Suede Dudes Amounts to More Than the Sum of Its Prolific Parts
Drummer Will Alvarez (left), Chris Aschbrenner (of Bonnet People), guitarist/vocalist Bryan Adams, bassist Raph Alvarez, and guitarist Nick Petakas.
Although Suede Dudes opened for Andrew W.K. on April 7 — just a week and a half ago as of this write-up — you need not worry if you missed it. Their upcoming performance at Record Store Day is likely to be more seminal. “We didn’t technically open for Andrew W.K.,” vocalist/guitarist Bryan Adams admits. “It was like a pre-show thing. It was kind of lame, to be honest. We played this little 8-by-8 square space in front of Revolution. We basically played for a bunch of people standing in line. I don’t think they were having it.”
The static-infused, psychedelic buzz of what Radio-Active Records describes as Suede Dudes’ “nasty breed of backwoods style garage” has been a favorite sound of mine for a long time, one that’d be better heard by more than a short line of anxious concertgoers. Then there are the projects of nearly every guy in the band — bassist Raphael Alvarez as Chrome Dick, drummer Will Alvarez as Minimalist Blasphemist, guitarist Nick Petakas’ solo work, Bryan Adams’ old-school-inspired duets with his friend Lauren. It’s the Super Group theory employed and epitomized: all of them are good separately, supreme together. The first Suede Dudes record and EP were written in their entirety by Adams, who later re-imagined each song fleshed out with a full band. The eventual input of his equally prolific buddies resulted in Suede Dudes, whose high-energy performances recall the very bands they seem to enjoy occasionally covering (The Kinks, for one).
They’ve been a busy lot lately — their upcoming Record Store Day performance is one of three in a row and, until very recently, they’d updated their Tumblr with new, downloadable demos, a way of allowing fans to hear all their recent work. That kind of easygoing sharing is part of what makes Suede Dudes so appealing: their accessibility. Their Figbox Tumblr, a new digital sharing space named after the shed in which they all practice and record, will feature works by every guy in the band. “We all jam in the same spot, at a shed called the Figbox,” says Adams. “So I put up a Figbox Tumblr, and I’m going to put up all our songs and our friends’ work: Will’s stuff, Raph’s stuff, Bonnet People’s stuff.”
Lately, though, you won’t find such frequent updates; they needed time to construct a four-song cassette, which will be released on Record Store Day. “One of the songs that we put up as a demo, ‘The Oldies,’ is going on there,” Adams explains, “but everything else is newer. We’re hoping to put out a full-length by late May, early June. And after that, we’re hoping to put out another full-length with my friend Lauren — a Suede Dudes and Lauren collaboration.” Asked if either of those full-lengths will be on vinyl, Adams espouses the beauty and simplicity of cassettes: “I think we’re going to put the full-length out on cassette again. Right now, our main thing is putting out tapes. I think it’s the coolest form of physical merchandise that you can have that’s not vinyl and that’s inexpensive.”
There are only 25 physical copies of their four-song cassette available, which means if you don’t get to Radio-Active Records early on Record Store Day, you will be forced to download the EP. This isn’t a terrible fate if you’ll at least catch them live, no longer trapped in a tiny box. “It’s cool to finally be the band that’s playing this year,” says Adams. “I’m really excited about it.”
Suede Dudes. With Lil’ Daggers, Beach Day, Loud Valley, and the Baron Sisters. Noon Saturday, April 21 at Radio-Active Records, 845 N. Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale. Admission is free; all ages. Call 954-762-9488, or visit radio-active-records.com.
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