The Grumpies

The Grumpies - S/T 7" [Shredder Records, 1997]

Intro:
I'm istening to this 7" right now, and thinking the Grumpies are just as awesome to me know as they were to me in 1996. Given that most of you were not going to see the Grumpies - particularly the shows in Huntsville - around that time, then you have no frame of reference, and so I'll do my best to iterate to you just how awesome this band was to the vast majority of punk rock fans in the area at that time: um... we fucking loved them. We went to every single show they played (and they played all the time), I wore out several copies of their demo cassette in my car (I still have a 3rd generation dub, recorded over a copy of the Neville Brothers' "Yellow Moon" that is barely playable), and over 10 years later I'm still spinning this 7" on heavy rotation.

Bio:
The Grumpies were from Starkville, Mississippi. Their singer/guitarist Jayson (last names are often neglected to be mentioned in punk rock liner notes) was formerly in White Trash Superman (posted on this blog a few weeks ago). Their bassist and second singer Amy, told me once at a show that she had been playing bass approximately six months before joining the band [debate could be raised here on whether females are naturally better musicians, or that the best punk rock is performed by amateurs]. They also had a drummer named Vince who was mad man on the skins. At one point, Vince left or was fired from the band and Greg of Huntsville's Rice Harvester/Toxic Shocks fame joined up with them.

Descripto:
What you'll soon find out, if you're not listening already, is that The Grumpies sound something like if the Chipmunks (featuring one Chipette) got amped up on coffee and amphetamines and played cute, quirky and ultra catchy punk rock at warp speed. In fact, most people I've played this band for were convinced I was playing the record too fast. Having seen them live more times than I can count, I can attest that the record is just fine. They're voices are really just that high.

As a bonus, I'm adding this video I found on a Grumpies fansite: