“When I think of what our music means, I picture unspeakable things,” says Adams, center, on the sound of his band. He looks like he’s thinking of those unspeakable things in this photo.
Gorier side of Teenage soul
‘Everyone Thinks You’re the Best’ is more than an album title for Prayers
Girls on Prayers
It’s been a while since we heard from WBCN Rock and Roll Rumble winners Girls Guns & Glory, so we asked Ward Hayden, singer for the local alt-country act about tonight’s show. “I’ve always said to them that if I had any money that Cassavettes would be the band I’d like to invest in. ... They just own the stage each and every time they play. ... And Teenage Prayers are incredible as well. They have a ton of energy and emotion in their music and have a great indie rock, alt-country sound.”
INTERVIEW. Brooklyn’s Teenage Prayers take a stab at rewriting the American songbook on their debut full length, “Everyone Thinks You’re the Best.” It’s a crafty batch of soul, rhythm and blues and garage, you know, the type of stuff they used to simply call rock ’n’ roll. Now’s your chance to catch them on the way up before everyone else starts losing their junk over them. Singer Tim Adams, whose dirty, soulful vocals give the band much of their distinctive, retro-fitted style, says he is what ties their wide range of styles together. “I think that what we do vocally is a thread that carries through,” he says.
When was the first time you remember music moving you to a sort of spiritual or overpowering place? Does playing so many shows take some of the luster off that magic or increase it for you?
I knew I wanted to be on stage before I could actually make or write music. This was early college, and that Christmas I asked for and received an electric guitar and a Peavey practice amp, but I couldn’t play it at all. Maybe a few power chords, and “Wild Thing” by The Troggs. That was it. Anyway, the first time I ever went on stage, it was this “band” called 1660. I signed out a half-hour of time on the coffee house’s Open Stage night and went around gathering anyone who had musical equipment they were willing to lug out. I don’t remember how many people ended up making it, maybe seven or eight. When our turn came, we just plugged in and let ‘er rip … One half-hour of nothing but noise. That was a pretty overpowering place to be, and that’s still my favorite place to be, in the middle of all that volume, swirling around. That’s the best.
When people talk about your band being “soulful” what do you think they mean? What does soul mean to you at this point in musical history?
Soul means the same thing as it always meant. Yes, soul is a style of music, but it’s also an approach to music, one of absolute conviction and sincerity, the sense that someone is withholding nothing. That authenticity is and will always be around. We have our smart-ass numbers … that’s just me writing from the head, pulling from the Randy Newman kit bag, edging into, dare I say it, satirical terrain, but for the most part our music is gorier stuff. When I think of what our music means, I picture unspeakable things.
Your song “Good Voodoo” also seems to have a really positive vibe. That seems surprising. It’s so rare to hear anything besides negativity lately.
I’m glad you find it positive. I don’t want to elaborate too much on that. As David Lynch says, “If things get too specific, the dream stops.”
Teenage Prayers
with Cassavettes and Girls Guns & Glory
Saturday, 9 p.m.
The Paradise
967 Comm. Ave., Boston
MBTA: Green B Line to Pleasant
$12, 617-931-2000 www.thedise.com
