Viva Viva

The heralded Boston garage rock band... announced a gritty new blues-infused EP, Dead In Yr Tracks, recorded at Converse’s Rubber Tracks studio in Brooklyn, along with with their first-ever music video for the title track shot by Jesse O’Driscoll. - Vanyaland

The heralded Boston garage rock band... announced a gritty new blues-infused EP, Dead In Yr Tracks, recorded at Converse’s Rubber Tracks studio in Brooklyn, along with with their first-ever music video for the title track shot by Jesse O’Driscoll. - Vanyaland

Hear it once, and it crawls deep inside your headspace and lives there for days. Ask it to leave, and it tells you to piss off and then shits riffs in your cranial garden. The lead single off this year’s What’s the Kim Deal EP (Fort Point Recordings), “Hailing a Cab in Hell” is a sonic swindler, a tumbling blues joint that continues to solidify Viva Viva’s long-standing rep as one Boston’s finest rock-and-roll institutions. In a time where everyone is looking for the freshest new sounds — and the drop that follows it — Viva Viva remain old school, so much that the garage-rock powerhouse in October spit in the face of Internet file sharing and online promotion by tucking 200 promo CDs (you know, that old relic called the compact disc) of “Hailing a Cab in Hell” into Filter magazines on newsstands around town. Viva Viva embody not only our city’s tireless DIY ethic, but our standard of Boston cool. - The Boston Phoenix

Viva Viva is a no-frills rock band from Boston. Over the past few months, they have been pretty busy, traveling back and forth between home and NY to record some new material at Converse Rubber Tracks. FILTER teamed up with Converse earlier this year to hand-pick some of the artists recording at the studio and get to know them a bit better, in hopes that you’ll do the same. We got a chance to chat with Chris Warren and Dan Burke from Viva Viva about their experience in the studio and what we should expect from the band in the future. For more, head to FILTERmagazine.com to read the full interview with more photos, a video of the band recording at Converse Rubber Tracks and some more info on their new EP that is coming out in January 2012. - FILTER Magazine

Viva Viva is a no-frills rock band from Boston. Over the past few months, they have been pretty busy, traveling back and forth between home and NY to record some new material at Converse Rubber Tracks. FILTER teamed up with Converse earlier this year to hand-pick some of the artists recording at the studio and get to know them a bit better, in hopes that you’ll do the same. We got a chance to chat with Chris Warren and Dan Burke from Viva Viva about their experience in the studio and what we should expect from the band in the future. For more, head to FILTERmagazine.com to read the full interview with more photos, a video of the band recording at Converse Rubber Tracks and some more info on their new EP that is coming out in January 2012. - FILTER Magazine

Taylor Swift was the big winner on Sunday at the American Music Awards, but here in Boston, it was Viva Viva’s night. The local band was a top draw at Sunday’s 24th annual Boston Music Awards.

Jim Sullivan was there, and he stopped by Radio Boston to tell us which artists were big in Boston this past year. - Radio Boston WBUR 90.9

Taylor Swift was the big winner on Sunday at the American Music Awards, but here in Boston, it was Viva Viva’s night. The local band was a top draw at Sunday’s 24th annual Boston Music Awards.

Jim Sullivan was there, and he stopped by Radio Boston to tell us which artists were big in Boston this past year. - Radio Boston WBUR 90.9

It was the Dropkicks’ year but Viva Viva’s night.

This year’s BMAs were heavy on boozing and schmoozing. Viva Viva’s set reminded a packed house that it is the music that matters.

Rock Artist of the Year winner (and Live Artist of the Year nominee), the long under-appreciated locals bombed dudes in blazers and ladies in mini-dresses with 30 minutes of dirty, noisy fury. New song “Hailing a Cab in Hell” sounded like a wasted Sonic Youth covering “Wooly Bully.” (That’s meant as very high praise.) - Boston Herald

It was the Dropkicks’ year but Viva Viva’s night.

This year’s BMAs were heavy on boozing and schmoozing. Viva Viva’s set reminded a packed house that it is the music that matters.

Rock Artist of the Year winner (and Live Artist of the Year nominee), the long under-appreciated locals bombed dudes in blazers and ladies in mini-dresses with 30 minutes of dirty, noisy fury. New song “Hailing a Cab in Hell” sounded like a wasted Sonic Youth covering “Wooly Bully.” (That’s meant as very high praise.) - Boston Herald

VIVA VIVA | What’s the Kim Deal? | ETA: November 15 | We’re still not tired of their gritty debut record, but Viva Viva return this fall with a new six-track EP recorded at Mad Oak Studios in addition to sessions from Brooklyn’s Converse Rubber Tracks space. We recently premiered “Hailing a Cab in Hell” on Boston Accents, and we can’t wait to hear the rest. - The Boston Phoenix

Why listen?: When dancing like a maniac in the front row of a Viva Viva show, you’re very aware of the fact that you’re witnessing—and subsequently a part of—one of the driving forces reinventing the Boston music scene. - Weekly Dig

Why listen?: When dancing like a maniac in the front row of a Viva Viva show, you’re very aware of the fact that you’re witnessing—and subsequently a part of—one of the driving forces reinventing the Boston music scene. - Weekly Dig

It’s a sweltering Monday evening in Austin, Texas, and with another year of the South by Southwest music festival in the books, hundreds of bands, hangovers in tow, head for home.

Boston garage-blooze rockers Viva Viva are running woefully late because, as bassist Dan Burke puts it, the band is conducting “an idiot check, making sure we don’t leave our socks or underwear or hats behind.’’ The band is staring down a 20-hour drive to the next night’s show in Nashville — one of about a half-dozen gigs the group has booked en route to Boston and a special homecoming show headlining the Brighton Music Hall on Thursday. - Boston Globe

It’s a sweltering Monday evening in Austin, Texas, and with another year of the South by Southwest music festival in the books, hundreds of bands, hangovers in tow, head for home.

Boston garage-blooze rockers Viva Viva are running woefully late because, as bassist Dan Burke puts it, the band is conducting “an idiot check, making sure we don’t leave our socks or underwear or hats behind.’’ The band is staring down a 20-hour drive to the next night’s show in Nashville — one of about a half-dozen gigs the group has booked en route to Boston and a special homecoming show headlining the Brighton Music Hall on Thursday. - Boston Globe

Viva Viva almost single-riffedly justifies this whole “live music” shebang. As more and more of us hook up earbuds to our aural cocoons and music videos become more “viral” and less “music,” sometimes you just really need a good old-fashioned stomp-howl kicking off a killer hook to remember why folks go see long-hairs with guitars in the first place. And how you can simultaneously be a sex symbol, and not afford to make rent. It’s been working that way since about … forever now. - Weekly Dig

Viva Viva almost single-riffedly justifies this whole “live music” shebang. As more and more of us hook up earbuds to our aural cocoons and music videos become more “viral” and less “music,” sometimes you just really need a good old-fashioned stomp-howl kicking off a killer hook to remember why folks go see long-hairs with guitars in the first place. And how you can simultaneously be a sex symbol, and not afford to make rent. It’s been working that way since about … forever now. - Weekly Dig

A little late, we know (Viva Viva laid this beautiful record down on us all digitally a half a year ago), but consider this official appreciation for what is one of the best under-praised albums of the year.

While many bands have recently sprouted brandishing neo-psychedelia, Viva Viva’s self-titled debut attests that revisiting and reinventing psychedelic-rock of the ’60s and ’70s is not achieved merely by turning up the reverb on everything. It takes creating one’s own sound, and writing damn good songs. Viva Viva make one damn good song after another. Whether they’re in full rock song-swing like the record’s opener, “Heartbreak Sweepstakes,” or building on a foundation of dark, heavy blues with “Sympathy for the Devil’s Little Helper,” they deserved a third nomination at the very least. Hell, give them the keys to the city (just don’t let them drive). - Weekly Dig

A little late, we know (Viva Viva laid this beautiful record down on us all digitally a half a year ago), but consider this official appreciation for what is one of the best under-praised albums of the year.

While many bands have recently sprouted brandishing neo-psychedelia, Viva Viva’s self-titled debut attests that revisiting and reinventing psychedelic-rock of the ’60s and ’70s is not achieved merely by turning up the reverb on everything. It takes creating one’s own sound, and writing damn good songs. Viva Viva make one damn good song after another. Whether they’re in full rock song-swing like the record’s opener, “Heartbreak Sweepstakes,” or building on a foundation of dark, heavy blues with “Sympathy for the Devil’s Little Helper,” they deserved a third nomination at the very least. Hell, give them the keys to the city (just don’t let them drive). - Weekly Dig

Viva Viva's self-titled debut is just the record I needed, at just the right time. I spend so much time listening to music, but rarely get a chance to get lost in a gritty rock n' roll record the way I used to. In fact, I was starting to think I could no longer appreciate the simple pleasures of an overdriven guitar, steady beat and straightforward lyrics delivered with passion. I guess I just haven't been listening to the right bands.

Viva Viva certainly wear their influences on their sleeves - their sound is an amalgam of the seedier side of the British Invasion mixed with bluesy pub rock (a la The 101ers). The Farfisa organ that pops up throughout the album sounds like vintage Steve Nieve circa-This Year's Model. "Sympathy For The Devil's Little Helper" gets its title from two classic Stones songs, but is a heavy guitar and harmonica blues stomp that has more in common with Led Zeppelin. "Valentine's" driving beat and spiky guitar lead sounds like a long lost relative of Bowie's "Suffragette City", and flat out dares listeners not to dance. "First Time I Saw Her" has the ragged swagger of a 70s Springsteen classic. The list goes on.

By now I'm sure I've compared Viva Viva to one or more of your favorite bands. What's most impressive though, is the band's ability to seamlessly integrate all of these influences into something original and soulful. Songs that are broken-in and comfortable like old favorites, catchy enough to sing along during your first listen and delivered with enough confidence to make you really believe that this is the greatest rock n' roll band in the world. It's nice to get that feeling back. Yeah, you could say I'm sold on Viva Viva.

You can find Viva Viva's self-titled record at Newbury Comics or download it at the band's bandcamp page. They'll be in Providence on December 3 with Hands and Knees and keep your eyes peeled for Boston dates. The band is also up for a BMA - don't forget to vote! - Visible Voice

Viva Viva's self-titled debut is just the record I needed, at just the right time. I spend so much time listening to music, but rarely get a chance to get lost in a gritty rock n' roll record the way I used to. In fact, I was starting to think I could no longer appreciate the simple pleasures of an overdriven guitar, steady beat and straightforward lyrics delivered with passion. I guess I just haven't been listening to the right bands.

Viva Viva certainly wear their influences on their sleeves - their sound is an amalgam of the seedier side of the British Invasion mixed with bluesy pub rock (a la The 101ers). The Farfisa organ that pops up throughout the album sounds like vintage Steve Nieve circa-This Year's Model. "Sympathy For The Devil's Little Helper" gets its title from two classic Stones songs, but is a heavy guitar and harmonica blues stomp that has more in common with Led Zeppelin. "Valentine's" driving beat and spiky guitar lead sounds like a long lost relative of Bowie's "Suffragette City", and flat out dares listeners not to dance. "First Time I Saw Her" has the ragged swagger of a 70s Springsteen classic. The list goes on.

By now I'm sure I've compared Viva Viva to one or more of your favorite bands. What's most impressive though, is the band's ability to seamlessly integrate all of these influences into something original and soulful. Songs that are broken-in and comfortable like old favorites, catchy enough to sing along during your first listen and delivered with enough confidence to make you really believe that this is the greatest rock n' roll band in the world. It's nice to get that feeling back. Yeah, you could say I'm sold on Viva Viva.

You can find Viva Viva's self-titled record at Newbury Comics or download it at the band's bandcamp page. They'll be in Providence on December 3 with Hands and Knees and keep your eyes peeled for Boston dates. The band is also up for a BMA - don't forget to vote! - Visible Voice

Viva Viva (OUR PICK: Album of the Year)
Trends come and go, but nobody ever really gets tired of sheer, unadulterated rock ’n’ roll. Few understand this better than Viva Viva, who manage to expand on the genre while maintaining a solid rock foundation. The sextet’s long-awaited, self-titled magnum opus is rich with tastefully under-polished hard-pop numbers like “Keep Lookin’, Good Lookin’” and “Nothing’s Getting Any Easier.” The brooding blues throwdown “Sympathy for the Devil’s Little Helper” provides a groovy change of pace with its unhinged harmonica solos. The album appeared online back in the spring, and Fort Point Recordings began doling out hard copies in October. With their unhinged stage presence and unapologetic attitude, Viva Viva is at the forefront of the dirty rock revival that’s snapping Boston out of its electro-induced haze.— Barry Thompson - TimeOut Boston

Viva Viva (OUR PICK: Album of the Year)
Trends come and go, but nobody ever really gets tired of sheer, unadulterated rock ’n’ roll. Few understand this better than Viva Viva, who manage to expand on the genre while maintaining a solid rock foundation. The sextet’s long-awaited, self-titled magnum opus is rich with tastefully under-polished hard-pop numbers like “Keep Lookin’, Good Lookin’” and “Nothing’s Getting Any Easier.” The brooding blues throwdown “Sympathy for the Devil’s Little Helper” provides a groovy change of pace with its unhinged harmonica solos. The album appeared online back in the spring, and Fort Point Recordings began doling out hard copies in October. With their unhinged stage presence and unapologetic attitude, Viva Viva is at the forefront of the dirty rock revival that’s snapping Boston out of its electro-induced haze.— Barry Thompson - TimeOut Boston

Here at TeaParty Boston, we’ve made it our mission to showcase only the best local music that Boston has to offer. When we were planning our weekly residency project at the Lizard Lounge this past winter, we had a lot of bands to choose from, but only a handful were selected. Viva Viva definitely made the cut. They rocked with Leisure to a sold out room, and have been staying busy with a new recording project, as well as planning some dates at Boston’s top venues. - TeaParty Boston

The legend of Viva Viva has grown exponentially on the shoulders of explosive live performances. So though the Cambridge rock-and-roll gang's debut full-length has been floating around on Bandcamp the past few months, we can't help being excited that actual hard copies of the album will be available at the Fort Point Recordings showcase. Our city's answer to the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Viva Viva could be the finest rock band in any Boston zip code, and now the energy of their psych-drunk garage rock stage show gets carried over to the home CD collection. Viva la vida. - The Boston Phoenix

Straight up: Viva Viva is this city’s best live rock n’ roll band. We stayed up way past our bedtime last night -- early this morning?!?! -- to catch some sweaty garage rock fun at the Fort Point Recordings showcase at the Middle East. It was crazytown. - The Boston Phoenix

With two divergent songwriters and a chaotic blues-rock glide shared through sporadic gigs, Viva Viva may not seem like the most stable band. But it’s a relationship that somehow works.



“This is like a life thing for all of us,” bassist Dan Burke says. “This is the band we’re going to be in until someone croaks or loses their fingers or something.”

It’s been three years since Dave Vicini, who fronted the Lot Six alongside Burke, moved into a Jamaica Plain house with singer/guitarist Chris Warren from Officer May. The pair spent long nights recording on four-track. “They would get together over whiskey and whatever else and just crank out tunes,” Burke says.

The songwriters have complementary personalities—Warren more prolific and diligent, Vicini more raw and free-wheeling—but they found common ground in the Kinks and ’70s Stones. “It’s basically like a push and pull,” Burke says of the band, rounded out by drummer Dominic Mariano and keyboardist Fumika Kato.

Viva Viva’s debut album, only available online, is finally set for release this fall on the new Fort Point Recordings. “Aspirations for success is a very subjective thing in music, especially nowadays,” Burke says. “Success is having freedom.” - Improper Bostonian

Beat Awfuls founder Dave Vicini, who also co-leads Viva Viva, has a penchant for contradiction. One of the best Beat Awfuls songs, “DIY Die,” is a hilarious sacred-cow slayfest that calls out indie-rock paragons like Drag City (“kind of shitty”), K Records (“a bunch of nerds”), Fugazi (“a bunch of Nazis”). Yet that’s how the Awfuls themselves operate: recording is done at home or on the cheap; album art and packaging are made by hand; CDs are distributed at shows or through the mail. It’s DIY to the core.

But for Vicini and his mates — bassist Dan Burke, drummer John Allen, guitarists Tommy Allen and Sarah Cronin in the Beat Awfuls; Burke, the Allen brothers, singer/guitarist Chris Warren, and keys dude Julian Cassanetti in Viva Viva — it’s an æsthetic preference, not a political decision. “We’re gonna try and get famous,” Warren says, sounding like the anti–Ian MacKaye, when I catch him at work at the Other Side Café. “That’s our plan.” - The Boston Phoenix

"Last night was the second installment of TPB’s month-long residency at the Lizard Lounge in Cambridge. The crowd came early for the buttoned-up, symphonic pop of swaggering newcomers Leisure and stayed for the throbbing and swaying garage rock of Viva Viva." - TeaParty Boston

"The legend of Viva Viva has grown exponentially on the shoulders of explosive live performances. So though the Cambridge rock-and-roll gang’s debut full-length has been floating around on Bandcamp the past few months, we can’t help being excited that actual hard copies of the album will be available at the Fort Point Recordings showcase. Our city’s answer to the Brian Jonestown Massacre, Viva Viva could be the finest rock band in any Boston zip code, and now the energy of their psych-drunk garage rock stage show gets carried over to the home CD collection. Viva la vida." - The Boston Phoenix

"The showcase's headiners, gritty garage boozers Viva Viva, are the city's best live band." - Michael Marotta, Music Editor - The Boston Phoenix