Um, Klezmer vs. Funk? Hell Yeah!

By Sarah Dahnke in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 28, 2007 5:05PM

We admit we were a little late to the Watchers boat, not jumping on until we heard the band’s latest, Vampire Driver, shortly before its release this summer. It has now become one of our favorite albums of the year.

Vampire Driver is hard; it’s jolting and jarring. But the harshness is backed by a funk bass-line and Talking Heads-esque vocals that contrast the beefy rock and create something that just makes you want to shake your ass. Trust us, there’s not a single track you’ll want to skip.

About six years into the band’s pursuit, the Watchers are a recognizable name in the local scene, and like most bands, they’ve experienced their fair share of members coming and going. After some drama trying to find a bass player earlier this year, they’ve picked up the Jai-Alai Savant’s Dan Snyder to fill in (at least for now).

Get pumped for the show: Visit the Watchers’ MySpace page and listen to the clip of S.I.S.I.A.I. Every time we hear it we either want to do a tribal dance or set something on fire … or a little bit of both.

The Watchers are opening for dirty Jewish punk band Golem. As Golem's website reminds visitors, their gypsy folk-punk is "Where Eastern Europe meets the Lower East Side." The six-piece described themselves as a klezmer band — traditional secular Jewish music that dates back to the 15th century — but there's no sign of stuffy tradition here. Snarky English lyrics pair with the Yiddish version of the "Oi!" (or would it be "Oy!" in this case?) call to punk rock arms — imagine a mosh pit in the shtetl.

Get pumped for the show: Hit up MySpace and listen to "Warsaw is a Khlem." It'll make you want to yell "mazel tov!" to everyone you meet.

The Watchers open for Golem at 9 p.m. on Sunday at Schubas.

Golem portion of this entry written by Lizz Kannenberg.

Band photos via MySpace.