A Decade of Delirium

The Irreverent Madness of Je Suis France Continues

originally published April 23, 2008

As much as we enjoy watching cyclists navigate rain-slick downtown Athens streets and occasionally exploding into protective haybales while craning our necks past the pay phone next to Horton Drugstore’s Lumpkin Street flank, it can be argued that the patent appeal of the Twilight Criterium lies in the fact it serves as a vague sporting event backdrop to the semi-oblivious masses in the parking spaces-turned-beer garden.  Legal drinking in the streets rules! 

Intoxicating and treacherous qualities aside, the Criterium’s legacy is secured by the fact that it serves as a semi-important athletic event precursor to the most righteous musical extravaganza going on nine years now, The Twilight Delirium, as always, hosted by Je Suis France.  The Delirium is undoubtedly the quintessential rock and jock experience. Yes, even better than a Kinchafoonee Cowboys performance at the Georgia Theatre in the fall after a victorious home game, on ketamine and cotton candy.

This year the light-hearted, totally psychedelic self-referential indie rockers with sometimes novice garage rock, sometimes outer space leanings, celebrate a 10th anniversary of existence.  A decade is serious time, yet the band has never suffered from anything resembling stagnant artistic vision or been victimized by attrition. In fact, the most recent band census counts nine members, this despite tremendous geographical challenges, the politics of relationships and the management of important, mostly top-secret day jobs.  Kids, you think he’s just a physical education instructor, but he’s also 11.1 percent of the band you should purchase a t-shirt from.

Je Suis France is so good this entire story should read like a paid advertisement written by the marketing world’s best-trained hypnotists. 

The 10 years have been less than casual.  There is no such thing as a casual relationship between people who allow real feelings to be involved.  Transparency and vulnerability in deeds and conversation between grown men at these depths will yield serious business, good songs and lifelong camaraderie.  Of course, when you get that many dudes together, you’re also bound to get copious doses of chicanery, foolishness and inebriated (yet educated) philosophies.  Thank God.  There’s something to be said for being able to retain high levels of adolescence while effectively pulling off adulthood, no?  Forgive (and reinterpret) the preceding message if you detected homoerotic undertones.  It was a sincere attempt at packaging the deep and spiritual stuff as reverently as possible.  We’ll leave irreverent to Je Suis France and enjoy (most) every minute of it.      

The original France quartet comprised of D.J. Hammond, Ryan Martin (AKA Darkness), Ryan Bergeron (AKA Ice) and Chris Rogers (AKA Crog) ultimately relented and allowed Jeff Griggs to serve as drummer prior to recording its self-titled debut for Pitch-a-Tent Records.  With a blatant disregard for specific chronological development, Sean Rawls, Jon Croxton, Jeremy Wheatley and Ken Hensley ultimately joined the band and some combination of the aforementioned musicians became responsible for 19 EPs, three proper albums, a 12-inch split with Acid Mothers Temple and numerous public displays of ridiculous brilliance.  Through it all, they’ve become their biggest fans, which is not to say the band exists as a vehicle for self-aggrandizement, but rather it has become an opportunity to carry out personal visions with a posse.  Gaining a following would be a positive, yet not essential side effect of the Je Suis France experience.  As Hammond explains, “What other people think about it is kind of secondary to me - we care about the other guys first and like, just writing something these guys will enjoy, or think is funny - and if it passes that test, then you know - done!” 

And the casual nature of the beast hasn’t encumbered their progress or prolific nature.  As Hensley noted, “There isn’t one dude in the band that’s thinking c’mon guys, get it together!” as Croxton adds with a sarcastic chuckle, “We gotta start writing hits!” 

“Friendship has always been a huge part of the France,” says Hammond, with Bergeron piggy backing on the thought, “It’s pretty much the only part - or at least, the best part.”

It’s this puissant friendship that inspired the band's most recent EP, Death Wish, an ambitiously intense endeavor that finds each member of the group composing a song to another member with specific instruction for desired action upon his passing.  Yes, literally, their death wishes.  While previous EPs, like Tittania, a collection of kick-ass cover songs, and Sub Base, the 2007 summer tour offering, provided listeners and fans (at least nine of them) with some of the most palpable Je Suis France jams ever, Death Wish raises the bar.  Spoiler alert: When Ice asks Jeff to throw a graveyard party for him, it’s encouraged you have tissue in hand to dab at the tears that will well in your eyes.  This is high gravity France.  Flagpole experienced a partial preview with several of the band members hearing each other’s contributions for the very first time.  While it’s definitely a bit of a departure from the ham-jamming they’re notorious for, it can’t be all fun and games all the time, right?  Of course, they all loved every minute of it.  Perhaps Griggs surmised it best when he said, “I think most every band will sit around at some point and fellate themselves about the shit that they just recorded, but no one can fellate themselves like the France can.”

David Eduardo

WHO: Royal Bangs, The Buddy System, Je Suis France
WHEN: Saturday, Apr. 26
WHERE: 40 Watt Club
HOW MUCH: $5 (21+), $7 (18+)