Professor Murder
| Professor Murder | |
|---|---|
| Origin | New York City, New York, United States |
| Genres | Indie rock, dance-punk |
| Labels | Kanine Records, RCRD LBL |
| Website | http://www.professormurder.com |
| Members |
Jesse Cohen Andy Craven Michael Bell-Smith Tony Blankets |
Professor Murder is a dance-punk quartet from New York City that mixes synthesizers and percussion-based compositions in a method that has drawn comparison to post-punk and new wave bands of the late 1970s and early 1980s.[1] They released their critically hailed[2] debut EP, Professor Murder Rides the Subway, on Kanine Records in July 2006. Members of the band are Jesse Cohen (keyboards), Andy Craven (drums), Michael Bell-Smith (vocals, percussion, bass, keys), and Tony Blankets (bass, melodica). In 2009 Bell-Smith, Cohen and Blankets joined with Eric Emm of Tanlines to create a new band, Restless People.
Name origin
Professor Murder was a character in two comedy sketches on HBO's "Mr. Show"[3] in the 1990s. He was a rapper who was featured in a sketch about the East Coast ventriloquists' feud with the West Coast ventriloquists, which mirrored the same regional divide in the world of rap music. Professor Murder made a second appearance in another sketch as a ringer brought in by the rich kids from the fat camp when they wanted to win a rapping contest against a group of Buddhist monks. Professor Murder was played by Sam Sarpong.[4] It has been said that The Mr. Show sketch of the same name inspired the band's name. It was rumored that Tony Blankets was asked to tour with the John Mayer Trio but turned it down to work exclusively with Professor Murder, but Blankets denied this rumor at the Pitchfork Music Festival.
Discography
EPs
- Professor Murder on a Desert Island (2008) RCRDLBL
- Professor Murder Rides the Subway (2006) Kanine Records
- Professor Murder Vs. The Magazine Culture (2004)
Singles
- "Dutch Hex" (2007) Brothers Label
References
- ↑
- Theakston, Rob. Biography of Professor Murder at AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-04-20.
- ↑ Professor Murder reviewed on Pitchforkmedia
- ↑ Mr. Show with Bob and David at the Internet Movie Database
- ↑ Sam Sarpong at the Internet Movie Database