"I've said this before, but I wouldn't live anywhere else but Austin," says Krum Bums vocalist Dave Tejas. The outspoken frontman is on the line with Noisecreep discussing his band's upcoming album, 'Cut the Noose,' when he gives us a brief history on the combo and the scene that birthed it. "We've been together for over a decade and in that time the scene down here has changed a lot. There was a point when there was this holier-than-thou kind of attitude with some of the bands and the younger kids didn't feel like they could be part of anything. So these kids wouldn't go out to shows anymore and would just hang out at house parties or whatever," remembers Tejas.

Like any self-respecting punk rock musician, the vocalist decided to do something about his scene's stagnant state. "I was tired of not being able to see any bands play and I was 22-years old and wanted a way to score free beer [laughs]. So I said, "Let's start a band!" When Krum Bums first started playing, we weren't the greatest, but as we started progressing, people began to notice us. It took about two years before we got really serious about this band," says Tejas. 'Cut the Noose' should broaden Krum Bums' fanbase with its blend of unbridled aggression and infectious vocal lines.

One chapter of the Krum Bums' history is one that Tejas would rather forget. "We had a song that got kind of big around here called 'Cease Fire,' but all of these Nazi skinheads thought we were saying "Sieg Heil" [laughs]. So they would come out to our shows and start saluting us and eventually there were all of these big fights started happening. That's when our friendships with bands like Lower Class Brats and World Burns to Death started. They respected the fact that Krum Bums wouldn't back down from playing shows even though we were getting death threats and all of this other crazy stuff. We had to fight to do what we loved, but it was worth it"

Watch Krum Bums live at Gilman Street


Besides Krum Bums, Austin has also been the breeding ground for punk legends like DRI, Big Boys and Butthole Surfers. "We've travelled all over the place and the scene here is still my favorite. In a place like Los Angeles there are all of these different clicks happening. For example, the crust punks won't hang out with the street punks or whatever. It's not like that here. Do we have issues with each other at times? Yes, we do. But any kind of close-knit scene has that. Not to mention the amazing festivals we have here. SXSW, Fun Fun Fun and Chaos in Tejas, all happen in Austin. I love living here."

Krum Bums' 'Cut the Noose' will be out 8/23 via People Like You Records. Pre-order it here.

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