Pop-punk bands may have been out of fashion for the last 10 years, but San Jose-based band Communist Kayte doesn’t let that stop them from having fun and trying to revive a once strong local music scene.
“A lot of Bay Area kids are dissatisfied with the scene, I guess you can say ever since the Gaslighter in Campbell closed down, there hasn’t really been a haven for underage music … we’re trying to set up a home turf in San Jose,” 20-year-old bassist Ryan Amstutz said.
The band has been together for nine months and is made up of Amstutz, a De Anza College business major; 21-year-old guitarist Aaron “Pumpkin” Recine; 20-year-old vocalist Brandon Beville and 18-year-old Jamie Alens on drums.
“[The name] Communist Kayte comes from something that sounds really good,” Recine said. “We wanted something that was a kick in the teeth and it kind of follows the name of Good Charlotte.”
Communist Kayte said they try to tap into every fan demographic with their music by playing songs about girls, transitions in life and even boys. “There are a couple songs about losing friends. Those are pretty popular with the crowd. Some of our songs are about guys, losing a guy friend or making one,” Amstutz said.
“Our parents like us,” Amstutz said, jokingly. “You feel like you already know the song the first time you’re hearing it and then you want to listen to it again.”
The band’s fans already consist of about 700 Facebook friends and 1,000 friends on MySpace. “Brandon got mobbed by 13-year-old girls … he sold them a lot of [merchandise],” said Recine.
“We played a show in Antioch … we were playing a cover of ‘My Own Worst Enemy’ by Lit and about 15 girls got into a fight near the bathroom. We just kept playing because we didn’t know what to do,” said Amstutz. “The girls started beating up security who looked like cops. We thought, ‘oh my God, these girls are beating up cops.'”
Communist Kayte played a show at downtown San Jose’s bar Johnny V’s Sunday night. The band boasted about wanting to revive the local music scene. “It’s one of those events that people look back on. This is going to be the beginning of a new era. This is the beginning of a time when San Jose maybe gets back what they’ve been missing for the last five years,” Amstutz said.
