Guitars, Drums, Tones, and Saxophones

The Ergs! - Upstairs/Downstairs

The Ergs!, hailing from New Jersey, were one of the best pop-punk bands to arise in the 2000′s. After dropping two full-length albums, and a whole boatload of amazing EPs and 7″ records, they called it quits in late 2008. It was a pretty devastating blow to fans of quality pop-punk ’round the world.

Thankfully, as fans we still have their music. Their two LPs, Dorkrockcorkrod and Upstairs/Downstairs, as well as the Jersey’s Best Prancers EP and b-sides collection Hindsight is 20/20 My Friend, are essential listening for anyone who has an interest in what’s been happening in punk rock in this new millennium.

The album features the tight songwriting and competent playing that the band has perfected through heavy touring and numerous recordings. The subjects range from Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series of books, girls, the album Boston, MA by the Del Fuegos, bikes, girls, heartbreak, and Miles Davis. Many of the songs featured here are very short; “Boston, Mass” clocks in at about 45 seconds, and only three of the album’s songs breach the three-minute mark.

As usual, Mikey Erg (aka Mike Yannich) takes the bulk of vocals, and does an excellent job. Jeff shines on cuts like “Bike Shoppe,” and “Girls of the Market Square.” The album shows a bit more diversity, musically, than Dorkrock did; the aforementioned “Market Square” starts out with a bit of a groove, and “Stinking of Whiskey Blues” is a down-n-out country song, complete with slide guitar. The “single,” “Books About Miles Davis,” spends most of its time without drums, just featuring a strummed guitar as Mike sings, building up to a full-band maelstrom for about 20 seconds.

Then, of course, there’s the album’s closing song, the title track. It’s 18 minutes long. The first couple minutes are a pretty straightforward midtempo rocker, but after that 3 minute mark, it turns into a long, long jam for the guys. It’s not surprising that these three music nerds might want to break out of the rather rigid pop-punk framework, and this song accomplishes that in its way. Not quite a mix CD song, though.

As the final LP from the Ergs!, Upstairs/Downstairs is kind of the beginning of the end. But it’s a great send-off from a band that spent 7 years producing some of the best pop-punk around, and is an excellent purchase for any punk fan.

Tags: the ergs!