A Rooster For The Masses

The Raleigh, North Carolina-based band is about as far from conventional as you can get - from their range of sound, to their overall message, to what is normally considered to be general history of band formation. We’re happy to report that there isn’t much general about A Rooster for the Masses – or AR4tM as they’re more commonly known to fans – and it seems that they prefer to be that way.

Let’s start with what would considered to be most simple, the make up of the band itself: each member – from frontman to drummer – goes by the name of Hank. It’s highly possibly that either they grew up in a really small town or they’re just throwing things around for giggles – actually we wouldn’t put them past the latter. But along the same vein of identity, the name A Rooster for the Masses seems to have been inspired by author David Sedaris, whose brother, Paul, is amusingly showcased in this excerpt from the story entitled You Can’t Kill the Rooster:

“The Rooster” is what Paul calls himself when he’s feeling threatened. Asked how he came up with that name, he says only, “Certain motherfuckers think they can fuck with my shit, but you can’t kill the Rooster. You might can fuck him up sometimes, but, bitch, nobody kills the motherfucking Rooster. You know what I’m saying?”

Seriously, those things have talons. They’re loud, they like to get with the ladies, and they’re persistent; it’s arguable as to whether or not a more appropriate name could have been chosen. What the story provided AR4tM as far as ’what’s in a name’, the state of the union in 2004 charged them in the realm of lyrical substance. It would be wrong to not think the state of the United States a heated and complex topic of discussion prior to the re-election of then President George W. Bush. In the two years to follow their formation, it was the aftermath of sizable build-up towards governmental decision-making that assisted in the production of the AR4tM’s debut EP, Gallo Rojo, an effective introduction of themselves providing listeners with an opportunity to concur, to see things differently during a high-tension then-current state of affairs - or to simply just enjoy the seamless genre variation showcased on the album, released in 2006.

AR4tM holds the knack to rock the alt.rock-reggae-ska-shoe gaze-psychedelic scene simultaneously and without explanation, just because they can. Prior to any album or EP, AR4tM had stayed loyal to the greater North Carolina area, playing regional shows, and building a repore with the audiences that have given them the most support over the years. Their follow-up full-length album, Broken Era, was released in 2008, not missing a beat in the providing ample political and social commentary to most anyone inside or outside the college radio station circuit. No matter the sustained regional quality of their shows, AR4tM has made sure that their music is readily accessible, which - based on the food-for-thought sensibility that permeates their sound - works out of consideration for whoever is listening, if not merely for the advancement of their personal endeavors as a band.

Taking on serious themes with colorful undertones takes a calloused yet enlightened understanding of the world; when displayed alongside the ability to strike a chord from the indie to the alt.rock scene, it’s apparent that we’ve got a force to be reckoned with on our hands. We’d be lying if we didn’t at least mention the slight envy that those back east have pretty much had them for themselves these last few years, but we’re glad to have been given what we have, which has proven to be more than we could ask for – to feature them as your pick of the month of June in our BeatCrave Fav series. - BeatCrave

" As you might expect from a band with such an inscrutable moniker, you're probably not going to leave a Rooster For the Masses show with anything other than a polarized reaction. Imagine Howard Zinn fronting Les Savy Fav and you begin to get an idea of the band's musical MO: dance-y, synth-driven, but containing enough anti- establishment riffage to stiffen the privates of even the most hardened pinko. I happen to dig it. But then again, I once voted for Jerry Brown. "-by Davis 1.21.06 - Creative Loafing Charlotte

Too smart for dance-rock, too fun for protest-punk, Raleigh's Rooster meet somewhere in the loud, sweaty middle. --Robbie Mackey - The Independent Weely

Raleigh's A Rooster For the Masses covers a lot of stylistic ground. Their ecstatic blend of electronics, meaty guitar lines and hi-hats is surprisingly mutable, and curveballs like the occasional somber political ballad show even more range. The shadow of British post-punk (especially its embrace of synthesized sounds) looms large, of course, but there is a distinctly American bravado to the band's playing.-Jack McDonald - Indy Weekly

"A Rooster for the Masses are from Raleigh; they make moody Brit-influenced dance-pop that sounds like it stems from that same uneasy period in the early 80s that found Gang of Four experimenting with disco, and Joy Division morphing into New Order in the wake of Ian Curtis's suicide. Politics and disco, morbidity & synth-pop."--Ross Grady WXDU - http://www.ibiblio.org/ch-scene/thisweek.html

Imagine the first time you heard "alternative" growing up… that sensation of something new and the excitement of feeling like you were the first one to hear it. A Rooster for the Masses is one of those bands. Their sound has a distinctive post-punk frame with a body made of new wave rock. I even felt a little like dancing through most of it. The drums keep everything steady almost pounding out slow ska beats, funk driven guitars and vocalist Adam Eckhart's poignant voice lays at around the same volume as the music and lurking inside a slight echo. If you're bored with cookie cutter rock you'd be happy checking out ARFTM! - Independentsonly.com

Raleigh renegades Rooster—better live than on record, where its post-punk effervescence was tough to bottle—gained quite a local clutch when Kings was still the capital's coop. Rooster has been silent for a while now (have you been asleep without the rooster calling?), but tonight it returns to open for sound-of-a-briskfisticuffs New Model Army. Don't be surprised if you're directed politically. —Grayson Currin - Independent Weekly

One of the few bands standing to insist that the war isn't over though the battle (read: Nov. 2) is lost, A Rooster for the Masses mines a Margaret Thatcher-fueled English jerk 25 years--and 17 years of Republican presidential prudery--later, in the shadow of a stateside administration that is lighting too few musical fires. Donald-damning commandments and full-on lambaste of the wayward American way ensue, professed and preached in a live setting that asks impolitely for dancers--guitar slices, crazy key slides and a polemic two-frontman dynamic. A Rooster is sick of your snooze button.--Grayson Currin - The Independent Weekly

Raleigh's own A Rooster For The Masses is back with its new EP, "Gallo Rojo." Five politically charged songs featuring disco-like bass beats, twanging guitars and catchy synth lines give you something to dance to while no one's watching and think about at the same time. Adam Eckhardt's rantings and ravings on immigration, national security and the war in Iraq have him sounding like a blend between Morrissey and Modest Mouse front man Isaac Brock. Having Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's quote about how "As you know, you go to war with the army you have..." all while shouting about "the American way" and detailing a particular soldier's journey of how he "got sent over so proud" but then "got sent home in a box," certainly solidifies Eckhardt and gang's position about the current goings on in the Middle East. "Left Coast" makes a case for immigrant workers, calling their exploitment "modern slavery" in how they "do the dirty work," all over danceable beats. Overall, "Gallo Rojo" is a good listen that will get you nodding along and scratching your head in thought at the same time.--Dan Strobel - The Technician

"Raleigh’s Rooster places sharp social commentary over sleek, aggressive post-punk. As an added bonus, singer Adam Eckhardt has quite the set of pipes on him."
- The Daily Tar Heel