Alaska News

The Stumblebums march their punk brass through Alaska

The Stumblebum Brass Band has earned its reputation as the brass band that no one wants parading down their street.

They were booed off the stage on the reality TV show "America's Got Talent." Tuba player Disco Ronnie responded by grabbing the microphone and firing back at the crowd with an emphatic "You suck!"

A few months ago, they were hired to play a wedding in upstate New York. When a wedding guest broke one of their instruments and they weren't able to complete the second half of the gig, the couple refused to pay the agreed-upon fee. Their night ended as singer/trumpet player Smidge Malone streaked through the reception, chased by the wedding party and one of brides, who was left crying and muddy as the band peeled away in a "Blues Brothers"-style getaway.

They're not for everyone, a realization nearly all punk bands embrace.

"Mostly people like it," Ronnie said. "You're not going to win over the Lady Gaga fans. They want that pop sound and we're not pop. It's crass and in your face. Some people don't like that."

But for a listener with an open mind and curious ear, there's plenty to be drawn to. The band is alternately fierce, frantic and faintly cinematic with a brass backbone of second line music that's seen a resurgence in recent years.

And despite tattoos, mohawks and a general dishevelment that accompanies most punk bands, these players have chops.

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Ronnie says he has an extensive background in classical music and played on Broadway. Malone, Ronnie says, grew up in foster homes, and before he was even a teenager was busking on the New York City subway, playing trumpet and mimicking the singing of jazz great Louis Armstrong. It's a style he still employs. At its most ragged, Malone's voice is reminiscent of Tom Waits', if the latter was stricken with pneumonia.

Drummer Johnny Five is a "band geek from Michigan" who's been playing in New York for years, according to Ronnie.

The group's name -- they go by The Stumblebums for short -- is a play on their favored practice of going from establishment to establishment in New York playing for tips.

"The band formed out of necessity -- to drink," Ronnie said. "We go around from bar to bar. It's bizarre to see people's reactions. Sometimes we get the greatest reactions and other times people just want us to get the hell out of there."

Even though Ronnie said the band can make more money "stumblebumming" than playing a bar show, the atmosphere has been changing in the city.

"It's amazing to see the change in New York in even the last five years," he said. "(It used to be) 90 percent of the time they'd let us play. Now it's maybe 20 percent of the time. It's all corporate. No one wants a noise fine and they're worried about their liquor license or cabaret license."

Ronnie admits the appearance on "America's Got Talent" was essentially a set-up, with the band playing the role of a professional wrestling heel, giving the crowd a common villain to unite against.

"They need to boo somebody off the stage," he said. "People don't want to give anything new a chance, anything outside their norm. It's sad but it's just the way it is."

Still, the YouTube clip of the seconds-long performance has garnered over 36,000 views.

Their album, "F--- You, Lady Gaga," was released in 2011, but Ronnie said touring is where the band has found its warmest reception.

"Any time we go on tour, we have a blast and make more money than we do in New York," he said.

The band is in Alaska for the third time and they have made close friends with the organizer of the Trapper Creek Bluegrass Festival, which has scheduled its second event of the year for later this month.

"We actually fit in there more (in Alaska) than we do in New York," Ronnie said. "It's the birthplace of punk rock, but it just doesn't exist here anymore. When we go up to Alaska we're like, 'Whoa, there are a whole bunch of other knuckleheads like us.' "

Aside from Trapper Creek and a show Friday at Humpy's in Anchorage, the band has scheduled stops in Homer, Fairbanks, Palmer, Healy and Indian during its Alaska tour.

Stumblebum Brass Band

Friday, Humpy's, Anchorage

Saturday, Down East Saloon, Homer

Sunday, Brown Bear Saloon, Indian

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Monday-Tuesday, 49th State Brewing Company, Healy

Thursday, The Boatel, Fairbanks

Aug.21, Mad Hatcher, Palmer

Aug. 21-23, Trapper Creek Bluegrass Festival

Ticket information: stumblebumbrassband.com/tour-dates

Chris Bieri

Chris Bieri is the sports and entertainment editor at the Anchorage Daily News.

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