But I digress. What I’m really here to tell you is that this ill-named band plays at The Rave Tuesday, Nov. 28 with the Black Keys and you should check it out.
That’s because the band’s new six-song disc, ”Takers and Leavers,” is out and it’s a great homespun pop rock and roll record. It’s part Grandaddy eclectic, part Shins smarty-pants pop and part late-period Beatles, from a melodic and sonic standpoint.
Recorded at home, “Takers and Leavers” has a warm, pillowy analog sound and a garage band vibe, but some pretty darn accomplished songwriting and instrumentation.
The EP is apparently a taster of the Philly band’s next full length set, “We All Belong,” due out in January. The disc follows the critically acclaimed “East Beat,” which garnered a three-star rave in Rolling Stone in ’05.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
