New Town Drunks
Gig Seeker Pro

New Town Drunks

Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States | INDIE

Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States | INDIE
Band Rock Folk

Calendar

This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

Music

Press


"more subtle than its name implies"

You might expect a band called the NewTown Drunks to be jokey but this Carrboro, North Carolina quartet shows on this six-song EP that the reference is much more subtle than its name implies. There's the instrumentation, including flute, trumpet and harmonium, and Diane Koistinen's passionate singing. The songs are mostly laid backwith some Spanish music touches. No doubt, pieces such as "Autumn's Truck" and "Ol' Trailer Park" are lubricated and humorous, but the band is never overly silly. A full-album of the Drunks would be most welcome.
- Andy Turner, Pop Culture Press


"a musical Bonnie and Clyde"

Like a musical Bonnie and Clyde, the New Town Drunks are a rambling wreck of inspired innuendo and quick-draw melodies speeding toward a cliff, highballs in hand, laughing all the way. Led by red-haired siren Diane Koistinen, the Chapel Hill, North Carolina quartet plays spunky country-inflected rock, penning humorous odes to banality -- from the late-night bar call "Somebody Stole My Purse" to "Autumn's Truck," a folky, ramshackle paean to a borrowed car. Guitarist Roberto Cofresi brings a little Latin flavor, but Koistinen's the real showstopper, with a come-hither stare and a deep, throaty sneer. The band's debut, Trust Us With Your Car, has the powerful mind-loosening quality of margaritas at happy hour.
- Chris Parker, Cleveland Scene


"like the Pixies if Frank Black would have fully indulged his Spanish-language fetish."

New Town Drunks are kind of like the Pixies if Frank Black would have fully indulged his Spanish-language fetish. Their sound is in the vein of classic indie rock with fuzzy guitars and all, but they blend this with a Latin flair, the lead singer serenading the audience in dance, pulling random people to the center of the floor to twirl her. New Town Drunks, as the name may suggest, sang much about alcohol, but it never became boring due to their command of the stage. - Thomas Collins, Washington Square News


"reminiscent of Nancy Sinatra fronting The Animals"

Chapel Hill’s New Town Drunks are musical vagabonds whose members have lived in New York, Texas, Mexico, Detroit and Puerto Rico prior to putting down roots in North Carolina. Many musical acts claim to defy categorization or classification but New Town Drunks are one of the few outfits that can truly claim that brass ring, having forced music journalists to coin monikers as diverse as nu-vaudeville, rock and roll cabaret and stream of consciousness folk rock to try to capture their rich, eclectic sound.
The core of the band is guitarist Roberto Cofresi and vocalist Diane Koistinen. At their SxSW showcase, New Town Drunks are rounded out by Austin-based standing bassist Tom Benton, Austin tenor saxophonist Clay Embry, keyboardist Doug Norton and drummer Miguel Urbiztondo.
New Town Drunks leads the audience into their unique sound gradually, kicking off their set with a long, delicious instrumental number that shows jazz influences with just a hint of swing (sometimes it seems to be western swing and other times not) and perhaps a dash of rumba.
With their second number of the set, “Little Eyes,” New Town Drunks reveals themselves in their full glory. The song begins with nice keyboard and guitar work from Norton and Cofresi, building to a crescendo before Koistinen comes in with a rich, full alto voice. Hers is a phenomenal voice, a perfect compliment for warm, dark, cozy venues such as the one in which their showcase is being held.
“Little Eyes” is shadowy and moody rock and roll, full of folk-rock and lounge-rock, but with hints that also call to mind Johnny Rivers “Secret Agent Man” and even the bluesy garage rock of The Animals. Koistinen’s vocals are buoyed and matched by Embry’s strong sax work. The number also features amazing keyboard work, with lead lines traded back and forth between saxophone and Norton’s keyboards.
Between songs, the band is relaxed, poking good natured fun at each other. They are clearly comfortable with being on stage and with each other, which is not the case for every band that comes through SxSW, and always refreshing to see.
Their third number leads off with a slow, sensuous sax intro. Koistinen’s vocals are introduced into the number slowly, with a whiff of Appalachian mournfulness in their strains, against a steady guitar. The trio is then joined by drums, bass and keyboard, with their collective sound capped off by the sonorous croon of the tenor saxophone. The song’s volume and energy build gradually, as the music straddles the line between folk, jazz and country. Yet it weaves together jazz and country in a manner that does not invoke western swing but, rather, carves out its own distinctive musical space.
A series of staccato jabs by percussion, string and sax marks a sudden jump upwards in the song’s tempo and volume. Guitarist Cofresi seems to especially enjoy this part of song, throwing his whole body into the notes he plays.
Koistinen’s performance adds another layer to New Town Drunks’ performance. As she dances and moves about the stage, her body becomes a physical extension of her vocals, almost a living metronome, as she languidly and gracefully sways back and forth with the beat.
Coming upon the heels of the David Liebe Hart showcase, New Town Drunks are a definite shift in gears. Three of Hart’s slice-of-life punk poems could fit comfortably in the time taken by one of New Town Drunks’ musical odysseys (this is not a judgment against either group, just a difference — each outfit’s songs are exactly as they should be).
The fourth song of the set begins with some close tandem work between Cofresi and Norton, pushing the musical envelope back to the edges of surf and garage that were hinted at in their first number, to which has now been added the flair of Latin music and Spanish guitar.
Cofresi is the true standout of this number, his Spanish guitar is careful, measured, almost tenderly plucked from his instrument. The musical interplay between Cofresi and Koistinen on this song is one of the highlights of the entire New Town Drunks showcase. The beautiful, melancholy guitar work backing rich, entrancing vocals calls to mind images of bands playing smoky hotel lounges in other times and places.
With their fifth song (which seems to be called “I’ve Only Got a Buck Seventy-Five” or possibly “Give You a Call”), New Town Drunks strike out in a new direction as keyboards belt out a soul/R&B that would not sound of out place on a late-Motown 45 rpm. Urbiztondo heightens this effect with some punchy Stax-style percussion before being joined by the entire band.
The number’s instrumentals seem to slowly and deliberately wind down into free-form jazz before breaking into full force, dominated by beautiful sax work. At this point, I am confused as to whether this is a new song or simply a continuation of the previous one. For most bands, I would have no doubt it was a new one. But the fondness of New Town Drunks for ambitious tempo changes and gradual segues in style within songs renders the issue far less clear.
Koistinen’s near-constant dramatic expressions, emotive gestures and dancing are a highlight of the number and appear to spring forth with such subconscious ease that they suggest an artist who instinctively thinks of music in terms of live performance rather than studio settings.
I also fail to catch the title of the next song, but the chorus is, “The boys don’t smile and the girls don’t drink wine.” It features funky keyboard work by Norton and enjoyable if not terribly intricate scat vocals from Cofresi before gradually transitioning back to conventional vocals by Koistinen.
Most of the songs in New Town Drunks’ set are from their upcoming album, scheduled for release around September of this year. They close the set, however, with two songs from previous records.
Sixth in the set is “Kiss, Kiss, Kiss,” a bawdy, playful song of lovemaking that dances between coy and explicit. The boldness and finesse of this number is a blend of racy, catchy and clever that would make Billie Holiday proud. Musically, the song is jazzy folk-rock with Cofresi’s fine Spanish guitar lending a distinctive flavoring. Towards the end of the number, Koistenen jumps of stage and dances in front of the crowd while keyboards, sax, guitar and drums keep the song moving forward.
New Town Drunks conclude their set with “The Bong Song,” a number with a strong honky tonk and western swing feel to it as guitar, sax and piano roll briskly along. The honky tonk/western swing aesthetic allows Benton’s standing bass to really shine on this number. Later, the band shifts to slower tempo, dialing back the volume as they move gradually into a gentle surf rock before gearing back up into a rollicking, almost rockabilly style.
It is difficult to do justice in print to how beautifully and elegantly New Town Drunks construct their songs. Both musically and lyrically, this is a band that knows how to build a song, displaying a level of both imagination and ambition almost unheard of from any corner of popular music. Fortunately, they also have the technical chops to pull off these ambitious compositions, routinely executing sudden changes in tempo and style that would destroy less talented outfits.
It seems that every music journalist who has covered New Town Drunks has taken a stab at a convoluted, improbable analogy that attempts to convey the full flavor of this very diverse and incredibly talented band. So, taking my crack at it, I would offer that a New Town Drunks show is reminiscent of Nancy Sinatra fronting The Animals for a cabaret-rock show at a small, smoky club you’ve always looked for but have never been able to find. - Jon Black, Awaiting the Flood


"Leslie Wylie about New Town Drunks"

“the stuff of ugly bars and dirty gutters”
- Metro Pulse


"Radio Mike - reviews"

“brilliant in such simple ways”
- The Fevered Brain of Radio Mike


"Bands Under The Radar"

“a weird, stream of consciousness side to folk rock”
- The Herald Sun


"ReviewsRecorded"

"Coolest drinking band this side of George Thorogood" - Performer Magazine


Discography

- Going (Tiny Canvas Records, live EP, 2011)
- The Ballad of Stayed and Gone (Hmm Records, LP, 2009)
- Ed, a Disclexington Compilation (Disclexington Productions, V/A, 2007)
- alive & drunk (Hmm Records, live EP, 2006)
- trust us with your car (Hmm Records, EP, 2005)
- Lost (Hmm Records, single, 2004)

Photos

Bio

"Chapel Hill’s New Town Drunks are musical vagabonds whose members have lived in New York, Texas, Mexico, Detroit and Puerto Rico prior to putting down roots in North Carolina. Many musical acts claim to defy categorization or classification but New Town Drunks are one of the few outfits that can truly claim that brass ring, having forced music journalists to coin monikers as diverse as nu-vaudeville, rock and roll cabaret and stream of consciousness folk rock to try to capture their rich, eclectic sound.

"It is difficult to do justice in print to how beautifully and elegantly New Town Drunks construct their songs. Both musically and lyrically, this is a band that knows how to build a song, displaying a level of both imagination and ambition almost unheard of from any corner of popular music. Fortunately, they also have the technical chops to pull off these ambitious compositions, routinely executing sudden changes in tempo and style that would destroy less talented outfits.

"It seems that every music journalist who has covered New Town Drunks has taken a stab at a convoluted, improbable analogy that attempts to convey the full flavor of this very diverse and incredibly talented band. So, taking my crack at it, I would offer that a New Town Drunks show is reminiscent of Nancy Sinatra fronting The Animals for a cabaret-rock show at a small, smoky club you’ve always looked for but have never been able to find."
Jon Black - Awaiting the Flood