Abe Vigoda

Abe Vigoda is the new LA punk secret weapon. Coming from a shattered and splattered background of No Wave, Pop, Darkness and Hope, ABE VIGODA bring forth a sound that is tempting and beautiful, yet melodic and tropical. The first proper full length comes in the name SKELETON and is a twisted joy ride through the four boys' private party. Soothing parts that remind you of CAPTAIN BEEFHEART and MY BLOODY VALENTINE, or some Punk with a haunting REGGAETON pulse that makes you move. When the record is done, a little more than thirty minutes, you are left feeling that there is something they are trying to tell you, on second listen it smacks you in the face... ABE VIGODA are here! Coming from the same team as THE SMELL champions NO AGE and MIKA MIKO, ABE VIGODA hold a DIY attitude and play all over the place whenever they can, bringing an instant vibe all their own.

Abe Vigoda have been going at it for years now, since 2004 their sound has progressed into many different styles and shapes, leaving them with a unique take on punk and its various states of attitude. Having previously released some singles, two full lengths, cassettes, etc, SKELETON captures the boys honing in on an amazing direction. You hear a bit of dream-like ambience that seams through entire songs, with a beat that drives you into their world, and vocals that are underneath the music as much as they are on top. SKELETON, sometimes is a bit like a punked up version of PAUL SIMON'S "GRACELAND" and other times like a PSYCHADELIC FURS song being played in a church with all that room sound adding to the pop hooks. It is all ABE VIGODA though, pulling and heading in paths which are familiar and also fresh. SKELETON is an instant LA Now Classic and Abe Vigoda are the new jam.

Not to be confused with the actor of the same name (most notably from The Godfather and Late Night with Conan O'Brien), Los Angeles' Abe Vigoda represent an exciting crop of young and arty punk bands emerging from local all-ages venue the Smell that also includes bands like Mika Miko, Silver Daggers, the Mae Shi, and No Age. The band -- consisting of Juan Velazquez (guitar/vocals), Michael Vidal (guitar/vocals), David Reichardt (bass), and Reggie Guerrero (drums) -- formed in Chino in 2003 after Velazquez and Vidal caught a Mika Miko set at the aforementioned Smell while they were still in high school, and channeled the energy that they took from that performance into starting a band of their own. Amid a long line of solo and split limited-edition 7" releases of distorted noise punk, they released their first full-length album, Sky Route/Star Roof, on Not Not Fun Records in 2005, and followed that with Kid City on olFactory in 2007. As Abe Vigoda amassed a fervent local following by playing regularly at the Smell and opening for touring acts such as XBXRX, Chromatics, and Old Time Relijun, they also began experimenting with their sound, steadily incorporating tropical and Caribbean rhythms into their music. By early 2008, the band had finished recording its follow-up full-length, Skeleton, and released it in July of that year on Dean Spunt's (No Age) label, Post Present Medium (PPM). They followed it up in February of 2009 with an five-track EP titled Reviver. ~ Corey Kahn, All Music Guide