references

[1] https://myspace.com/raccoonphiladelphia/bio

"Raccoon, having dubbed itself "schizophrenic pop" brings together melodic songwriting sensibilities, rock & roll references, and an inkling for experimentation to craft furious, devil-may-care tunes that invoke a slew of influences while remaining wholly unique. Since forming in Philadelphia in 1997, the band has drawn on an eclectic bunch of influences, from the Talking Heads to the Soft Boys, Pavement to the Clash. With a wink to the Beatles, all four members contribute songs, lyrics, and vocals. Andrew Jones on bass/vocals and Rory Connell on guitar/vocals provide the consistency that gives the band its gravity, while both Toby Leaman and Scott McMicken play as schizophrenic as their music, providing guitar, drums, and vocals. Raccoon's self-titled debut -- full of charging, classic rock riffs that collapse in on themselves and urgent, dire changes -- was released on Sonic Stream in May of 2001. ~ Charles Spano"

[2] https://mycitypaper.com/articles/2003-05-29/hearhere.shtml ^defunct "Like Traveling to Mars on a Freight Train" Then, if you're not too drunk or sunburnt, you ought to wander on over to The Khyber, where Raccoon and The Teeth will knock your socks off with pure energy and some cool Kinks/Velvets-styled rock 'n' roll. The two bands, friends til the end, are celebrating the release of their swank new Christmas City split EP. It is excellent. We asked the bands to comment on each other. Since this is the Web, where space is nigh infinite and logic matters little, we have left their relentless back-patting, self-deprecation and idiosyncratic speech patterns intact. Enjoy. CP: Sum up the other band on the EP. Rory Connell (guitarist from Raccoon): The Teeth are big bears of musicians -- fearsome predators that have consumed the best bits of The Zombies, the Talking Heads, Pavement and David Bowie. I think this is some of their best stuff, and I'm shithouse about this band. These songs are as much about late-night handjobs as they are about an unfortunate bout of scurvy during a sea voyage. That's how much they care. Peter MoDavis (bassist/singer from The Teeth): [Raccoon] is like a good glass of lemonade. Pretty sweet, a little snap and just the right amount of ice. But seriously, they've got a banjo on one of their tracks. Sometimes Toby [Leaman] sings high like David Bowie and sometimes Scott [McMicken] sings low like Tom Waits (not quite as scratchy). No, but seriously, we think that Raccoon is the cat's meow. On one hand, Raccoon proves their creative ingenuity and foresees the future by utilizing delay, distortion and innovative chord progressions. On the other hand, they dig up a bare-bones past of simple living and roots music using banjo, acoustic guitars and down-home lyrics. Listening to Raccoon is like traveling to Mars on a freight train. CP: How did you guys ended up splitting a CD? PM (Teeth): I think that the answer to this question is obvious. Raccoon's first track is called "Three Fortunate Sailors." Our first track is called "Sea Chanty." Walt Disney is releasing two motion pictures this summer. One is called Pirates of the Caribbean. It deals with pirates. The other is called Finding Nemo. It deals with sea animals. Like I said, it is obvious what we are doing here. RC (Raccoon): Beyond the mass-marketing angle, I am just all about the Raccoon-Teeth love. It's like putting tin foil on the grill so that the vegetarians can get in on the fun. The Teeth are a real meat-and-potatoes band and I just brought over a nice batch of gluten. CP: You've played a lot of shows together, right? RC (Raccoon): Jesus Christ, we've seen every side of the rock 'n' roll toilet. Plus, they are always kind enough to let us use their nice equipment, which allows us to leave the Raccoon trash drums at home. PM (Teeth): Yes. We are friends. We are allies. We've played Megatouch Pornofind* together. *[Editor's Note: A Google search turned up nothing. Perhaps this is a homemade game?] CP: What is Raccoon like onstage? PM (Teeth): The one hyphenated word that most candidly describes Raccoon's live performance is "sexy-wild," like a dignified version of The Who when they weren't old men. Andrew [Jones] and Scott wear sunglasses to hide and illuminate their passionate souls. Toby sweats and croons to the female audience. Once, Rory almost disabled a stage light with his fist while performing the ever-so-dangerous windmill. They will deny it, but if sexy, sexiness and sensuality were combined, the outcome would most ultimately equal Raccoon. Unfortunately, The Teeth are lanky and clumsy like apes. CP: What is The Teeth like onstage? RC (Raccoon): They practically reek of sex. First of all, they've got a set of twins [Peter and Aaron MoDavis]. And if beer commercials have told me the truth, twins equal sex. Second, at least one of the members is well tattooed. Third, the Teeth girlfriends tend to do really great dances during their sets. There's nothing wrong with that. Unfortunately, sex is nowhere to be found on Raccoon's stage. Sat., May 31, 9 p.m., $8, with The Capitol Years and Bradford Trojan & Traffic Jam, The Khyber, 56 S. Second St., 215-238-5888.