Two bands playing a classic together

or how a protest song written in Jamaica have influenced young musicians from Brazil

NAME THE BAND and DR. HANK, after touring together for a month during last winter, shared the same roof to record a classic song from Junior Murvin and Lee “Scratch” Perry. “POLICE AND THIEVES” was like a hymn for both bands, sharing songs and the road during the 30 day length tour through the south of Brazil.

World Cup was dominating the media in the Country, and they were together travelling to cities in 3 different states in the South and Southeast of Brazil. It all started in São Paulo, the biggest city in their homeland. A bigger population eventually led to more protesters to be seen on the streets. Many of them raising attention towards the huge cost of the football tournament, as the government’s excessive and overbudget expenses, together with fiscal reliefs, were not benefiting the population at all.

The police had occupied the streets, the known places for tourists. We started to feel outclassed by the police. And we were not criminals. We were trying to raise our voice. We were not robbers. We were not thieves.

Challenge was the dominant feeling on having two bands playing together. “I’ve always had this dream on playing in a big band. Something like fulfilling a huge venue. And then I saw us, fulfilling a roof! An attic! Like a big band inside a pressure pan! It was extraordinaire”, claims Renan Queiroz, DR. HANK lead singer. Ryan, Lagarto, Digo and Manoel Guimandra are the other members.

Despite the challenge of putting together two bands, it was a complex task to arrange two bands playing a classic: “It is not easy to understand what a song meant to that time it was written. But with “Police and Thieves” was easy. It was like magic. We already listen to a lot of Murvin and Perry. It already made sense. But now it is like: it’s happening! This song, right now, have a lot of meaning for us” said Zeh Monstro, NAME THE BAND lead singer. The other members are Gabriel da Rosa, Vini Marmore and Beto Careca.

Without rehearsing, the two bands believed on their feelings to put together this moment. Filming and capturing this, with a live performance, had to be perfect. Lucas Dias, the director and editor of the video, had the difficult task lying on his shoulders: “it is the kind of work that I like to do, technically is a nightmare, but worth of the risks. A live performance, to be captured through its many angles and possibilities, demands a huge effort from everyone. So many details, that you have to have chameleon like eyes. [laughs] It is so fast!”

NAME THE BAND + DR. HANK performance to “POLICE AND THIEVES” is to be released this Friday, August, 29^th, 2014. The same day that Lee “Scratch” Perry will open his new exposition at the DEM Passwords gallery, in Los Angeles. Mr. Perry gave his blessings to the NAME THE HANK project.

NAME THE BAND

FACEBOOK: facebook.com/nametheband

INSTAGRAM: @NameTheBand

TWITTER: @NameTheBandSux

YOUTUBE: youtube.com/NametheBandSux

VEVO: youtube.com/namethebandVEVO

BANDCAMP: nametheband.bandcamp.com

SOUNDCLOUD: soundcloud.com/name-the-band

DR. HANK

FACEBOOK: facebook.com/DRHank.Oficial

INSTAGRAM: @DRHankers

TWITTER: @DRHankOficial