Ben Franklin

Jim Testa wrote:

Since JCI’s usual correspondent Zac Clark was MIA, I thought I’d pinch-hit and cover yesterday’s free Groove on Grove show with newcomers Ben Franklin and Jersey City alt-Americana favorites The Poconos.

It continually astounds me that these shows aren’t better attended, given that, yes, they’re free, right outside a major transportation hub, and impeccably booked. Last night’s show was no different — a sparse crowd for Ben Franklin, a few more people for the Poconos, but nowhere near the kind of attention these bands deserve.

Let’s start with Brooklyn’s Ben Franklin, featuring ex-Meltdowns guitarist Billy Gray, ex-One & Only Typicals/Imperialists bassist Eddie Garza, and drummer Sarah Tomek, who frequently backs Asbury Park singer/songwriter stalwarts like Rick Barry and Jerzy Jung. The trio rocks like a quintet, mixing throbbing, melodic basslines, slashing guitar leads interspersed with head-bouncing riffage, and driving backbeats, melding a hectic fusion of pop, punk, and funk — imagine Cheap Trick jamming with early Black Flag at Dismemberment Plan’s 4th of July BBQ. It’s a big sound for a three-piece, especially when Garza and Gray start trading call-and-response vocals that fuse into spot-on harmonies on rockin’ anthems like “Tell Me How You Really Feel” or the politically pointed “Timmeh,” whose lyrics connect the dots between the financial shenanigans of the Federal Reserve and the plight of the contemporary working stiff. This band has a lot of big ideas and big sounds, and since they just finished mixing their debut full-length, we can all look forward to hearing more from them soon. - Jersey City Independent

It was a cold Thursday in the beginning of September, when Billy Gray walked up behind me with a greeting and copy of his band's new album "Optimist". They had just released it a week back at a show I wasn't able to make. Eager to get my hands on it, I sent him my home address to check it out. He in turned hand delivered it to me. I didn't have time to even put it into my computer before I had to run out of the house. That night I got back home at 4am. There was the LP just sitting innocently where I left it. Exhausted from the night's event I figured I'd toss it in while I slept. That was the plan anyway. I didn't get a wink of sleep before I was rocking out!

The Album starts with a ground and pound full force drum beat that wades into Guitar and then vocals. It's a hell of a way to start an album and it certainly got my mojo rising. I was only fifteen seconds in. So now that I was awake, albeit drunk, I started writing down my first impressions and things that stuck out. Track 2 is called Drink to Forget. It's a phrase, as a tender of bar, that I'm all too familiar with. I'm expecting something somber and inflective, hell maybe even down right sad. It's starts out like that, with Billy poking jabs at 9-5ers and Lemonade cleanses, then something fucking awesome happens. Its all a rouse for a much tougher song. Guitar is everywhere. Billy Gray and Eduardo Garcia Garza bounce about on vocals and Sara Tomek reigns down sulfur and brimstone from the drums.

Track 6 is Catalyst. Again this song jumps right into the fray, this time with a pseudo-political fist. The chorus is pure rage, I'm talking basement show mosh-pit danger style rage. "I'm an easy target and I'm in love with your crosshair!" then back into instrumental mayhem! Dang, that's hot! Speaking of things above room temperature. Track 9 is Had it Comin'. This is totally my speed! I can't tell if it's just laying the ground rules for a one night stand or something a bit more broad, but it's genius, because the whole thing comes crashing down in the second chorus, when the roles are reversed. It's damn near Shakespearian. The CD's Final track, Fren Banklin, is too much! It's like that internet song about Washington, full of popular (and not so popular) myth about their four eyed name sake. It's certainly a great laugh. The best part about this CD? It's Free! You can Dl it for nothing at www.wearebenfranklin.com. There's really no excuse to not own it. One of the best things I've heard this year, and it cost me nothing! I highly recommend, this is a rock album in every sense of the word! - Zac Clark, Rocker Tycoon Blog

Live Review: Europa
June 9th, 2009
Rating: 9/11
By: Vandal Truong

With a mixed bag ranging of epic rock themes to small human stories to political statements, the neopunk band Ben Franklin rocked the house of Brooklyn's Club Europa. The set started off with, "The Face of Proposition 8," a hard, in-your-face, reload the arsenal jam that encompasses what this band's all about: hard rock and liberal politics. There are no airy disco beats, no acoustic jams, and certainly no taking of prisoners as Ben Franklin is a live act that goes for the jugular with every song. Even the borderline kitschy, "Timmeh," dedicated to our Treasury Secretary Tim Gieger, is a sludge rock tune that sounds like Dinosaur Jr.'s J. Macis if he ever got the rocks removed from his mouth and asked, better yet demanded, "Where are my taxes?!"

The highlight of the night was "Tell Me How You Really Feel," which showcased the band's diversity. It has everything a punk song needs: heavy guitars, pulsating drums, and a hard bass line that feels like Satan's pulse. But they didn't settle for a good song, they were aiming for something more. Ben Franklin is a band full of odds and sods as the song has some surprisingly nice vocal harmonies. When lead vocalist Billy Gray screams, "And I lose control of my memories/ all I can see in front of me are best friends and backstabbers/ Go ahead and fuck yourself," the song transcends a moshpit anthem to become a surging declaration of self respect.

Bassist Eddie Garza brought an NYC punk throwback vibe, decked out in a suit and sunglasses. More importantly, he had the chops to back it up as his bass grooves and twisty-turny vocal harmonies provided the necessary jaunt to each song. During a technical glitch, instead of moping like would-be rockers waiting on Europa's sound engineer, drummer Sarah Tomek announced to the audience, "Hey I can just play Enter Sandman!" Quickly, Gray and Garza joined in and an impromptu old school jam ensued that created a series of howls and cheers from the audience.

There is a thrilling free play in the trio's wildly distorted, totally aggressive, sometimes trippy music. Ben Franklin is not trying to shove politics down your throat or create some new punk renaissance. They just want to think a bit about the world we live in, move your heart and in the process bob your head, too. - Knocks From the Underground (dot com)

The best part of the night ... was that I got to see an absolutely awesome band called Ben Franklin, featuring drummer SARAH TOMEK. BF is an intense, extremely tight, dramatic power-pop trio with a bit of a Gang Of Four/Fugazi influence, and Tomek brings all kinds of personality and chops to their material. I picked up their full-length CD, Optimist, at the show, and have been playing it nonstop since. - Adam Budofsky, Editorial Director, Modern Drummer Magazine newsletter, March 20, 2010

http://campaign.constantcontact.com/render?v=001QhuZciaLI3VaKOGN1rGvpnRtgdpm3Wsdfo-xNIhD52nnT6ubNySwneur_kgvfXxFkwh6lY32g8hdskK6tCBD2naVMyyUNVRBniJCsyPxE5I%3D - Modern Drummer

Eleven rave-up rock and rollers that bring to mind Riverboat Gamblers or Statues in terms of energy and diversity, each song (a little different from the last and a little different from the next) bristles with intensity. Raging punk rock ditties that let loose with Greg Ginn-style solos flying all over the place are interrupted by twangy barroom waltzes and then peppered with some frenetic, danceable indie rock tunes.

- Jeff Proctor, in Razorcake, date published unknown

http://razorcake.org/site/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=22390 - Razorcake

When Brooklyn indie scene darlings The Meltdowns broke up late last year, plenty of electronica-meets-funk junkies lost a best friend. Resurrected from the grave rises Ben Franklin, half of the Meltdowns (Eduardo and William), and all rebel scientist.

Their guest drummer, Sarah, is hitting the road this spring to play shows down south (if you’re at SXSW, look her up), but the fellows have promised a vanload of new material once she makes it back up north. Since they just formed last October, their show calendar is spotty (though they did outshine fellow jammers at their February Cake Shop gig). As of now, their next show is slated for August in Jersey City, but rumor has it they might be appearing in Toronto and Wilmington between now and then.

Unlike the more uniform Meltdowns tracks, Ben Franklin excels in all genres. Their most played Myspace hit, “Montclair,” keeps the groovy, boppy twang of ironic country without losing the inherent haunted feeling of true bluegrass. Other tracks, like the socially relevant “Credit Default Swap Bop,” relies on their hipster garage punk roots but keeps feet tapping like only two-guys-way-cooler-than-you could. The attitude is only audible in some of their songs though; the heartachy reggae riffs of the opening to “In Your Dreams” cede the naturally gritty solos they do best, without pretension. “Smile” could have appeared on an old Fearless Punk Goes Acoustic release, though the keyed-up harmonies and lyrical maturity could have kept it from making the cut.

While their music is innovative and dancey enough to make them worth a listen, the quality of their recordings is, dare I say, pretty awful. Someone needs to get these guys some bona-fide equipment! With The Meltdowns recording history solidly behind them, it’s sure that fans can anticipate the wonders of technology enhancing Ben Franklin’s listening pleasure in the near future. ‘Til then, keep ears peeled for something between now and August. - Knocks From the Underground