Capitalizing FIDLAR is not merely a ploy to ensure that people notice the band’s name in print or online — it’s actually an acronym for “Fuck It Dog, Life’s a Risk.” Vocalist/guitarist Zac Carper had a roommate who lived and skated by those very words, so when Carper and his bandmates — guitarist/vocalist Elvis Kuehn, bassist Brandon Schwartzel and drummer Max Kuehn — decided to ditch their original band name idea, the difficult-to-marquee Fuck the Clock, they went with an initialized tribute to the roommate’s skate-for-it motto.
The band began seven years ago when Carper was homeless but working for producer Rob Schnapf, sleeping on the studio’s couch after locking up for the night. Elvis Kuehn began interning at the studio and the pair became friends, eventually concluding they should start a band after a satisfying three-hour jam. Elvis recruited his brother Max, Carper invited longtime friend Schwartzel and FIDLAR was born; the foursome has been together ever since.
FIDLAR’s individual Punk/cool cred goes all the way down to the genetic level; the Kuehn brothers’ father Greg was the keyboardist for Punk icons T.S.O.L., while Carper’s father is renowned surfboard designer John Carper. Although the band’s three EPs (2011’s DIYDUI and 2012’s Shit We Recorded in Our Bedroom and Don’t Try) and two full-lengths (its 2013 self-titled debut and last year’s sophomore effort, Too) show frenetic Punk leanings, there’s a dark, deliberate thoughtfulness to the lyrics that elevates FIDLAR’s presentation, particularly on the rehab-inspired “No Waves,” the thrashy “West Coast” and the Grunge Pop bliss of “40oz. on Repeat.”
It’s hard to pin any one tail on FIDLAR’s sound-donkey, and that may be the band’s greatest musical achievement of all. So holster your expectations and prepare for the ride of your life.
This article appears in Nov 16-23, 2016.