NEPA Scene Podcast Episode 22 - New Scranton doom/sludge metal band Dour

NEPA Scene

In Episode 22, we sit down with four of the five members of the new Scranton doom/sludge metal band Dour. Beer Boys in Wilkes-Barre is hosting a Founders Brewing Company tap takeover next Wednesday, Aug. 23, so we drink some crowlers of three of the beers they’ll have on tap - Green Zebra, a gose-style ale brewed with watermelon and sea salt; All Day IPA, a complex but balanced session beer; and Sumatra Mountain, a strong imperial brown ale with caramel and chocolate malt. Each has a distinct flavor and style that we discuss before and during the interview. We talk about the origins of Dour; what doom and sludge metal are and what attracted them to these styles; the appeal of metal; their new demo copied to cassette tapes by hand; what songs like "Satanic Root Beer," "Black Cat Amphetamines," and “Upside Down Sinner” are about and whether or not they should be taken seriously based on their titles; how comedian and filmmaker Bobby Keller became their singer and showing people that his involvement is no joke; Bobby’s past musical history and funny stories from previous projects, including ruining a sweet 16 party; crazy band stories from each member; playing their debut show in a Curry Donuts parking lot in Wilkes-Barre; bands they’ve been influenced by locally and nationally; future goals of the band; and more. We also answer some questions and comments from live viewers. In The Last Word segment, we discuss the white supremacy march in Charlottesville, Virginia that turned deadly and ask if the same thing can happen here in Pennsylvania, where we also have a large number of hate groups. We address President Donald Trump’s inadequate and disturbing response, the Confederate statue controversy, and condemn the one side that needs to be unequivocally condemned - the Nazis, white nationalists, and other racists - just a week after celebrating diversity in our previous episode. The NEPA Scene Podcast covers arts, entertainment, and the issues that matter to Northeastern Pennsylvania. It airs as a live video stream every Wednesday at 7 p.m. on NEPA Scene’s Facebook page and is available afterward on iTunes, SoundCloud, Stitcher, YouTube, and nepascene.com. This episode and all previous episodes are available now on NEPA Scene, the award-winning independent arts and entertainment website that combines the accuracy and professionalism of a print magazine with the immediacy and convenience of a blog, offering a wide variety of content to readers in NEPA, Philadelphia, New York, and beyond. The show is made possible by local sponsors Beer Boys, The Keys, and the F.M. Kirby Center, Coal Creative, and viewers who tune in every week.