by Alan K. StoutMusic Columnist
The NonRefundables seem to exemplify the term “no pretense.” It is a down-to-earth band with an unassuming attitude, yet this quirky and creative group — which admits it has never taken itself too seriously — did get a bit serious when it began work on its fourth CD, “Give Up, Give In,” which will be released next week. In fact, guitarist and vocalist Brandon McCabe says the band worked harder than ever on the forthcoming album.
“We just wanted a different sound,” says McCabe. “Before, it was almost like one or two takes was good enough, but with this, we really just took our time to get it right. We still have this relaxed approach to the whole thing, and I’ll be honest, I’m not convinced I’m going to be a rock star. But it’s something that we still have a lot of fun with, and we realize we have a ton of really good songs, so why not at least really treat the music seriously, even if we don’t treat ourselves seriously.”
Those familiar with The NonRefundables will still hear its trademark raw power-punk sound, yet while working with producer Bret Alexander for the first time, the band spent more time on layering the songs and adding harmonies. Most of the tracks are newly written, though the band did re-record a few songs from its pervious catalogue, which includes the albums “For All of The Ladies,” “The Haunted EP” and “This Is Art.”
“This is sort of like our official presentation to the rest of the world,” says McCabe. “Not that what we did before was bad, but we really just took it up a notch, went nuts, and made sure we did everything right.”
The NonRefundables formed in 2004 and is based out of Wilkes-Barre. Now heading into its fifth year as a band, the group also features Chris Pasquini on guitars and vocals, Pete Kivis on drums and Frank Pasquini on bass. Like the band’s previous work, “Give Up, Give In” offers a fast-paced blitz of whatever happens to be on the group’s mind at the time. McCabe admits the music is hard to categorize and that humor — sometimes quite blunt and curt — is found in much of the work.
“There is no theme,” he says. “We don’t really have a genre. It’s whatever we feel like doing. When we’re hanging out together, we goof around together, and I’ll be honest, I haven’t run through many hardships in my life, so why pretend that things are hard? I’m a pampered, practically suburban boy. What the hell do I have to complain about? So why not joke and have fun? We have more than enough negativity, more than enough people getting down on themselves, or pretending that they’re tougher than they really are. Why not get away from that for a little bit? Music should be fun.”
McCabe says The NonRefundables have been influenced by a variety of bands.
“The Beatles are No. 1,” he says. “The best of all-time. There is no close comparison. And if you want to get more contemporary, I’m a huge Radiohead fan and Misfits fan. We take our influences from all over the place. I’m a huge fan of Ween, which may explain some of the weirdness. They’re the ultimate in weird. It’s like comedy music. I don’t think they’re trying to be outright funny, they’re just weird guys, and they just constantly jump genres.”
Though the band is proud of its new CD and the work put into it, McCabe says it has no visions of grandeur. They just hope people enjoy it.
“We really just want to get it out there,” he says. “That’s the goal. We have our group of people that like to come see us. I don’t know if I’d consider them ‘fans.’ They’re more like friends at this point. To say someone’s a ‘fan’ is sort of conceited. I’m not a rock star. I’m just some dude who plays corner bars. But I think there are some really good songs that might catch on …
“I’ll put my best hour of original music up against anyone’s around here and feel fairly confident,” he adds. “We’ve gotten good over the years. If you saw us in the beginning, we were less than prepared and should have spent a little more time in the oven. But right now, we are genuinely solid. I just hope people appreciate the music.”
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The NonRefundables CD release party Friday, Dec. 12, 10 p.m. at The Corner Caf�, 636 N. Main St., Wilkes-Barre. Info: www.thenonrefundables.com, myspace.com/thenonrefundables
