Caught in the Carousel

The Dardys

By Alex Green

The Dardys

Equal parts ragtag indie rockers and Top 40 pop formalists, The Dardys are one of the most exciting undiscovered acts around. Boasting all the savage spirit of The Pixies and the raw intelligence of Pavement, this New York-based outfit are loose and feral, howling through three-minute pop songs with rabid fervor.

Singer David Heffernan is a charming and untamed frontman, his delivery primal and urgent, but the bespectacled singer is clearly schooled in the rudiments of pop music, as his songs, rough as they may be, are also packed with big hooks and addictive choruses that tumble from the verses in bursts of passion and ardor.

The Dardys

Recorded in the summer of 2009, the band's debut EP, Stumbles Blackout is a seven-song blast of charismatic indie rock that announces the Dardys as a band to watch out for. "Threes Over Fours" brings to mind Brian Wilson boarded up in a New York basement; the fiery stomp of "Special Bond" punches mightily away and "Pretty Little Face" manages a churning pop thrill. Later, the organ-drenched "I Don't Want To Get Tired" sounds like a lost garage classic; "Laki's China Beach" has an irresistable jangle and "We Walked Out" is a gutsy, raptorial ballad.

Dear Readers, The Dardys.

The Dardys

FULL NAME: David Heffernan, Brian Bisbano, Jimmy Keithley, and Lakis Pavel

NICKNAME:
David: Brueger
Brian: Dardy
Jimmy: Naughton
Lakis: I just can't read her

HOMETOWN: The Dardys are based in NYC. We are from different places, 1/2 Chicago, part Florida and Greece.

WEBSITE: thedardys.blogspot.com
www.myspace.com/thedardys

RECORD LABEL: Unsigned.

DESCRIBE YOUR SOUND IN ONE SENTENCE: We make jangly, indie basement noise music in the form of three minute pop songs.

PROUDEST PROFESSIONAL MOMENT: Writing the songs for our upcoming, E.P. entitled Something's In Your Eyes.

STRANGEST PROFESSIONAL MOMENT: Playing a show in the middle of a snowstorm in Brooklyn and watching our old drummer punch some guy in the face because it was his birthday week, and he couldn't be talked down.

THE SONG YOU WISH YOU'D WRITTEN: David: "Someone Saved My Life" by Elton John
Jimmy: "Beg Steal Or Borrow" by Pete Doherty.

The Dardys

FIVE MUSICIANS YOU ADMIRE: David: Scott Walker, David Bowie, Smokey Robinson, Brian Wilson and Mark Hollis (Talk Talk).
Jimmy: Gilbert O'Sullivan, Krs One, Matt Helders, Ferrante and Teicher.

ALBUM YOU CAN'T STOP LISTENING TO: David: World Shut Your Mouth by Julian Cope
Jimmy: Up The Bracket by The Libertines on blast every night.

DESCRIBE YOURSELF AS A KID: David: All you would have to see is one school picture to know everything.
Jimmy: Didn't go home until every other kid did.

The Dardys

THREE THINGS THAT KEEP YOU UP AT NIGHT: David: Mostly just not wanting to go home.
Jimmy: Unwritten letters to friends far far away, Unsolved Mysteries, 1010 wins on loop.

LAST TWO BOOKS YOU'VE READ: David: The Grass Harp by Truman Capote and Washington Square by Henry James
Jimmy: My Name Is Aram by William Saroyan and Rum Diaries by Hunter S. Thompson.

THINGS WE'D FIND IN THE TRUNK OF YOUR CAR: David: In the trunk of my skateboard is more like it.
Jimmy: Boogie Board that says in marker Brugies Board. Prescription sunglasses from the old New Jersey woman who sold me her car. Flat tire. Broken mixtapes that "might work" Somehow old Donruss baseball cards showed up, etc.

FAVORITE MUPPET WITH A BRIEF EXPLANATION: David: Dardy
Jimmy: None. If they turn Dardy into one it would be him.

The Dardys

HARDEST PART ABOUT BEING A MUSICIAN: David: Getting frustrated by something you love so much.
Jimmy: Getting made fun of by all my friends for having anything to do with making music.

FAVORITE LATE NIGHT TV SHOW: David: No TV in my place but I love mostly anything on regular broadcast late at night.
Jimmy: That big block of dating shows starting at 2am but they disappeared. Where'd they go?

IDEAL BREAKFAST: David: Biscuits and Gravy
Jimmy: Steak and eggs overeasy with well done home fries and unbuttered wheat toast.

DRINK OF CHOICE: David: If feeling classy, Asbach Uralt. Otherwise, BEER, preferably free, and lots of it.
Jimmy: Water mostly, but for this time of season a Dark and Stormy tastes pretty good.

The Dardys

BEST ALBUM TO PLAY AFTER A BREAK-UP AND YOU'RE HOLDING A BOTTLE OF VODKA AND SOMETHING SHARP: David: Strangeways Here We Come by The Smiths
Jimmy: Best of Gary Lewis and the Playboys.

INDULGENCE YOU REFUSE TO GIVE UP: David: Writing songs.
Jimmy: Without my friends I'd be hurting pretty bad.

WORDS TO LIVE BY: David: I wanna be I wanna be like Mike.
Jimmy: See you laterrrrrrr.

Stumbles Blackout is out now.