Erik started making music at a young age, but it wasn’t until age 16 that he started playing shows with his punk band, The Orphans. Influenced by “Fresh Fruit”-era Dead Kennedys and “Worlds Apart”-era Subhumans, the band had released a 7” (“Anthems for Doomed Youth,” 1996) before half of them were even old enough to drive. They officially disbanded in 2000 and Erik continued to make music…digging into the past for a more traditional sound to mix with punk ideals. The result was “Mirth,” a demo of acoustic punk influenced by medieval danses and raucous Romany dust-raising ditties (2000). The tape was rough and scratchy - yet it was clear that there were solid anthems buried under that hiss, which was evident by the scope of the tape, spanning city and state. Logically, a live show was expected – and despite the drums and extra instrumentation on the tape (all layered on a four-track recorder), there was no band. Over the years, seeing “Mischief Brew” on a flyer meant you were just seeing Erik Petersen with an acoustic guitar or mandolin. There was no PA in the beginning, just a roomful of West Philly’s finest rabble-rousers singing along to the “Mirth” songs. And for quite some time, this is how things stayed until it was necessary to deliver a proper recording.
“Bellingham & Philadelphia” (2003) is a split LP/CD with Washington state’s roving songcrafter Robert Blake. Meanwhile, Fistolo Records (the label Erik co-founded and runs with his wife Denise) released the “Bakenal” CDep. It was hard to believe that all the songs were recorded in the same session and split between two releases, as they were completely different experiences soundwise. “Bellingham” was more Phil Ochs/Bob Dylan-style political folk, while “Bakenal” delivered gypsy-punk swing, Poguesy drinking songs, and even a drunken tango. Two years of touring followed, from punk bars to basement shows. Meanwhile, Erik visited the studio here and there to record a few acoustic tracks for the Orphans discography (“Raise the Youth,” 2004), and the Mischief Brew “Oh Sweet Misery b/w All About the Class War” single (2005).
For an official full-length, Mischief Brew needed a non-traditional studio (by punk standards), since the songs required a more varied instrumentation to bring forth the gypsy melodies and circus beats. Impressed by the work of Israeli producer Tamir Muskat (Balkan Beat Box, Firewater, Big Lazy…), Erik visited the Brooklyn studio that he runs. Vibromonk has produced records by such festive acts as Gogol Bordello, World/Inferno Friendship Society, Firewater and more…the kind of place that knows how to mic a marimba. For this record, a backing band was assembled consisting of bass, drums, accordion, clarinet, and junk percussion. Guest appearances by Sturgeon (Leftover Crack), Peter Hess (Guignol), and Franz Nicolay (World/Inferno, The Hold Steady) bring the album even more character. “Smash the Windows” (2005) includes the folk-punk anthems “Nomads Revolt” and “Roll Me Through the Gates of Hell” – but also the epic tale “The Gypsy, The Punk, and The Fool” and the klez/ska rendition of “A Liquor Never Brewed.” The album closes with “Departure Arrival,” a sweet folk lament about leaving the comforts of home for uncharted cities and towns. “Departure” was also featured on “Up the Stairs and Through the Hall,” a 2xCD compilation of independent artists and bands from Philadelphia.
But wait, there’s more! Meanwhile, Mischief Brew released a split 7” with David Dondero (an influence on Bright Eyes) and another with -Bread & Roses (Boston-based labor folk at its best). The newest recording, “Songs from Under the Sink,” is a batch of anarcho-folk songs written between 1997-2002…finally put on LP and CD once and for all. If it had to all fit under one banner, it would read, "Carnivalesque!"
Olde Tyme Mem'ry
Mischief Brew Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mistook his blood for rustic charm
Sold his ghost as an antique
To the city
Kids today can't hold a spade
Rest in peace your weary trades
In this world there is no place
Well, the barman shakes his head and fills my glass
Says 'We're living in the past.
Why preserve a dying craft?
End its misery.'
We sigh and see another modern man
One of property, not land
So I hold out this battered hand
Will you listen?
Come sit down, we're lamenting about yesterday's sad ending
'Bout the water in me whiskey
The brass passed off as gold
Another round, we're descending into old tyme mem'ry
Of a day when wood was wooden, silver-silver, gold was gold
Sweet home was home
So you say you got a wooden stove in your second home
Runs on gas, but looks like oak
Hell, it even gives off smoke and glowing embers
There's a quilt hung on the wall, reads 'Home, Sweet Home'
Below some wise words from Thoreau
And they call me throwback; when I cry I remember
Come sit down, we're lamenting about yesterday's sad ending
'Bout the water in me whiskey
The brass passed off as gold
Another round, we're descending into old tyme mem'ry
Of a day when wood was wooden, silver-silver, gold was gold
Sweet home was home
Son, these tools are artifacts
Endangered species left its tracks
So lock me up behind plastic glass in the city
There's no going back for me
This antique's rustic eulogy
Shall be sold as folk artistry, such a pity
But I'll never understand why they all only use those hands
To build a stead that will always stand
In old time country
But settle for white rooms and hollow doors
Paper ceilings, padded floors
Luxury boxes where you're stored; and what was country?
Come sit down, we're lamenting about yesterday's sad ending
'Bout the water in me whiskey
The brass passed off as gold
Another round, we're descending into old tyme mem'ry
Of a day when wood was wooden, silver-silver, gold was gold
Another round, we're lamenting about yesterday's sad ending
'Bout the water in me whiskey
The brass passed off as gold
Another round, we're descending into old tyme mem'ry
Of a day when wood was wooden, silver-silver, gold was gold
Sweet home was home
The lyrics of Mischief Brew's "Olde Tyme Mem'ry" speaks about the loss of traditional and rural ways of life in modern times. The song aims to lament this loss and criticize the modernization that has made people forget about their roots. The lines "When Father bought the farm, we sold the farm/Mistook his blood for rustic charm" highlights the disconnection between the younger generation and the rural way of life. The people are more interested in urban settings and have forgotten that the land is the foundation of the rural existence. The line "Kids today can't hold a spade/Rest in peace your weary trades/In this world there is no place" shows how the younger generation is not exposed to traditional trades anymore.
The song portrays the shift of value from the quality of raw materials to the quality of the finished products. The lines "So you say you got a wooden stove in your second home/Runs on gas, but looks like oak" emphasize how people value the appearance rather than the substance. The song highlights the irony in desiring a rustic look in modern homes through modern means. The line "There's no going back for me/This antique's rustic eulogy/Shall be sold as folk artistry, such a pity" expresses how the younger generation uses the old ways of life as an inspiration, but the value of these traditions is reduced to a commodity in the modern world.
Line by Line Meaning
When Father bought the farm, we sold the farm
We mistakenly thought that our father's legacy was of no use, so we sold his farm
Mistook his blood for rustic charm
We overlooked the toil and effort our father put into his rustic lifestyle and saw it only as a quaint and nostalgic charm
Sold his ghost as an antique
We sold his memory as a relic of the past, just another antique to be sold in the city
To the city
We sold our father's memory to people indifferent to it, in the city
Kids today can't hold a spade
Today's children are less interested in traditional lifestyles and crafts, and are unable to work on a farm or handle a spade
Rest in peace your weary trades
May the traditional trades, that are now dying, rest in peace
In this world there is no place
In today's world, traditional trades have no place or value
Such a pity
It is unfortunate that traditional lifestyles and trades have faded out
Well, the barman shakes his head and fills my glass
The barman disapproves of my sentimentality and fills my glass
Says 'We're living in the past.
The barman tells me that my nostalgia for traditional trades is outdated and irrelevant
Why preserve a dying craft?
The barman wonders why anyone would want to preserve and revive traditional trades that are no longer sustainable
End its misery.'
The barman suggests that it is better to let traditional trades die out than to prolong their inevitable demise
We sigh and see another modern man
We are disheartened by the growing number of people who value modern comfort and luxury over traditional lifestyles
One of property, not land
The modern man values property ownership more than traditional land ownership
So I hold out this battered hand
I beseech the modern man to listen and understand the value of traditional trades
Will you listen?
I ask the modern man if he will heed my words and honor the traditions of the past
Come sit down, we're lamenting about yesterday's sad ending
We gather to mourn the loss of traditional lifestyles and trades that ended in the past
'Bout the water in me whiskey
We commiserate over how even the simple pleasures of the past, such as drinking whiskey, are now adulterated and less authentic
The brass passed off as gold
We recall how even the materials used in the past were pure and unadulterated, unlike today's fake and imitation materials
Another round, we're descending into old tyme mem'ry
We continue to reminisce and indulge in nostalgia for the past
Of a day when wood was wooden, silver-silver, gold was gold
We remember a time when materials were authentic and pure, without any synthetic or fake substitutes
Sweet home was home
We recall how our homes were once genuinely sweet and welcoming, unlike modern homes that are impersonal and commercialized
So you say you got a wooden stove in your second home
We mock the modern man who tries to imitate traditional lifestyles, by boasting about a wooden stove in his second home
Runs on gas, but looks like oak
We ridicule the modern man for using modern, fake materials to mimic traditional ones
Hell, it even gives off smoke and glowing embers
We mock the modern man for trying to recreate the ambiance of a fire in a modern, artificial way
There's a quilt hung on the wall, reads 'Home, Sweet Home'
We remember the simple, heartfelt decor of the past, such as a quilt that reads 'Home, Sweet Home'
Below some wise words from Thoreau
We recall the wisdom of famous writers and thinkers from the past, such as Thoreau
And they call me throwback; when I cry I remember
Despite being mocked and labeled as old-fashioned, we still cannot forget and stop longing for the traditions of the past
Son, these tools are artifacts
We understand the historical value and significance of traditional tools
Endangered species left its tracks
Traditional trades are now endangered and dying out, and their impact can still be seen in the world
So lock me up behind plastic glass in the city
We lament the commodification and commercialization of traditional trades, which are now sold behind plastic glass in the city
There's no going back for me
We accept that we can never truly return to the traditional ways of the past
This antique's rustic eulogy
We honor and mourn the loss of traditional trades through the artifacts and antiques that remain
Shall be sold as folk artistry, such a pity
The only way to preserve the spirit of traditional trades now is through selling them as folk art, but this is still a sad and regrettable outcome
But I'll never understand why they all only use those hands
We cannot fathom why modern people only use their hands for materialism and comfort, and not to work hard and sustainably on the land
To build a stead that will always stand
We wonder why modern people only build structures that serve as temporary homes, rather than building sustainable and lasting homesteads
In old time country
We refer to the traditional country lifestyle that once celebrated hard work, sustainability, and simplicity
But settle for white rooms and hollow doors
We criticize modern people for settling for soulless and superficial homes, devoid of character or history
Paper ceilings, padded floors
We mock modern homes for using fake and synthetic materials that do not come close to the authenticity of the past
Luxury boxes where you're stored; and what was country?
Modern homes are like luxury boxes that trap people, and they no longer know or value the true meaning of country life
Contributed by Hannah E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.