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| Tiny Masters |
Music Feature |
Words by Madeleine Boyd
Illustration above by Ben Frost
Cartoon Punk from NY New Gens Tiny Masters of Today
‘You say yes, I say no/you stay stop I say go’ Let’s go! They deliver their song ‘stickin it to the man’ with brattish cool, backed up by fuzzed out punk guitar, drum loops and clever samples. Ivan (12) and Ada (10) are the smashing Cartoon Punk duo Tiny Masters of Today. Truly young masters, they’re showing us that kids these days are doin’ it for themselves. They’ve got a Ramones vs Kraftwerk sound coming out in true DIY style from the basement studio and underground gigs in NY and London.
They’re playing the cool venues, but have to stay backstage after the gig, ‘cause they haven’t got their ID yet. Never mind, Ivan says ‘Go ahead, kiss my magic butt!’ to anyone who would brush over their impact on the music scene.
Punk to the core, lollypops may be their favorite food, but their lyrics aren’t all candy. They reflect the rebel spirit of the New Gens…watch out they’re comin’ to get you. With songs like Bushy, TMOT are a riot in the making- delivering the ultimate insult to their nemesis ‘you’re the worst president, Bushy…lying to the people but we don’t care/ ‘cause you’re the one with pink underwear’.
They started making music on their home Mac using Garage Band when Ada was only 8. Ultra-cool UK indie label Tiger Trap records quickly snatched them up and so far has released TMOTs two limited edition 7” vinyls: ‘Stickin It To The Man’ and ‘K.I.D.S’. Good luck getting one, they’re already sold out. There’s a new album due out soon, which includes a collaboration with Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
TMOT is named after the band in Blake Nelson’s book ‘Rockstar, Superstar’ which is about a kid musician who goes from ‘jazz band geek’ to ‘potential rock god’ – can he take the pressure? Can Ivan and Ada take the pressure? So far they’ve been on the cover of Artrocker Magazine in the UK, sold out records, are supporting well-loved art punk bands like The Horrors and are soon to appear at a huge underage rock festival in London. Even David Bowie has got them covered - he thinks they're ‘genius’. And we all know Bowie is never wrong.
Unless you’re 14-17 you won’t be able to see them at their next big gig at the London Underage Festival, August 10. They’ll appear with bands like Crystal Castles, I Was a Club Scout, and Tiny Dancers. Djs include UK outfit ‘Growing up is Gay’ (exactly!). But you can meet them on myspace. This is where they first met Australian pop artist, Ben Frost. The cover for K.I.D.S., released December 2006, is a pull-out from his apocalyptic painting 'Final Days'. The friendship continued when they played at Ben Frost’s solo art show at The Arm gallery in Brooklyn - they’ve definitely earned their art rockster credentials!
Next time you’re flicking through myspace, it’s worth also checking out TMOT friends, Rock Guys. The lead singer, Mara, is just six, and she definitely ‘hates school’. Yet, if we’re talking kid-culture, then the lyrics from TMOT track K.I.D.S may well be the anthem for New Gen punk: 'kids didn't make no atom bomb/kids didn't start no Vietnam/kids just want to have some fun!". F’Real! Make friends with them today, they’ve got something big going on!
www.myspace.com/tinymasters
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