Crazy And The Brains – The FSS Interview

Chuck Wepner. Sandra Dee. Zakk Wylde. These 3 are just a sampling of the semi-celebrities the FSS’ hometown of Bayonne, New Jersey has produced. Truly, this is a land of gods. Verily.

More recently Bayonne has produced a band that is actually good. Crazy and The Brains are Chris Urban and Jeff Rubin respectively, and they make folky type stuff minus the horseshit. Buy their album off Crafty Records before we smack yez. Verily.

FSS: How did Crazy and the brains start out?

The Brains: Our former band mate quit, took all the equipment and instruments with him and bought a new Infinity. We tried to keep on going with what we could borrow but everyone was way too drunk and sloppy. After some more months spent being drunk and retarded, we decided to start a new band with what we had, which was a guitar and my xylophone I took from High School.

Crazy: Infinities are sharp cars.  Real sharp, those tinted widows…sharp, really sharp.

FSS: You recently got signed to an independent label. How did that come about?

Crazy: Out of nowhere really. We had every intention of putting out this e.p. on our own. We were playing a show at a loft in Brooklyn and Brook Pridemore came up and said “Hey have u met Crafty Dan?” and we said “Who the hell is is that?”. Fast forward like a week, we were put on the label’s holiday show and having a phone meeting with the guy they call “Crafty Dan” in the back of our show at Lit Lounge. He’s an awesome dude and the meeting was hilarious because the whole time we were talking to him and deciding what was gonna happen and how they were gonna manage us I had this bartender woman flippin’ on me, screaming, trying to kick me out for not having an ID. I still don’t even know what was said on that phone call. Bitch.

The Brains: Nice woman.

FSS: Your old band was more or less a straight ahead punk band, this is a lot more folk, and do you see a link between the two?

Crazy: Yea.

The Brains: Hell yea!

Crazy: Yea definitely.

The Brains: Yes!

Crazy: When we used to get pumped up on our way to a show or something, we would blast Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Billy Bragg, tons of folk singers along side The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Specials, The Hives and shit. We blast all the same music on our way to our shows now. They are all singing about the same thing, but in a good way. And its all got energy. That’s what I think we carry over from the last band to this band the most, the energy. Its gotta be fun, if it’s not fun it sucks.

FSS: Who were your influences?

Crazy: The anti-folk scene, all the people and bands we’ve met this year and Cher?

The Brains: George Michael.

FSS: What are you listening to now?

The Brains: Nickelback, Creed, Puddle of Mudd…

Crazy: Clay Aiken’s discography.

FSS: Dancing With Myself or White Wedding?

Crazy: Dancing With Myself.

The Brains: Just Dance, Lady GaGa.

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