Crackin' Up

Photo By Aubrey Edwards

"I Have a Secret That Will Ruin You"

There's a crackle in the speakers. A burst vocal chord, a vibrating thump. A running start spurs it toward an explosion of fury, of angst. Chords squeal beyond the cacophony, somewhere between the soothing hum of strings and the screaming of a crazy woman. This is Austin's Arm – noisy, rhythmic, and this close to being completely out of control.

Like any great rock & roll foursome, the Arm is perfectly truncated into distinct personalities. Guitarist Alex Lyon is the thinker: He doesn't say much, but the wheels are always turning. Kevin Bybee is the perfectionist behind the drum kit: Rarely pleased with a performance or a recording, he always pushes for something better. Bassist Alex Ramirez is the comedian: Cutting off his bandmates in midsentence, he loves being the center of attention, something he might have picked up from his little boy. Then there's vocalist and keyboardist Sean O'Neal, the outspoken savant.

"I've been unfairly pigeonholed as the king of post-punk and New Wave and no wave and whatnot, and I feel like I'm carrying the torch for post-punk in this town," O'Neal says. "While I do love the post-punk and I do appreciate the Fall and Gang of Four, that's not all I listen to. I spend a lot of time listening to stuff that people would never guess I listen to. In the last year I've probably listened to more Bob Dylan than anything else."

The Arm isn't quite Bob Dylan – they're way too fun for that – but they're much more than plain, mall-rock post-punk. Sophomore full-length Call You Out is evidence of that. Underneath the hi-hat and the squeal are high-sheen melody, pop sensibility, and traces of classic rock childhoods.

"I think this new album should rise above some generic genre, because that's just not going to last," says Ramirez. "The only thing that's going to last is good songwriting, and I'd really like to think that we've transcended into that."

"I'd Like to Make a Complaint"

The Arm boys are giggly and dirty-minded, like four 16-year-olds skipping class, sneaking cigarettes in front of the corner store. Bybee tries keeping everyone in line, but there's really no hope where these four are concerned. They're going to say what they want, and if you don't like it, you know what you can do. The punk rock aesthetic is alive and well.

A year ago, they were just getting to know one another. O'Neal and Bybee are longtime friends who've played together forever: "Kevin's my abusive boyfriend I keep going back to," O'Neal explains. "He breaks my heart every couple of years, and I keep crawling back trying to recapture some of the magic we used to have." Ramirez, from A Tiger Named Lovesick fame, joined the band after a short stint in Tokyo, and Lyon, who also plays with Zykos, joined shortly after.

Over the course of a year and a half, three of the four have left the band and returned, the entire group has come to fisticuffs with two other bands (first, New Zealand's Mint Chicks; and, last month at SXSW, Cleveland's This Moment in Black History), and there's a now-legendary tale of Ramirez taking a girl to the ground during Emo's free week when she tried to unplug his pedals. It could be assumed that drama fuels these engines.

"We're Southern gentlemen, really, at heart," O'Neal insists. "All you have to do is be polite."

The truth is these guys are pussycats. Their music might speak differently – especially 2004's undeniably propulsive debut – but, unless whiskey's brought to the table, they're soft-spoken, considerate, intelligent men. Not boys, men. Which of course brings us to that age-old question: How old is too old to be in a rock band? In Austin, there's a whole crew of pop-minded 21-year-olds (read: Voxtrot) bringing the future, but somewhere past the 24 mark, floors don't feel so great. Things like acid reflux creep into the picture. Hangovers take a larger toll and suddenly touring doesn't look so fun.

Next week, the Arm embarks on one of those rare tours with local art-rock trio Single Frame. The fire from SXSW 06 hasn't quite burned down – Rolling Stone senior critic David Fricke bought a CD and was seen feverishly noting the Arm's performance, BBC Radio took "Privileged Few" to the airwaves, and Bybee escaped a broken bottle to the jugular. All, hopefully, have shortened a rocky road ahead.

"If this doesn't work, I'm just going to have to stop pretending to be in a rock band," O'Neal snarks. "I'm getting a little too old. But who knows? Leonard Cohen was 36 before he hit the big time."

"Lovers & Agents"

"I don't think we could put out a record that Kevin was 100% happy with," O'Neal ventures. "If we ever made a record that Kevin was 100% satisfied with, I'd crap my pants and quit my job."

This is, in part, the result of recording and mixing the entirety of Call You Out in Lyon's studio (the Bubble) between paying bands' sessions in a little over a week. While it might not match the ferocity of the Arm's debut, it doesn't fall into the sophomore slump either.

"It's a lot more guitar-based and collaborative," Bybee says. "But you should've seen the arguments we had getting this record done. Every step of it has been a nightmare."

Jobs, wives, girlfriends, and sons. Empty bank accounts, draining self-esteem, lack of support, and relationship turmoil. Is this fun?

"This band is the first one I've been in that's the right combination of people," gushes O'Neal. "This is the band I've been looking for my entire life, and if this doesn't work out, then I don't know what to do."

"This is what we all love doing," Ramirez agrees. "Why would you want to quit that?"

So the road gets a little longer, and the wheels keep on turning. Don't expect a lengthy tour just yet though – they need a booking agent first – and don't put all your chickens in the post-punk basket. While the Arm threatens its own demise, these guys live and breathe every stroke of the strings, every hi-hat explosion. That crackle in the speakers? Sure, it's a bad P.A., or maybe – ahem – O'Neal blew it. Really, it's the sweat, perseverance, and fortitude of four local punk rock dudes who refuse to give up.

"I just want to read a review of our record that does not mention the Fall," O'Neal pleads. "That would make me so fucking happy. It doesn't even matter if they trash it, but if they don't mention the Fall, I'll be happy."

The Arm celebrate the release of Call You Out with Single Frame, Faceless Werewolves, and Lomita at Emo's, Friday, April 14.