(EDITOR’S NOTE — The genre-mashing accordion-led Capt. Tom & the Hooligans, one of Buffalo's hardest working bands, will be dropping its new album, ‘Proud,’ on Saturday and to mark the occasion, the band will be hosting a show at The Cave Saturday night at 8 p.m. that will include free bananas. Seriously. And, if it sells out, Capt. Tom Sieracki has even agreed to have his head shaved by folk singer Tyler Bagwell (who is also on the bill). We caught up with Capt. Tom recently, and he was kind enough to speak with us about the new album and all that’s happening with the Hooligans. Please read our story below.
1120 PRESS: Thank you for speaking with us and congrats on the new album, ‘Proud!’ How do you feel about getting this LP out there for the masses, and what can you tell us about it?
CAPT. TOM SIERACKI: It feels great! As you know, we released six songs back in October 2023 and it felt great just to have some music out there in the world. Now we are releasing 18 new tracks of mostly original material or some of our favorite songs — a couple being written by our friends. We are very excited with how these songs came out and can’t wait for this album to be out!
1120: The number of tracks you have on the album seems astounding. Was it as huge an undertaking as it appears?
CTS: It definitely took its time. There were some long nights in the studio just to make sure everything was on time. Originally, we recorded everything together except the horns. Then we re-recorded some parts just to make sure everything was as good as it could’ve been, and to try to capture a live feel. In the end, we are very proud of what we have created.
1120: You recorded this album at Mammoth Recording Studio. How was your experience working with them on this album?
CTS: Excellent! Mammoth Recording Studio is such a welcoming environment. I never felt uncomfortable once in the project. They were always willing to work with me along the way and I can say that both (owners) Justin Smith and Mike Santillo are friends of Captain Tom & The Hooligans. And there is no doubt that they are incredibly talented and knowledgeable guys.
1120: You and the band are prolific performers and gig relentlessly. On top of that, you just produced a video for ‘Dyngus Daze’ (shot at Mammoth by Nickel City B-Sides) and held the World’s Largest Polka Band event, all while working on a new album with 18 songs. What drives you guys? You’ll never be accused of being lazy. Can you talk about your philosophy/approach?
CTS: I guess it’s the love of what we’re doing more than anything. We love having fun, we love playing and love art and we love the people who make art. It is great that we get to collaborate with so many talented people. Nickel City B-Sides were a pleasure to work with, and we will be working more with them — including more videos from the album — as well as working with the animator Ariana Jimenez on a music video for the title track “Proud.” I’d also like to mention some other amazing artists we’ve worked with such as Joseph Szczygielski of ArtbyJoeSki, JW Cornelius of Pirates Parley Gaming, and Benjamin Yelich of Yelich Graphics. We’ve worked with all of them previously and they’re great. So, in the end, we just like to have fun and the more the merrier.
1120: Now that the album will be out, do you have anything special planned to promote it and is there anything else on the agenda for 2024 to which you are looking particularly forward?
CTS: We have our show this Saturday April 20 at The Cave to celebrate the release of the album, along with more upcoming music videos we will be releasing! I am in the works of possibly doing some shows to feature our album outside of Buffalo but nothing is solid at the moment, except our many current upcoming shows.
1120: Is there anything else you want to say that we haven’t touched on?
CTS: We will be giving away free bananas at the album release show while supplies last, and if the show sells out Tyler Bagwell will cut off my hair at the end of the show. There will also be a best-dressed contest and the winner will receive a CD and T-shirt!