Author | Hannibal Alexander
If one of the main goals of starting a band is to stand out, than Brooklyn-based band Schmekel is doing an excellent job at hitting that goal. “If The Kinks, a klezmer band, Weird Al, and Frank Zappa has a weird baby,” bassist Nogga Schwartz illustrates, “that kind of starts to paint a picture of what we sound like.” And that’s just the beginning of the group’s uniqueness that has made them stars in New York’s rising Transcore scene.
The four piece band is made up of loud and proud Transgendered Jews, with a name that means “little penis” in Yiddish. Their debut album “Queers on Rye” includes shock-worthy titles like “Fondle the PSA Agent” and “Tranny Chaser” that balance being fun, funny, controversial and thought-provoking simultaneously. Lucian Kahn, guitarist and vocalist, adds “Our songs are smutty and politically provocative, but hopefully not hurtful.”
Schmekel’s humor is what helped formed the group. After meeting at a transmasculine group in the West Village of New York City, drummer Simcha Halpert-Hanson explains, “Lucian made a joke about the hilarity of a Jewish transgender band called ‘Schmekel’. We also all wanted to play klezmer and punk rock in one band… Because we’re dorks clearly.” Of course the members had their musical aspirations before that conversation, with inspirations ranging from Tori Amos, Oingo Boingo, Smashing Pumpkins, and genres as diverse as jazz, metal and industrial goth.
In their personal lives each band members transitions affected their musical identity in positive ways. One example was the confidence boost keyboard and vocalist Ricky Riot experienced: “I am more confident now that I am older and that my outsides match my insides. Wait, that sounded gross.” While Lucian says his transition effected his vocals most, “Getting a low, masculine singing voice was a complete game-changer for me; I suddenly sounded like my idea of myself for the first time in my late 20’s”.
Soon enough the band started recording and performing and making a name for themselves in the Transcore scene which Lucian says is “starting to gain momentum, with bands like GLTR PNCH, Girlcrush, and Penguin representing all sides of the gender spectrum.” Schmekel’s infectious performances of songs like “The Mohel Song” and “Shark Attack” have given them a wide range of adoring fans, Ricky comments on the positive effect their music is having, “I didn’t actually expect our music to be a source of emotional support for anyone. I feel blessed to be playing that role.” Lucian says, “I’ve been surprised by the enthusiasm of my grandmother’s generation. The media tries to depict old people as sort of stodgy and prudish, but there are a lot of 80 year old Jews who love dirty jokes.”
The twisted humor in their song lyrics are meant to shock and embed themselves in the listeners mind, forcing them to think about the social and political issues the songs address. “Most of what Schmekel says is from our own experience,” Ricky says of the groups content, “the humor is intentional but the message just comes with the territory. When lyrics get described as ‘offensive’ or ‘explicit’, people often don’t distinguish between having messages that are problematic and trigger people, and just being adult content. Schmekel doesn’t try to push buttons, we have plenty to say without being nudniks.”
There is a fine line in writing socially conscious yet somewhat satirical lyrics, which Lucian says comes naturally to him, explaining, “I actually don’t find the funny/serious balance challenging, probably because of the way I was raised. I come from a long line of sarcastic New York Jews who use humor to respond to prejudice, illness, and death. It’s basically in my DNA.”
Schmekel promise to stick to their winning formula on their upcoming album “The Whale That Ate Jonah,” but they are also doing things a little different on the project, starting with more punk influences and just showcasing their evolution as musicians. Nogga also hints at a more collaborative feel remarking, “the writing process of this album involved more of a group effort,” while Lucian suggests to expect “a healthy dose of ridiculousness” while tackling social and political issues like “transmisogyny, gentrification, anti-genderqueer sentiment, trans men in gay male spaces, trans identity in Orthodox Jewish spaces.”
The near future for Schmekel includes more performing and recording and spreading their message as far as it can go, speaking proudly and openly about the LGBT and Jewish communities. Lucian seeks to use their platform to give a different image of the Transgendered community. He reveals, “Transpeople are just people with a particular sort of obstacles and experiences. We’re not space aliens.” While Ricky wants to continue entertaining people commenting, “I just want everyone to laugh and dance and have fun, and know that they’re not alone and that we’re not alone either.”
For more information visit Schmekel’s website: http://transjews.com/
