Drop The Jackson Five, Beck and the theme from “The Rockford Files” in a blender, and you’ll have The Go! Team, the most buzzed-about group coming through Chicago this weekend–for two shows, no less.
The hype is impressive when you consider the Brighton, England, group has never played a Chicago gig and doesn’t have U.S. distribution for its debut album, “Thunder, Lightening, Strike.” (Fans looking to pick up the CD have plunked between $20 and $30 on an import release or, more likely, downloaded a copy from the Internet.)
Attribute part of the excitement to the band’s mashup of pop-culture influences and its unconventional lineup. Two female drummers–Silke Steidinger (from Germany) and Chi Fukami (from Japan)–trade dance beats over a sea of surf guitars, while lead-singer Ninja (yes, just Ninja) does her best “Rockin’ Robin”-era Michael Jackson.
We talked to guitarist/mastermind Ian Parton about the group’s sound.
Your music is incredibly upbeat. What is The Go! Team so happy about?
I never thought about the happiness of the music. I’ve always imagined it as kicking-ass music, action-packed and exciting, rather than being happy-clappy. We’re hyper-aware of the world around us. We’re not a group of kindergarten teachers.
From the sound of some of your songs, you’re a fan of American TV-show theme songs from the ’70s.
Kind of. Lots of American reviews have taken that theme-tune side of the band too literally. That’s just one dimension of the sound. I’ve always been a fan of car-chase music and that action-packed trumpet sound, like in the “Rocky” soundtrack.
What interests me is if you stick that sound along something else, like Sonic Youth-style guitars or trashy drums, you can make something fresh of it, though I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like theme tunes when I was a kid. I’d try to sing them and play them on the piano. Now I have an encyclopedic knowledge of theme tunes.
Advertising agencies seem to love that action-packed side of your music.
Yeah, we’ve had about five or six offers that we’ve turned down. We’ve sort of taken a stand against the way most bands become associated with a product.
Most U.S. fans have probably had to download your album off the Internet. How does that sit with you?
I don’t mind it too much. I’m not like Metallica, who wants to sue everyone who downloads their album. I’m not treating music as a career. I don’t want to think of music in a financial way. To make a modest living out of it is all I ask.
The Go! Team
When: 9 p.m. Friday
Where: Double Door, 1572 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Tickets: $12-$14
–and–
When: 6:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Intonation Music Festival, 1501 W. Randolph St.
Tickets: $15
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mmcguire@tribune.com
