"Ninth Street, we need a right," says Sohrab Habibion, guitarist for Brooklyn-based rock outfit Obits, as he and his bandmates scour Philadelphia for a particular Burmese restaurant.
"It's cool to kind of discover things in other cities that we either don't have in New York or that make us feel at home," he says. "We're like tourists who happen to play in a rock and roll band."
And while Obits has a post-hardcore pedigree---Habibion is former frontman of Washington, DC band Edsel, while Obits' vocalist/guitarist Rick Froburg spent time heading bands like Pitchfork, Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes---even the webpage for the group's latest Sub Pop release,
Beds & Bugs, has difficulty pinning down its sound: garage, punk or garage-punk?
"I would say that we're probably not a garage band, we're just a rock and roll band," says Habibion. "It's like, 'How would I describe it to my 75-year-old aunt?' I would just say 'rock 'n' roll." He says the band grew up listening to 60s rock and 80s punk, and that "just being music fans has the most influence on the music we play."
For Halifax Pop Explosion, Obits will headline a show at Gus' Pub and open for Wavves at Olympic Community Hall. After that, the band heads to Florida and then to Vancouver for a west coast tour that will wind down in San Diego.
"It's nice to play to people," Habibion says, "but for us, what's really fun is playing our music together. That's first and foremost."
After being given directions to the Heartwood Cafe, Habibion, a vegetarian, is informed that despite a lengthy phone conversation, this article will be relatively short.
"So the only quote will be 'We're not garage punk'," he says, laughing, prescient.
Obits w/Quivers, Tough Age, The Reference Desk
Tuesday, October 22 at 10pm, $15
Gus’ Pub, 2605 Agricola Street
