A decade ago, three employees of JJ’s Market and Cafe became Styrofoam Winos. Lou Turner, Trevor Nikrant, and Joe Kenkel bonded over their mutual adoration for Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Leonard Cohen, and dollar bin country records. A good mix, a mix they thought would make a good sound for a band. The Nashville band are now readying the release of their third album from which Somebody Wants To Send You A Message is taken; it’s a song that on the one hand uses imagery of mobile phones and radio scanners to comment on constant communication and the risks of constant snooping, but mixes in the thoughts that “half of what I hear is interference/half of what I hear is static.” Which might well be a comment on the strange situation we find ourselves in; humanity has more and easier ways to communicate than it has ever known, and yet actual communication is worse than in the immediate aftermath of the Babel incident.
Styrofoam have some pretty impressive fans, Bonnie “Prince” Billy says of them, “I’ve spent some high-quality time with these Winos, and they and their music make me feel good. It’s a sweet alignment of forces, cooperative and collaborative.” And MJ Lenderman has the succinct assessment “They know how to boogie.” And, as we know, “you must make Boogie Music an essential factor in the life of all…we must…explain it, justify our position by formulating a definition of Boogie Music and setting forth its main principles in such a way that all may understand instantly that their souls, their lives and every relation with every other human being in every circumstance depends on Boogie Music and the right comprehension and right application thereof. “Very true.
