THE TORCH MARAUDER

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Left of the Dial - May 10, 2004 Chaz Martenstein Man, talk about catching you at the beginning of the album. We got some pop stuff, subtle and catchy, and then we got some sudden bursts of noise. Wait! Hello?! Is that a bit of the free jazz saxophone? And yes, it's just the first track, complete with woohoos and screaming. And then please, yes, keep my attention with some catchy, rolly, punchy guitar pieces. This is another one of those albums that, every once in a while, comes across your reviewing desk and completely catches you off guard. You give it the first listen with your roommates and you throw it in the okay, but I'll wait until the last minute to listen to it and review it pile. Then you come home a little over the weather after a weird show, throw it in your CD player downstairs and you accidentally start cranking it and rocking out to it instead of writing about it like you are supposed to be doing. Oops, then your review becomes late for your poor editor. Bad thing for the editor, but I guess there's a compliment in there for the band, or the Torch Marauder himself, because he pretty much seems to be the only half-crazed member. Alright, so the Partridge Family has thrown their sweet, innocent mom from their moving van after deciding she never really did fit in; then it's off to the closest, darkest alley where the sketchiest cats hang and the best pills can be bought. David Cassidy spins into a world of laughter and insanity; kicking everyone else out of the van; putting down red shag carpeting, lava lamps and a disco ball; stops shaving and cutting his hair and ordains himself the Torch Marauder. Frying his brain on acid and sedatives, he decides he can still make the music just as poppy and happy, but as crazy as the best of the psychedelic family down the street, The Heads, who still have their mom in the band. He sits down at his little four-track powered by the van's cigarette lighter and starts recording beautiful messes of music in between moments of staring at the melting roof of the van or simply just passing out. Somehow he fits keyboards, organs, guitars, amps, crunchy pedals, drum kits, saxophones, French horns, clapping hands, violins and a few friends into this little Econoline tripped out van. Oh, wonderful craziness, how I've missed you. This is where the Torch Marauder is coming from. I really can't think of anything to compare his music to, which is great; it's very unique. He's got his own little brand of brilliant, moving, train-of-thought music. This guy is having fun and he's got me having fun with him, he really draws you into his music, lightens you up a bit, convinces you to come out and play. Encore Magazine - March 24-20, 2004 Carrying the Torch: Enjoy more than film for Cucalorus with The Torch Marauder Alan Maready It's always a nice surprise to discover really good bands that you've never heard of, This was the case when I was given the latest album by The Torch Marauder, Boxers, Painters and Snappers, to review. "Wow, this is actually pretty damn good," I thought to myself as the first couple of notes of the first track came emanating through my car stereo speakers. It was exactly the kind of music that I was in the mood to hear at that particular moment. The Torch Marauder, from the Chapel Hill/ Durham area, is comprised of a revolving cast of musicians, all under the direction of drummer Dave Bjorkback, who is also the drummer of a band called Razzle. If I understand the situation correctly, Bjorkback writes all of the songs and employs the aid of friends in other bands to play them. Boxers, Painters and Snappers is full of quirky, but catchy pop songs. Bjorkback's songwriting abilities are nothing short of spectacular- Every song on the album is a finely wrought masterpiece of cleverly worded lyrics and excellent musicianship on the parts of all the players. Each individual song is as unique as each member of the large cast of musicians - varying in mood from happy and upbeat to down tempo and brooding. Although Bjorkback writes all of the songs, it is the talented crew of musicians that breathe the life into them. Lyrically, Boxers, Painters and Snappers is absolutely brilliant. Not to degrade the quality of the music in any way, but I feel that it is in the excellence of the lyrics that this album truly shines. These days, it is rare to hear witticism of the caliber found on Boxers, Painters and Snappers. Each song tells a well-crafted story without any of the clichés inherent in much of today's music. One of the highlights of this album is the song, "Sympathy for the Television." In it the speaker tells the story of a musician that has been on tour for several weeks, and all that he can think about is getting back home, so that he can watch television. "My poor T.V /oh my poor TV/Gotta get home/she's just waiting for me/Nobody's, turned her on now for three weeks." He laments. He then goes on to defend his television against the vicious attacks of those who would put "Kill your our television" bumper stickers on their cars, and to expound on the virtues of the quality programming on the WB. Whether this is meant to be ironic, I do not know. Another notable track is "Petty's Right." If I had to think of a comparison to make as far as this particular track is concerned, I would have to say Pavement - although I never really liked Pavement that much. Still, it's a damn good song, as is "Windmills." Consisting of only vocals and piano, it isn't so much the music as the lyrics that caught my interest on this track. They tell the story of a guy in band who doesn't think that his band mates are dedicated enough and gets mad because they have lives outside the band. "He says he'll never grow up and be like me/now that I'm so old and lame...I try to explain my responsibilities. But he don't care," bemoans the speaker. The Torch Marauder is playing Friday, March 26 at The Soapbox with National Eye and Tracy Shedd. The show is actually part of the Cucalorus Film Festival. I hear that in addition to being great studio musicians, The Torch Marauder also puts on an interesting, dramatic show, including one where his arch-nemesis The Conquistador may just show up as well. Fear not, the Torch always wins. Currents Magazine - March 25, 2004 Blue man troupe: How a simple costume changed Dave Bjorkback's life Kristi Singer - Wilmington Star-News In the world of superheroes, is there room for a musical superman? If so, Dave Bjorkback is first in line for the job. His alter ego, the Torch Marauder, lives to defend the world with rock. Mr. Bjorkback created the Torch Marauder to defend his own musical planet from a disease called B.B.S. (aka band-breakup syndrome).It seemed that no matter what Mr. Bjorkback did, the bands he played in came to an end. "I had to think of something I could do completely on my own," said Mr. Bjorkback, who plays drums, keyboard and vocals. Enter the Torch Marauder. A little blue face paint here, a black, hooded cape and voila! The rock 'n' roll superman arrived. "While I was still living in Wilmington I came to the Ritz Theatre to see this band, The Musical Box, which was a tribute to the old Genesis when Peter Gabriel was the singer," Mr. Bjorkback explained. "Back then Peter had done all these elaborate costumes and wore all these masks and face paint and had a cape from one of the songs. When I saw it I was blown away and I knew if I started to do my own one-man project, I said, 'I'm going to paint myself and wear a cape" While Mr. Bjorkback plays keyboard and lead vocals, videotapes of him playing drums and backup vocals project on TVs behind him on stage. - "There's sort of a cast of characters, most of them are played by me," Mr. Bjorkback explained. The various incarnations of Mr. Bjorkback talk to each other and even pick fights like most bands. Among the characters are an announcer, an evil arch-nemesis - the Torched Conquistador- and the Red Caped Rocker, another musical superhero trying to steal the Torch's limelight. "It's pretty unique," Mr. Bjorkback said of his show. "It pretty much generates strong reaction from people one way or another. Whether they absolutely love it or just really can't stand it. The folks who can't stand it are usually out of the room within the first five minutes. Luckily, for the most part, people stick around and seem to really enjoy it.” Mr. Bjorkback recently celebrated the release of his new full-length album, Boxers, Painters and Snappers, available through Pox World Empire. He plays upstairs at the Soapbox on Friday as part of the Cucalorus festivities. The show also serves as something of a Wilmington homecoming gig for Mr. Bjorkback, who played Bessie's a year and a half ago. "I did a break dancing maneuver on the floor and broke a bone in my hand," Mr. Bjorkback recalled. "I got tangled up in my cape and I was going to do a hand stand and landed on the side of my hand instead of the palm and cracked the bone leading to my ring finger. I still finished the slow." Just like a musical superhero would. Wilmington will get a special treat at Friday's gig, as it will be only the second time Mr. Bjorkback will perform as the Torch Marauder with a full hand (the first was his recent CD release party). The superhero supporters at the Soapbox will he drummer Dave Cantwell, bassist Bill Patterson, keyboardist Jennifer Greer, guitarists Dave Heller and Bob Wall, saxophonist Anne Gomex and Mr. Bjorkback on lead vocals. He will dress as the Torch Marauder, and the rest of the band will be dressed as their own superhero personas. And the TVs will still be there, too. "I do the one-man band out of necessity," Mr. Bjorkback said. "I always hear the songs in my head fully realized as what a full band would do with them. Deep Fry Bonanza - March 13, 2004 Review: Boxers, Painters, and Snappers Daniel from Deep Fry Bonanza I can only imagine what it must have been like to have been a music reviewer in 1998 and have Neutral Milk Hotel's classic In the Aeroplane Over the Sea plopped down in front of me along with a request to write a few dozen words about something that would take a lifetime to understand, much less describe. Most of the time, as a music critic, it's pretty easy to cop the "I've heard this before" stance and dismiss most everything you hear as the regurgitated pap that it almost certainly is, but every once in a while something hits your ears that just sounds magical, like it's from another world. Boxers, Painters and Snappers is about as otherworldly as they come, but not in a "ooooh look at us we're so experimental!!!" kind of way at all. Much like Neutral Milk Hotel, the Torch Marauder's music sounds like a reasonable, rational conversation with an alien, someone who sees the world (and, in particular, it's music) very differently than the rest of us. On most of the songs here it sounds like the Torch Marauder is attempting something like pop, but it doesn't come out like any pop I've ever heard. "Sympathy for the Television," for instance, sounds like a ten-year-old touring rock musician who's gotten a hold of his metalhead older brother's bad speed ranting about how he wants to get back home and catch his favorite shows. The song is as much School House Rock as it is punk rock; the track is just so damn exuberant that it's downright exhausting even listening to it. Ditto "Windmills," a stream of consciousness narrative about big rock and roll dreams set to the playful sounds of a simple, bright piano riff. The most I can hope to convey to you, the reading audience, with this review is that you should hear this band. Some of you will hate it, some of you will love it, and some of you cynical bastards out there will pick it apart and single out every single note that could have been played differently. However, if you're one of those people who can be swept into an alternate universe by a really good rock record, pick this up. It's a wild ride indeed. Fan Commentary Reaction to an early Torch performance Nate Florin The next time you see the words "Torch Marauder" printed on the schedule for some club I fully expect you to be in attendance. Don't go anticipating a rock show, go expecting to discover what it is that shields us from villainy. Go expecting to learn what, or who, really protects Truth, Justice, and the American Way. You see, this man, this hero, is all that stands between us and certain doom at the hands of the forces of Evil. He is, as his hyperbolic taped intro says, "More amazing than Spiderman, more incredible than the Hulk, more fantastic than the Four, his Blue Majesty, Torch Marauder!" Though he uses song and cleverly lame humor as his methodology, his real business is ridding the Earth his evil arch-nemesis, Torched Conquistador. Last night Torch Marauder felt that he was safe from Conquistador's wicked ways due to the fact that the super villain was only appearing on a video screen. Little did he know that, using his subtle and vile charms, Conquistador had recruited two audience members to make an attempt on Torch Marauder's life, using light sabers. So clever is the Archduke of Evil that he was able to recruit Scotty "Clang Quartet" Irving into his nefarious conspiracy. Any vile beast able to turn a God-fearing percussion freak into an merchant of death is a worthy foe for our hero. Of course the attempt did not work. After verbally sparring with Torched Conquistador (in the form of a song that sounded like it came straight off of a Broadway stage from some alternate, and better, universe), Torch Marauder slew the would-be assassins after some nifty swordplay. His moves in the strobe-lit go-go cage were of particular note. Then, with great finality, Torch banished Conquistador back to his home world, Planet Haverland. We were spared! Did any of you notice this? Does anyone realize just how close we came to facing the Apocalypse a full twelve months too early? I shudder when I imagine a world without Torch Marauder. I envision it as something like that episode of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", the one in which you see what life would be like had Buffy not come to town, except that it would be even more Evil. Torch is blue, Buffy is not, and everyone knows that blue people are much better than regular flesh-toned types at fending off Evil. All I know is that, when Y2K goes down, I'm going to be cowering behind Torch Marauder's broad shoulders. I'll stll be here in 2001. Will you? In May, when last I saw him "perform", Torch Marauder was a mere schtick. Now he has grown into a persona. The videotaped accompaniment has gotten more fleshed out and clever, the songs goofier, the back story more impressive. The man is still blue, shirtless, and dressed in a cape, with a voice straight out of "Cats". If you leave this town without seeing Torch Marauder at least once you are doing a great disservice to yourself, not to mention the legions of caped crusaders for which he stands. Seriously, it's the most ridiculously, brilliantly over the top thing you are ever likely to see in this burg. In the words of one of my associates, "That gives me hope."