New York, NY (Top40 Charts / Dirty Water Records) Archie and The Bunkers hail from the birthplace of punk and a major rustbelt gem: Cleveland, Ohio. Self-described "hi-fi organ punk", the band is two brothers still in high school - one on drums, the other on organ. Although newcomers to some extent, the results are electric and positively explosive, some say reminiscent of The Cramps, The Hentchmen, Billy Childish - every incarnation of top-notch rock you can imagine. It's rare to take an organ and make it the centerpiece of a rock 'n' roll band and have it make so much sense.
They are a musical anomaly in that the compositions they write are refreshingly new, but they draw their influences from classic musicians and movies of the past. The band's raw garage punk sound draws heavily from Cullen's melding of divergent musical styles. Influences range from jazz organ greats like Jimmy Smith, and Richard "
Groove" Holmes, to punk icons Dead Boys, The Stooges, The Screamers, and more. On stage, the siblings attack their songs with an energy that whips the audience into a frenzy. The unique growl of Cullen's whirring, overdriven organ and the driving beat of Emmett's 4-piece drum kit, leave concert-goers in shock at the sonic assault levied by only two.
2015 marked the release of their first full-length album on Dirty Water Records. Its 12 songs were recorded at the storied Ghetto Recorders in Detroit. Legendary producer/engineer Jim Diamond captured that unique Archie sound that's been dubbed 'HI-FI Organ Punk.' Emmett describes their sound as, "rock'n'roll that's been peeled back to its raw foundation.
That neither 18-year-old Emmett (on drums and vocals) nor 16-year-old Cullen (organ and vocals) O'Connor is old enough to ask for booze on their backstage rider, doesn't matter. Not a jot. They pump out simple, and simply good, stripped-back punk sounds that are bereft of BS. A year and a bit more has passed, since the 'dynamic duo' sent in their demo into Dirty Water Records war room, where we jumped at the chance to propel these brilliant "snot rags" up to where they belong; the future of rock 'n' roll. Now, it seems almost every label and 'tastemaker' worth their salt are bidding up on the boys. Archie and the Bunkers are on a trajectory that transcends the record industry and have always been the masters of their own destiny. The late, great Lux Interior (and Cleveland native) from The Cramps predicted them way back in 1991, "You got your big business types trying to make this happen all over the place, but that's not the way it ever happens. You get some nasty little 15-year-old kids who make music in their garage, and that's the way it happens. They get tired of waiting for somebody else to do something for them, they do it themselves." They self-released a vinyl-only, 6-song EP titled, "Mystery Lover."
The band kicked off 2016 with a tour that spanned 7 countries and every time they played, people's jaws would drop to the floor and within two songs everybody at the bar had left their seats to go stand in front of the stage to watch and listen to them. Archie and the Bunkers, this summer are really pulling out all the stops with a five week 'uber grinder' tour of the European continent covering every prime club and festival slot this summer. If you didn't get stung by their buzz last time around, you have ample opportunity to get your eyes and ears kicked in. The band's success and growing popularity on the Global music scene is no mystery to Emmett who says he never experienced any form of stage fright or pre-show jitters. "I just like playing out, having a good time and sharing our music with other people in the clubs," he said. "I love the adrenaline." Soon, Europeans all over will be loving it too.
The Dirty Water Club started in October 1996 in the Tufnell Park neighborhood of north London, at a venue called The Boston. The club's name is derived from The Standells' 1966 hit 'Dirty Water' which glorifies the US city of Boston, Massachusetts.
Past performers have included The
White Stripes (voted by Q Magazine as one of the top 10 gigs of all time, Mojo one of the top 30 and Kerrang one of the top 100!), The Gories, NOBUNNY, Kid Congo Powers (from the Cramps), The Fleshtones, Billy Childish,
Radio Birdman, The Dirtbombs, Thee Michelle Gun Elephant, The 5.6.7.8's, The Horrors and The Brian Jonestown
Massacre to name just a few. The club has also seen some original '60s performers, such as The Monks, ? and the Mysterians, Kim Fowley, Sky Saxon, GONN, Michael Davis of the MC5 and more grace its stage.
Their in-house record label, Dirty Water Records, is one of the leading punk/garage/beat/(real) R&B labels in the world.
