  12. ^ "europe update" post on May 6, 2005 on news page
  13. ^ October 3, 2005 post on "robbed" page
  14. ^ November 10, 2005 upate on "robbed" page
  15. ^ "joooon" post on May 22, 2005 on news page
  16. ^ Official Band Site post on March 15, 2007

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../s/t/r/Streetlight_Manifesto_bc43.html"
In other languages