43
Bully delivers alt-rock punch
By John Benson
The thing about bullies – you know, Bif from “Back to the Future” and Rachel McAdams in “Mean Girls” – is you never forget them.
Musically speaking, that same scenario applies to relatively new rock band Bully, which is quickly attracting a following with its ’90s-style alternative sound that doesn’t shake a fist in your face as much as beguile you with anthems of broken relationships and self discovery.
Take the band’s lead track, “I Remember,” from its recently released self-titled debut. Fueled with a riot grrl angst, the song finds singer and band founder Alicia Bognanno working through some things with lyrics such as “And I remember throwing up in your car/I remember showing up at your house/And I remember hurting you so bad.”
In terms of making a first impression, there’s no doubt “I Remember” does that and more. It’s safe to assume the track offers Bognanno some catharsis.
“Yeah, totally,” she said, calling from Nashville. “A lot of it. It just feels so good to play live. It’s still so much fun, and it’s only a minute and 40 seconds long. It’s like this total release of energy.”
Other standout tracks from the debut include “Reason,” “Trash” and “Sharktooth.” Invariably, Bully boasts a modern twist of the “120 Minutes” motif, which Bognanno said wasn’t intentional, but as you’ll find out, shouldn’t be a surprise.
A few years ago after graduating from Middle Tennessee State University, Bognanno moved to Chicago to pursue an internship at Electrical Audio. The Windy City studio complex is owned by Steve Albini, who two decades ago produced some of the biggest bands of the era: Nirvana, Breeders, Liz Phair, Superchunk and The Stooges.
From there, Bognanno returned to the Music City, formed Bully and eventually returned to Electrical Audio, where the band recorded its debut. As far as the group possessing a serious ’90s vibe, Bognanno said, “I don’t remember a time where people didn’t say that Bully sounds a little bit like the ’90s but in different ways.”
As for the band’s moniker, Bognanno said the group first had the song “Bully” before deciding to use it as the group’s name. She said its appeal stemmed from the fact the band would surprise unsuspecting listeners who perhaps anticipated a heavy-metal act. You can imagine their reactions seeing a female-fronted alt-rock band.
Still, the name does attract attention with journalists (yes, guilty as charged). Bognanno said despite the publicity, she doesn’t have any regrets going with Bully.
“There was like one time about a month ago that I was like, that’s weird that I picked that as a band name, but to me it’s really about the music and what it sounds like,” Bognanno said. “I’m not going to pick it apart or stress out about it.”
While Bognanno doesn’t feel naming a band Bully is controversial, apparently social media has other ideas.
“It’s just annoying when we get tagged on Twitter all of the time for like anti-bullying campaigns,” Bognanno said. “It’s like they have no idea what’s going on. That’s a little bit of a nuisance. Other than that, I’m pretty happy with it.”
Bully will play at Beachland in Cleveland on Friday, and at Brillobox in Pittsburgh on Oct. 3. The band has already made its Youngstown debut, playing at the Federal Frenzy rock fest in downtown Youngstown in April.