Not many bands can say they started out on the 'Jenny Jones' show
You’ve heard this story before. High school kids in art class dreaming of being rock stars and ditching their colored pencils for Fender Stratocasters and drum kits. This was the origin of the Carol Stream-based alternative rock band Gypsy Fly.
But from there, the tale takes a sensational, made-for-daytime-TV turn.
Gypsy Fly
with Room 101 and Bully in the Hallway
9 p.m. Thursday
Double Door, 1572 N. Milwaukee
Tickets, $7
Call (773) 489-3160
“We played the ‘Jenny Jones Show,’ ” laughs guitarist Tommy2K. “They had a band of the week or Chicago house band of the day. They called us on a Wednesday and they wanted us to tape on Friday. We’re 16 years old and sitting in the back of the dressing room with a Sharpie, trying to whittle our songs down to 15-second sound bites.”
The members of Gypsy Fly had been told they’d be playing two of their songs, only to find out five minutes before taping they’d have significantly less time to shine. Tommy2K and the guys pulled it off, though, jamming on national television when most of their classmates were sweating over their parallel parking.
A decade later, the makeup of the band has changed, but their devotion to rock-driven power pop has remained. And their iron will to practice has never wavered. Every Wednesday and Friday from 5 to 10 p.m. for the last 10 years, Gypsy Fly has gathered together to hone their skills.
“I can’t remember the last time we missed a practice,” Tommy2K says. “It seems like every time we’ve gotten a big break, there’s been, like, two days’ notice. So we make sure we’re prepared.”
One of those big breaks was playing Warped Tour stops in Milwaukee and Chicago. There, the group’s raucous live energy endeared it to fans looking for unabashedly to the point melodies. As Tommy2K explains, it’s a sound that’s come together from a variety of influences.
“I’m a real huge Cure fan, and the other guys like different styles, but we kind of said we’re going to do something different and fuse them together,” he says. “It might take longer, but we made a conscious effort to have our own writing style.”
One of the obstacles the band faces is not fitting cleanly into one particular category or genre. They’re parts of Rancid, parts of Sugarcult and parts of the Living End. While the record labels might want one specific sound throughout a catalog, the members of Gypsy Fly are adamant on keeping their sound true to who they are.
“I think our music is sarcastic; there’s lots of down-in-the-dumps but done with a positive light that gives hope,” Tommy2K says. “We like to leave the vehicle open and don’t want to have it come down too heavy on people.”
Gypsy Fly recently shot a video for their single “I Wanna Get Off” with Lou Hinkhouse, who has previously worked with the Smashing Pumpkins. They plan to start recording a new album late in the summer and hope to have it completed by next winter.
Paramount to their success will be translating the energy of a Gypsy Fly show to the energy of a Gypsy Fly disc.
“I think we are a live band,” Tommy2K says. “I like playing a lot of places in Chicago and bringing a lot of intensity. The key is having that enthusiasm shine through on the record.”
