Mercury Radio Theater: Album Release Party @ Johnny Brenda’s this Saturday

Mercury Radio Theater, is one of the geekier bands in Philly, fueled by comic books, animation, and sci-fi. Their shows are presented as episodes, and they have compiled different “episodes” over the years through their “Monster Trilogy”. Their new album Kilroy is set to release on September 3rd, and I had the pleasure of listening to it before fans could get their hands on it.

This album is a unique option for music fans in Philadelphia. The sound is chaotic, yet–while listening to it—you can tell that every decision is delicately made. Mercury Radio Theater’s music defiantly has a “theatric” feel to it. Imagine being thrown onto Coney Island in 1945, and all of the music is being amplified by guitar and sped up into a post punk paradise. Throw in some darker Tim Burton and Stolen Babies elements, and you’ve got a killer album. In other words, you’ve got Kilroy.

One brave choice that Mercury Radio Theater makes is that there are no vocals in their album. Yes, Kilroy is mostly music, but it is so strongly structured so that you don’t need lyrics understand what’s happening. You hear it through the music, but this also makes me want to check out a live show! The animation used in their live shows illustrate alongside Mercury Radio Theater’s music.

I was able to sit down with Mercury Radio Theater to ask them a few things about the band and Kilroy. They were very enthusiastic about sharing their musical vision.

I know this is the most annoying question in music, but — What kind of music do you play?

Buddy: Mercury Radio Theater plays music, of the punk rock, sci-fi, experimental, instrumental variety. A loud argument concerning drinkin’ money, between contrapuntal instruments, whilst drinking aforementioned beer. There is a narrative that weaves together the fibers of each song into a tapestry of confusing emotions, not unlike the cruel laughter of the children mocking me for having to take my cousin to the prom.

How would you describe a live ” Mercury Radio Theater ” experience?

F: It’s like the jingling of keys in the face of a small distracted child, who in this scenario is an amorphous blob of attention deficient gadabouts, whom need to be called to order through strict but loving discipline, the discipline only a mother could love. We are that mother.

Buddy: During any given performance, there are illustrations to accompany the music and narrative. These aid the audience in processing exactly what is happening to them during the concert experience, which is a stern guide to the unexplored neither-regions of their musical souls.

Why do you feel the need to have such an episodic feeling with your music and your show?

Buddy: I always wondered what happened to a song once it was over. I found when I wrote the song I had just worked on, or the next on the docket was trying to elbow its way into the current song. So I figured they might as well co-mingle. It’s like when your friend picks up your favorite curse word and starts using it all the time.

F: We asked ourselves years ago what we could do differently as a unit. The concept didn’t fall from the heavens like so much manna but it was obvious what we *shouldn’t* do, which was to stand nervously in one position while unremarkably regurgitating our songs. The flashiness might have spawned from our own collective battle with ADD but mostly, that shit was just boring to watch. We knew, at least for our own recreation, that we had to appeal to more than just the sense of hearing. All human senses work together and we figured it would be smart to appeal to as many as we could muster. So far, we haven’t ventured into smell, but it’s early yet.

What are you hoping to bring to your fans with ” Kilroy” ?

Buddy: Kilroy is the 3rd installment of our “Monster Trilogy”; it’s the final story in the life cycle. Our first endeavor was the story of a scrappy young vampire and how he fought off bullies in his school. The second was a Frankenstein tome called “the blue eyed model”, where a college kid makes his own date out of spare body parts. Now with Kilroy, you have a werewolf who lives in an old folks home and tells the story of his life to anyone who will listen. I hope that listeners will take the themes we give them and fill in the blanks.

F: A 38 minute long expedition into the unusual.

How does your inner geek help you write your music?

F: The inner geek has the foresight to tell you when the song you’ve been working on needs to be scrapped.

Buddy: My inner geek helps me tap into the boundless resources contained within…everything from nerdiness to spazziness, dweebful expressions of dorkitude, a vast array of freak flaggery and the deep well of the goober. I can always count on these traits, nay virtues, to speed me through the valley of jockitude and deliver me safely to the shores of musical inspiration that lay just on the horizon, as well as the couch.

Mercury Radio Theater’s album release party for Kilroy is at Johnny Brenda’s on September 3rd. There will be plenty of Audio/Visual antics mixed with booze and burlesque girls, which –to me—sounds like a whole lotta fun.

Make sure you check out Mercury Radio Theater’s websiteas well as their Facebook page. The new album is awesome don’t miss out on some great geeky music in Philadelphia!