Crazy and the Brains (stylized as "Crazy & the Brains") is an American punk band with its roots tracing back to a project led by Christopher Urban and Jeff Rubin. They first emerged around 2009, performing at open mic nights at The Sidewalk Cafe [1] in New York, New York

Crazy & the Brains
Also known asCrazy and the Brains, CATB
OriginBayonne , New Jersey
Genres
LabelsIndependent
MembersChristopher Urban, Ernest Young, Rob Mellinger, Ali Presses, Zac Pless
Websitecrazyandthebrains.net

Members

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Crazy & The Brains' current lineup features lead singer Christopher Urban, guitarist Ernest Young, bassist Rob Mellinger, drummer Zac Pless, and Ali on keys.

Among its past members are Jeff Rubin, who played the xylophone, as well as Brett Miller on bass and Lawrence Miller on drums.

History

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Crazy & The Brains have toured with Gogol Bordello,[2][3][4][5][6][7] The Bouncing Souls,[8] The Bridge City Sinners, Days N Daze, Negative Approach,[9] The Slackers, and Leftöver Crack.[10]

Vice has compared them to Rancid and The Ramones.[11] Earlier press also made mention of their use of xylophone in songs, referring to them as "xylo-punks"[12] and noting "[t]here aren’t a whole lot of punk bands that feature the xylophone".[13]

Discography

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Studio albums

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  • Let Me Go (2013) [14]
  • Good Lord (2014) [15]
  • Into the Ugly (2018)[16]

EPs, splits and compilations

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  • Crazy and the Brains (2009) EP
  • The Yellow EP (2010) EP
  • Out in the Weedz (2011) EP [17]
  • Are On The Other Side (2012) Split EP with the Disconnects
  • Where the Juice Drips (2020) EP [18]
  • Past Futurism

(2024) EP [19]

Singles

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  • All I Really Want (2014)[20]
  • Brain Freeze (2015) [21]
  • Punk Rocker (2021) [22]
  • East Side (2021) [23]
  • Open Eyes (2021) [24]
  • Tractor Beam remix with Mega Ran produced by K-Murdock of Panacea (2022) [25]

Videos (aka The Holographic Universe)

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  • Crazy & The Brains - East Side [Official Music Video] premiered on March 11, 2022, under the direction of Jak Kerley, with production by Crazy & the Brains, and makeup artistry by Ari Shah Conkright.[26]

References

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  1. ^ "Sidewalk Cafe's Winter 2013 Antifolk Festival is coming (schedule); Forest Creature (ex-Dufus) going on tour (dates)". BrooklynVegan.
  2. ^ "Gogol Bordello at Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia on December 28th -". December 15, 2022.
  3. ^ "Best Pittsburgh concerts this week: Smashing Pumpkins, Gogol Bordello, Joe Satriani and more". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  4. ^ "Punk rock band Gogol Bordello to make tour stop at El Rey Theater - Albuquerque Journal". www.abqjournal.com.
  5. ^ Reardon, Tom. "Why Punk Rockers Gogol Bordello Are Fostering an Inclusive Revolution". Phoenix New Times.
  6. ^ Gonda, Christopher (November 1, 2022). "Tour Diary: Crazy & The Brains Detail Their West Coast Trek Supporting Gogol Bordello".
  7. ^ "Gogol Bordello announce NYE openers, including a new Walter Schreifels, Eugene Hutz & Jesse Malin band". BrooklynVegan.
  8. ^ Sacher, Andrew. "Bouncing Souls playing 3 Irving Plaza shows in December (BV Presents)". BrooklynVegan.
  9. ^ "Funhouse is the Jersey City venue run by Crazy & the Brains (Scott Kelly played last night)". BrooklynVegan.
  10. ^ Sacher, Andrew. "Leftover Crack, Negative Approach and Crazy & the Brains going on fall tour". BrooklynVegan.
  11. ^ "The Small, Strange Cult of Crazy & The Brains". www.vice.com.
  12. ^ "Watch Crazy & the Brains' Totally Weird Tribute to Lindsay Lohan". www.vice.com.
  13. ^ "Stream of the Crop: 9 New Albums for Heavy Rotation". www.vice.com.
  14. ^ "Let Me Go". May 21, 2013 – via open.spotify.com.
  15. ^ "Good Lord". December 30, 2014 – via open.spotify.com.
  16. ^ "Into the Ugly". November 23, 2018 – via open.spotify.com.
  17. ^ "Out in the Weedz". May 4, 2018 – via open.spotify.com.
  18. ^ "Where the Juice Drips". May 1, 2020 – via open.spotify.com.
  19. ^ "Past Futurism". April 26, 2024 – via open.spotify.com.
  20. ^ "All I Really Want". March 26, 2014 – via open.spotify.com.
  21. ^ "Brain Freeze". November 24, 2015 – via open.spotify.com.
  22. ^ "Punk Rocker". October 15, 2021 – via open.spotify.com.
  23. ^ "East Side". March 8, 2022 – via open.spotify.com.
  24. ^ "Open Eyes". August 12, 2022 – via open.spotify.com.
  25. ^ "Tractor Beam". October 15, 2022 – via open.spotify.com.
  26. ^ "Crazy & The Brains - East Side [Official Music Video]" – via www.youtube.com.
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