There are a lot of things that draw me to new music – I’m always on a quest for the next best or most innovative band. I can be compelled to check out a new group by a review, a fun band name, a friend’s recommendation, a playlist suggestion, or even compelling artwork. Our current Weekly Featured Artist, Professor Caffeine & The Insecurities, came across my radar multiple times in the weeks following their new, self-titled, full-length release. Some friends sent it my way for my love of progressive and emo music (read our review of the record here). I was immediately captured by the unique, fun band name and the album artwork’s introspective robot subject.
As I dug into the album, I found a sound that was simultaneously fresh and reminiscent of classic favourites like Coheed and Cambria, Death Cab for Cutie, and The Dear Hunter, alongside newcomers like Aviations, Thank You Scientist, and Others by No One. With this intriguing mix of musical and visual output, I was so excited to chat further with Professor Caffeine & The Insecurities about their formation, discography, and next steps.
The Boston band began as the solo project for the group’s vocalist and bassist, Dan Smith, to explore some of his love for 50s power pop, progressive riffs (which are all over “Astronaut”), and big keyboards (like you hear on the newest record’s “Oat Roper”). Their guitarist, Anthony, explains how the group’s name is a fun extension of this initial inspiration:
‘Dan … loves and is heavily inspired by 50s powerpop. Most all of those band names are something similar to ‘blank-blank and the so-and-so’s’, so the PC&TI band name is kind of a tongue-in-cheek homage to those naming schemes. On top of that, we’re all sad bois who love our caffeine… and it’s always fun when people approach us with the question, ‘Which one of you is the Professor?”
Ken Dellott (drums) and Anthony Puliafico (guitar) joined the group after years of being in various bands with Dan since high school. Derek Tanch (keyboards) joined the group shortly after the group’s first release – the 2015 extended play Comic Book. Even though it was released nearly a decade ago, the EP’s five songs establish the strong songwriting, powerful vocal harmonies, and progressive, emotional tendencies that have been refined over the group’s two subsequent releases. This approach is evident even from Comic Book‘s opener, “My Date with Anna Marie Was Emotionally and Physically Exhausting”, as it moves from an almost The Mountain Goats narrative to 50s power pop vocal stacks and Coheed and Cambria-esque backing vocals, countered by playful synths and energetic piano chords. Closer “You’re My Mary Jane, Not My Gwen Stacey (I Won’t Accidentally Kill You)” pairs a nerdy song title with synth-based hooks, darting guitars, and an anthemic chorus that I could imagine crowds singing back to the band in live settings.
As the group’s releases have continued, so too has the amalgam of influences the band incorporates:
‘We love video games, movies, shows, comics, and are genuinely die-hard fans of music. We’re all from slightly different musical backgrounds but tend to meet in the middle of a lot. Coheed and Cambria, Dillinger Escape Plan, Glassjaw, Animals As Leaders, Rush, Saosin, and Dream Theater, to drop a few names. A lot of prog, metal, emo, pop, and classic rock influences spattered about create this ‘whatever-you-wanna-call-it’ genre that Professor Caffeine has fallen into.’
The Video Game EP followed in 2018 with seven more tracks, broadening the group’s sonic palette with strings (“Daisy”), screamed vocals overtop of the mathy, rhythmically ambiguous chaos (“Wiley & Light’s Science Fair Project”), and even chiptune (“Hold “A” To Charge Your Laser”). However, even more was to change in the development of the group’s self-titled debut full-length recording, starting with the way it was written:
‘This full-length record was actually recorded twice and had a lot more polishing and revisions than our previous releases. It was a really long process that we honestly started on just a few months after releasing the Video Game EP. This time around we took much more of a traditional ‘band’ approach as this was the first record where we all collaborated together. The previous releases were mostly Dan’s visions that had little pieces and parts added by the band. For this record however, everyone contributed to the writing process and we all recorded our own parts- it was a much more creative and collaborative process. On top of that, we made a conscious effort this cycle to put songwriting first and chaotic riffs second.’
This patience, attention to detail, refinement, and more collaborative approach is evident throughout the full-length’s 48 minutes and eleven tracks. It opens with the pounding drums and emotional, catchy vocal lines of “Brockton Panda” that evoke, to me at least, the similar genre-bending ambiguity of Thank You Scientist before a cavalcade of voices beg the band to start the album. “Wolf Fang Fist” quickly answers that call with some of the most forward, ambitious riffs the group has offered so far, managing to be both frenetic and focused as they underlie Smith’s powerhouse vocals. I could hear such a track inspiring audiences on tours supporting Coheed and Cambria or Crown Lands.
Elsewhere, “Dope Shades” opens with upbeat, inspiring guitars that evoke comparisons to a more relaxed Sithu Aye, and “Unreal Big Fish” is an acoustic rock track that could effortlessly dance its way across popular radio with its emotional lyrics and powerful wordless hook. “That’s A Chunky” feels almost like a Dance Gavin Dance track. As you can no doubt tell, the album confidently covers a lot of ground, especially for a debut full-length. Yet, its confident delivery is underlined by a playful, almost self-effacing vulnerability conveyed by its evocative album artwork:
‘Anthony’s wife, Michelle Carter, is an illustrator and tattoo artist. To be honest, the concept and design was fully her idea. She wanted to throw together something nostalgic and slightly somber. The rusted robo-boy alone at night surrounded by all sorts of broken comfort items, antiquated technology, instruments, and imagery from some of our lyrics. It really gives off a feeling of solace mixed with loneliness, isolation, and the abandonment of youth. It’s really fitting because we’re all getting older and still trying out this music thing. You start to kind of get this relic mentality, like keeping up with the times is an impossibility. She somehow fully nailed what we didn’t even know we wanted. It perfectly encapsulates a lot of the motifs on this record and where our heads were at whilst making it pre-, and post-, quarantine.’
With a self-assured yet vulnerable, compelling full-length album now out, and a line-up completed by the addition of second guitarist Jay Driscoll, where do Professor Caffeine & The Insecurities go from here? Anthony has hinted at upcoming shows, a vinyl pressing of the record, and even more studio time coming in August:
‘They say you’re only as good as your last release, and we’re continually trying to push that barrier.’
You can follow Professor Caffeine & The Insecurities on Instagram and Facebook and listen to their music on Bandcamp.
Professor Caffeine & The Insecurities are:
Dan Smith – Vocals/Bass
Derek Tanch – Keyboards
Anthony Puliafico – Guitar
Ken Dellott – Drums
Jay Driscoll – Guitar
