Brother HijinX Takes Their Music and Roots Seriously

Brother HijinX is a rock band that grooves hard, incorporating funk elements, odd sounds and textures, and extended improvisation into their music, complemented by strong lyric writing. “If you come to a Brother HijinX show,” says guitarist/vocalist John Cabán, “you will dance, but you’ll also listen.”

Though the band’s multi-genre roots reach deep into the past — “Imagine if Elvis Costello and Steely Dan met up with The Meters, Pink Floyd and The Police at a waterfront bar in Brooklyn,” John quips— their music is anything but retro. Some tracks on their eponymous debut CD have even drawn comparisons to contemporary bands such as 311 and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

John and lead vocalist and keyboard player Anthony Robustelli have been writing, playing, and recording together for more than five years. Both were immersed in Beatles music by the time they were eight years old and both have Stevie Wonder on their long, diverse lists of dream collaborators. From there, however, their influences diverge.

Anthony, the son of a big band singer, grew up with the likes of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Mel Torme “playing nonstop in the house and car,” he says. “I also went to many jazz shows with my Dad.” On the flip side, he was also into Steely Dan and Chicago and, by the time he entered middle school, found himself attracted to “the darkness and cynicism” of the British New Wave. (Brother HijinX’s CD features an excellent cover of Elvis Costello’s Watching the Detectives.) Together these influences engendered “a love of jazz chord changes, rock and funk grooves, and dark lyrical themes [that] have had an enormous effect on my writing.”

John was influenced early on by the classic rock and R&B of the ‘70s and ‘80s. “Then in high school I started checking out roots music, blues, funk, progressive rock, jazz and reggae,” he says, noting that the common denominators that drew him to all of these sound were “great songwriting, rhythm, use of space and improvisation.“

Living in Brooklyn has also had a positive affect on Brother HijinX’s music. “There is such a wealth of ethnic influence and culture, flavor, art and media that it can’t help but influence everything you write, play and sing,” says John.

Anthony imagines that Brooklyn today is like Greenwich Village was in the ’60s or Soho in the ’70s. “Brooklyn has always been exceptionally diverse and now it’s attracting artists from around the country,” he says. “Manhattan has lost a lot of its flavor and Brooklyn has become the place where artists gather to create.” He welcomes follow artists to do their creating at his Brooklyn studio, Shady Bear Productions, where Brother HijinX recorded their CD and current single, In Stereo.

John and Anthony also have high praise for Brooklyn’s live music venues. “Southpaw is a great place to play,” says Anthony, adding that the band recently had their debut gig at Brooklyn Bowl , which John says is “one of the best clubs I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing” . They would also like to play the new Knitting Factory in the future. Wherever they perform, they’ll give audiences a fine sampling of what Brooklyn musical expression is all about.