Coming out of the fertile college scene in New Paltz, New York, punk-pop bands Diet Cig and Earl Boykins sound forged in the fires of a nervous, angry 20-somethinghood.
“F**k your Ivy League sweater!” Diet Cig guitarist/vocalist Alex Luciano shouts on “Harvard,” a standout from the band’s debut EP, Over Easy. It’s a kiss-off to an ex, delivered with a sock full of pennies. Meanwhile, the band’s musical cousins — Earl Boykins, which includes Diet Cig’s Noah Bowman — sound almost as angsty, but passed through a warmer filter of ’90s indie rock and pop (at least on its most recent release, 2014’s Everybody Likes Dogs.)
When the bands stopped by WAMU before a gig at D.C. house venue Babe City, they split their instruments and gave us two snappy and propulsive performances. Check out Diet Cig’s “Harvard” up top, and chill out a little bit with Earl Boykins’ “Judy Carrot” below.
Warning: Explicit lyrics.
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