Grubstake is:


PW McHugh - guitar, vocals, bass, claps

Dave McMullin - drums, vocals

Charlie Mayer - accordion, hooter/melodica, vocals

John Coursey - violin

miscreant associates:

Steve NOTV - drums, percussions & objects, claps, glockenspiel, microphones

Rocket1000 - drums, backup vocals

Lex Marburger - electronic interphasings

Stanislav Ostrikov - occasional vocals, songwriting

 

Grubstake has been a longstanding underground presence in the East Coast scene from Boston to Philadelphia for the past 10 years, garnering praise from local zines (The Noise, The Deli, PA Musician) to regional mainstream (Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Globe) and alternative press (Philly Weekly, Philadelphia Citypaper, Boston’s Weekly Dig , Boston Phoenix). We’ve been well received by radio & digital dj’s, showing up in the mix on stations like Philadelphia’s WKDU 91.7fm Drexel radio and YRock on XPN (as well as live sessions at both), DJ Shred on WBCN 104fm Boston, MIT’s WMBR 88.1fm Cambridge, and Jon Solomon’s influential podcast Local Support, as well as others all over the country.

new release "ANYHOW": The group paid meticulous attention to not being meticulous in their recording process. Much like their previous records, Grubstake produced and recorded ANYHOW on 8-track cassette tapes in their living rooms and rehearsal spaces across the eastern sea board. The sound channels a guerilla-style Guided By Voices feel.

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PRESS

"Speaking of rustic and not elegant (that's fine): Grubstake, Paddy Wax McHugh's accordion-fueled pub-punk cabaret act (think Pogues meet Black Lips) has a new album Anyhow that gets a release bash at Tritone Nov. 18. For those of you unfamiliar with McHugh, he's a deliciously gnarly storyteller and a brusque singer and the Grubbies are always up for a damn rough good bad time as the groove drifts from skiffle country swing to pounding rawk out. Go man go."
-Philadelphia Citypaper

A longstanding band in the East Coast's underground scene, Grubstake release a gritty and punk era reminiscent album with "What's the Point in a New C.D. Anyhow". The lo-fi analog home recordings give a dirty feel to the songs, which tend to use a wide variety of instruments such as fiddle, toy piano, and accordion, while still remaining centered around guitar. Tracks such as "I wanna Be Well" (a Ramones cover) show the bands punk side, whereas "Vurdalak" shows the bands adventurous side through accordion and chanting vocals that remind one of a pub song. The simple but driving guitar riffs are the focal point of many songs and are very enjoyable to anyone who enjoys their share of punk. I recommend this album to anyone into the underground scene or looking for something different than the typical mainstream rock release (in a good way), it will not disappoint.
-WRUV

This is not only post post-punk, it's post post post post-punk. It's so post-everything it sounds like Paul McCartney having a lazy writing session with Jandek and Tom Waits.
-Roctober

"Named for an arcane mining term, Grubstake have been hammering out mud–caked guitar–drum blues for about a decade now. Patrick McHugh led the band in Boston for much of that time before returning to his old stomping grounds in Philly and nabbing drummer/engineer Steve Bozzone to make a fifth album, Make An Animal Noise. It’s another gritty, ground–down outing, with McHugh hollering about TV dinners and other mundane miseries on 'Delaware' and trafficking heavily in spite on 'Sophisticated Whore'. Most garage–rock duos putter out when they cease to mix things up musically, but McHugh’s been around long enough to know when to throw a wrench into the works."
-Philadelphia Weekly

"Post punk rock from Philly sounds like The Talking Heads, Thin Lizzy, with Minutemen style fast driven riffs, and Pixies-esque vocal harmonies. Great Stuff."
-Jake Rabid/Y-Rock on WXPN

"Essential listening, and for the late-night partying crowd, the jam of the summer."
-CHORD Magazine

"While many journalists have heralded The Black Keys and The White Stripes as the coming of 'blues for the 21st Century' or 'nu' blues, my vote is cast for Grubstake as the bearers of that title. This is NOT for traditional blues fans but for the adventurous listener looking to see where the blues will go in this century and who will take it there.
- PA Musician Magazine

"We really like Grubstake, based on their fine CD The Bestest, with its great cover of Neil Young's 'Albuquerque' and some original deconstructionist blues."
- Philadelphia Inquirer