Premiere: Fakers, ‘$600’

Kevin Bronson on June 10th, 2015

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Post-millenial malaise, working-class poverty, creative frustrations — all those grievances are aired in “$600,” the first song to emerge from the new band Fakers, comprised of well-known agitators on L.A.’s indie scene. They are Travis Shettel of Piebald, Cameron Dmytryk of Vanaprasta/Sun Drug, Benjamin Heywood of Summer Darling and brothers Joey and Andy Siara of the Henry Clay People. They trade off vocals, but their debut blast of indie-punk features the signature shout-singing of the elder Siara, Joey. The song will appear on a 7-inch on a new imprint, Chain Letter, being launched by Heywood and his wife Heather (Kissing Cousins). Given their resumés, you can expect possibly unhealthy doses of insouciance from Fakers (it’s an old Henry Clay song, y’know?), who introduce themselves as “a very loud band. Three electric guitars, distorted bass, and a drummer named Ben will do that. They do not believe in acoustic guitars. They do not even believe that acoustic guitars ever existed.” They also tout “cheap beers, PB&J, and industrial-sized boxes of cheese-flavored snacks,” especially for bands that are just starting out. And they poke fun at their own singing skills by pointing out they have what some call “Personality Voices.” So that’s the title of the 7-inch, coming in August.