Gorky

Gorky — "Super Drunk"
We don't want to ask how Gorky managed to shoot a raunchy, almost pornographic music video in Bedrock City, but we appreciate the results. Gorky is a Show Low band, so they're not technically qualified for this list. But no one else will claim them, so we'll step up to the plate. - Phoenix New Times

Gorky — "She Spoke"
Gorky has been on my radar for a while now, but until a couple weeks ago, I had never been able to catch them live. I suppose seeing them at Last Exit Live showed them in their best light and sound, because I was immediately impressed, and their entire set had my rapt attention. Gorky hails from Show Low, which isolates them from the scene a bit, but when they come to town next, I highly recommend catching them. One of the most moving moments of the evening was a new song they dedicated to their late friend Skye Perez, called "She Spoke." If you haven't heard Gorky before, this happens to be a great introduction to their sound. The band is Jesse Valencia on lead vocals and guitar, Tevin Crabdree on bass, Ben Holladay on drums, and Houston Ellsworth on guitar and backing vocals. Together, they strike me as just a great indie rock band that has no pretension whatsoever. This is true of their recorded works and their stage presence. Skye Perez was killed earlier this year in a motor-vehicle accident, and this is their heartfelt elegy that celebrates her life as much as memorializing her passing. This single was released on what would have been her 18th birthday. ~Mitchell Hillman - Phoenix New Times

Show Low psych-weirdos Gorky will come down from the mountains to perform at Crescent Ballroom on Tuesday, August 5. While the quintet's excellent 2010 LP High in the Low showcased a firm grasp on the kaleidoscopic interpretation of mid and late '60s rock 'n' roll subgenres favored by formidable influence the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Gorky has taken a sharp left turn with its new single, "#Datass."

The song is an infectious electro-soul ode to you-know-what. It's fun, funky, and a little silly -- a distillation of Gorky's idiosyncratic take on the proverbial "song of the summer," as band mastermind Jesse Valencia puts it.

According to Valencia, "#Datass" is the first product of the rejuvenated Gorky, after a long period of relative inactivity since its debut album. He says, "A follow-up, The Deuces, will be out tentatively in the fall, while a third record is slated for a spring 2015 release."

For the band's Phoenix appearance, "Travis Mills is shooting the video. 

The Running Wild Films director will be filming the band and the crowd at Crescent for the '#Datass' video. I recently appeared in Mills' adaptation of James Joyce's Eveline and have nothing but praise for the writer/actor/director: A true artist in every sense of the word -- there's an authenticity to the work that you just don't find too many places."

Though Valencia acknowledges that Gorky's new single is a goofy slice of electro-sleaze, he maintains in the following abridged (but unedited) manifesto he emailed this writer listing several reasons "God Has Blessed '#Datass."

1. God paid for the song. 

Moments after finishing the final mix, I played "#Datass" repeatedly on my phone in a parking lot, 400 dollars randomly blew up to me. There wasn't a soul around so I snatched it up, grabbed my tasty cold beverage and split.


2. We recorded "#Datass" at the Gin Blossoms' studio, Uranus Recording in Tempe. Our first day of tracking, Robin Wilson walks in to drop off some gear, looks over at me and says, 'is that my guitar?' 'Yes', I say. 'Looks good on you,' he says. So that was cool.



3. I just got my MFA in Creative Writing from [Northern Arizona University] -- "#Datass" may look like this degrading song but there's commentary in there about gender inequalities, a little poetry, and some other shit I learned in grad school, so no, this ain't your average twerk jam. Equal pay for equal twerk, I say.


4. I got my civil rights back. 

After a near-fatal car accident left me with a broken ankle and four felonies, I quit drugs and poured myself into writing and school. In May my record was wiped clean and my rights restored in full. Life has been amazing ever since.

At press time, it could not be confirmed whether a divine hand had indeed expunged Valencia's criminal record, but to be fair to the singer, subsequent conversations I've had with him have proved this "manifesto" was delivered with a nod and a wink, which still does not rule out the possibility that he's insane. Or an insane genius. - Phoenix New Times

The Arizona band Gorky has been around for about 14 years in the mountains an hour outside of Phoenix, AZ.. Their name was derived from the name a young friend used to refer to her blanket along with a fictitious story. Their premise is simple… a zygote of psyche, garage and blemished rock and roll. Their influences are pretty simple but impressive.. The Strokes, The Hives and of course every bands icon.. The White Stripes.

The spokesman for the band is a young fellow by the name of Jesse Valencia. He’s a jack of all trades. Not only is he in this upstart band but has written a book about Portland, OR. “Yang” band .. The Brian Jonestown Massacre as opposed to the “Ying”… The Dandy Warhols. The story of the two Portland bands has always been the source of mystery and disbelief. In all seriousness it’s much “ado” about nothing but it does make for good folklore.

Jesse went to college on a full-ride scholarship in theater, and recently landed his first opportunity of an on-screen role opposite Tom Sizemore in the crime drama ‘Durant’s Never Closes.’ I also contributed music to the film. The director, Travis Mills, is a Phoenix local and directed our first two music videos, ‘#Datass’ and more recently ‘Super Drunk.’ The latter is a debauched parody of the Flintstones.

The Brian Jonestown Massacre’ book is set to be published later this year or early next through Portland-based University of Hell Press, the Gorky EP was just put out, the new ‘Super Drunk’ video is out, and are are currently planning a week-long tour out to Los Angeles for during next year’s AWP (Association of Writer’s and Writing Programs) Conference, late March/early April. Radio promotion company U.N.C.L.E., who also represents Zella Day and a few other notable artists, have agreed to represent his EP to alternative radio before, during, and after the tour, which is going to be a combination of readings from the BJM book during the day and Gorky shows at night, with hopefully two or three shows happening in LA during the AWP conference. - Rock Bands Of LA

This four-piece out of Northern Arizona has been playing together a whopping 15 years and to celebrate their years of blissful band union, Gorky released, The Gork… And How To Get It!, in January.

This monster collection of tracks was recorded over the better part of a decade (2009-2016) and packs a retro-indie punch… You know, back in the days when Indie Rock still sounded like garage rock because it was still being made by kids in garages. Now, it feels like all that indie is coming straight from the bedroom with its stripped down sound and sedate energy. Gorky turns the energy back up and adds some Pavement bounce to the musicality for The Gork.

The album opens with “Roll with Me” which was recorded live at Last Exit Live right here in sunny Phoenix along with “AM Radio” and “The Cosmonaut” (which you’ll hear in about 19 more songs). What I love most about Gorky is that bright, summertime sound that glazes over every song on this album. There’s something mirthful about their brand of rocknroll that comes through every time, not just on the obvious tracks like “Super Drunk” or “#Datass”. Get into The Gork below… - Yab Yum

Gorky — "Megaladon"
Gorky just released a 21-track compilation of songs recorded from 2007 to 2016 called The Gork ... And How To Get It! celebrating Gorky's 15 years (!) as a band. I've only known of them for a year or two, so this is a great primer for an underrated band if you don't want to cull through all the tasty releases on Bandcamp (which you will totally want to do). "Megaladon" has been given the remaster treatment as well as a video for this somewhat massive release. If you think that's impressive, wait for all the new stuff they'll be putting out this year. It's one of their best rockers and is absolutely incendiary live, which is apparent from the video showing them playing it at various times in space over the last few years. It's not often that you can find a rock anthem celebrating an extinct species of massive shark, but Gorky likes to get weird on things, and that's part of their strength. The song takes a Helmet-like riff, processes it through some punk, and comes out like a four-minute odyssey of deranged hard rock. Which is all to say, this song deserved a revival, and you can store this in your angst file of dangerous sounds. - Phoenix New Times