Benny Trokan – Do You Still Think Of Me
THE AR-KAICS
Coasting into town on fumes, late and not speaking to each other because nobody would stop to ask for directions, The Ar-Kaics take their cues from the first wave of ‘60s punk — American teenagers taking cues from the British Invasion, in turn taking cues from pilfers of the hinterland originators — with the added vantage of several subsequent decades worth of wayward balladeers, no names and psychedelic rock hangovers.
The Ar-Kaics have been delivering their off-brand, spot-on garage rock originals out of Richmond, VA, via a flood of small press singles and a s/t debut album - all of which have since become highly desirable in the collectors market - and several successful DIY tours across the lower 48, with shows in Canada and Europe to boot. Since, they've drifted around some, gotten and lost jobs, opened a record store and label, and started families.
In the summer of 2015 the group hooked up with Wayne Gordon and Mikey Post, of Wick Records to record a couple tracks at the Daptone Records' House of Soul - resulting in 2016's critically acclaimed - "Just My Life" b/w "It's Her Eyes" 45. After the success of their debut single on Wick plans were hashed to record their sophomore full-length, which took place over three days in the Spring of 2017, at Adrian Olsen's Montrose Studio in Richmond, VA. Produced by Wayne Gordon (Black Lips, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, John Spencer Blues Explosion), and Mikey Post (Reigning Sound, The Jay Vons) the fruits of the heady three day retreat produced the forthcoming long player, In This Time...a low-brow journey through the teen-beat sounds of the 1960's...and beyond! From the opening crude thud of "Don't Go with Him," the Velvet Underground-tinged swagger of "She's Obsessed with Herself," the breezy, late-period psych of "Long Way Down," to the unpretentious, sap-free balladry of "It's Her Eyes," The Ar-Kaics flex their deft understanding of the subtle intricacies that defines bonafide garage rock
In spite, the band remains, taking its time with In This Time, void of professionalism or self-preservation, just an unquenchable thirst to lap it up and pass it around — the good stuff that is — before it’s all gone.
The Ar-Kaics in the Daptone Shop
