The borough's wildest sons have gotten together to reclaim the phrase "Brooklyn band" from their out-of-towner peers. The Brooklyn What combines punk, soul and raw, honest rock n' roll in an all-out musical assault that will make you laugh, cry and dance all in the same night.
Guitarists John-Severin Nappolilo and Evan O'Donnell create a wall of sound and then break it down to beautiful chaos, emulating guitar teams as diverse as The Stones' Keith Richards and Mick Taylor and Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore and Lee Ronaldo. Bass player Doug Carey and drummer Jesse Katz unite to form an unstoppable juggernaut, catapulting the band to heaviness and occasional funk. Singer Jamie Frey puts it all on the line, combining a visceral punk scream with a soul singer croon.
Born out of friendships made at Brooklyn's Edward R. Murrow High School, The BKW honed their craft in the Frey family basement on Albemarle Rd., writing songs that were not afraid to get angry, weird or sincere in the age of irony. Instead of gentrifiers with synthesizers, they became local heroes going back to basics with loud electric guitars, danceable rhythms, and the occasional love song, emulating the underdog charm of The Replacements and the wild idealism of The Clash.
They have been taking their revolutionary rock n' roll revue to the New York club scene and beyond, challenging crowds to get off their feet and work up a sweat. In 2008, they released their first album, "The Brooklyn What for Borough President," on their own Pozar records to local success, recorded in about 6 hours for a few hundred bucks. 2009's "Gentrification Rock EP" was released in response to local developments challenging the purity of their hometown.
Look out for The Brooklyn What's next album, and you might get a glimpse into the future of rock n' roll!

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