Ft Wayne Indiana’s Namen Namen Makes A Fun and Energetic Noise…And we like it!
If you’re from the West Coast, you probably don’t know much about
Indiana, unless you’ve visited or have family hailing from those parts…neither of which is my case.
I came across Namen Namen while tuning into a college radio station out of Ithaca NY, and was surprised at their energy and verve. Of course I had to learn more.
Turns out there’s not much out there about the band but for a brief paragraph on their web page and their Facebook page containing the garden variety amount of posts, photos, upcoming gigs, etc.
From their website:
Namen Namen is a garage rock / proto-punk band consisting of twins Dylan Record (vocals) and Ron Record (drums), and lovers Kellen Baker (guitar) and Zara McCord (bass). Since March 2020, the group has developed a fervent following through high-energy, spontaneous, insaneous shows across Indiana at venues such as The Embassy Theatre (Fort Wayne) and Be Here Now (Muncie), with features in magazines like Whatzup and The Journal Gazette (Fort Wayne) and radio airplay on stations WELT 95.7 and ALT 102.3. They draw influence from a mix of noisy experimental rock bands like The Velvet Underground, The Stooges, and The Fall, and playful pop like The Beach Boys and The Teeth. Throughout 2020 they released 4 singles exclusively on bandcamp, and have now reached the rest of the internet with their 5th, Riding in the Wind on Beet Fat Records. A limited run of 7” records sold out in under 24 hours.
Their eponymous debut EP contains six songs that are instantly ear-catching, starting off with the banger The Horrors Of Spider Island, a song that instantly sets the tone for the rest of the album. Its high energy opening rift gives you the impression you’re seeing them live, something you feel throughout the entire album. This is a good thing, as many high energy music acts have the unintentional mishap of losing that energy when it transfers to the studio.
The album is a mix of high energy rock and roll with that awesome indie/alt vibe, combined with 2 songs (So Alone, Mona) that can be described as rock ballads that give us time to catch our breath in between.
If you’re on their tour route, be sure to make time to see Namen Namen. Hopefully the band will make it to the West Coast someday! Meanwhile, we’ve included them in our playlist.