Citizen Badger

The self-described Millennial dad rock band
Citizen Badger came together out of a
commonality love of jazz, funk, lo-fi folk and
alternative rock. The result is something unique for
sure, original enough to win them Battle of the Bands
earlier this year and earn them a spot at SunFest.
Sitting at Subculture Coffee, the band reminisced
about their big break.

“It happened… and then it didn’t happen,” says
Daylen Brinkley, singer guitar player. “We got there,
were all set up, 10,000 people in the audience – and
then it poured rain. They canceled us at the last
minute. There is no makeup date.”

Such is the music business, but the band soldiered
on, basking in all the TV publicity the win got them
pre-show and playing a gig at the WPTV helipad.
The other band members - eclectic guitarist/bassist
Jeremey Lampenin, guitarist Jon McGrath, and
drummer Mike Francoeur – are taking it in stride,
although early in the groups formation they had a
dream that playing SunFest was a major goal.
“Yeah, we’re real rainmakers,” Mike adds with a laugh.
But for a group that hasn’t been together all that
long, they’ve blasted to the head of the pack. Two
of the band members graduated from Palm Beach
Atlantic, and Jeremy Lampenin is still a student there.
Daylen “was sort of stalking him” to be in the band.
But now he says, “it feels like he has always been
here.” Daylen is ahead of the pack, married with kids.
Drummer Mike has his own company, selling handmade jewelry and crafts.

Emerging from West Palm Beach in Fall 2017, the
current lineup has been together 8 months, and
they’ve played all the key venues in Delray, West
Palm Beach, and Fort Lauderdale—even at the
Culture Room. The Brewhouse and Voltaire are new
favorites. They have dates lined up through the fall.
This is all due to the music they make. And that
unusual name.

“There was a guy I went to college with that said all
the cool indie band names are something political
and an animal,” Daylen says. “So, we got Citizen
Badger. Although our music has adult themes like
paying bills, social anxiety, and people who go to
brunch for Instagram, it’s actually still family friendly.”

Songs like “Coasting Through,” and my new
favorite “Heart Throbs for Art Snobs,” tell it
like it is from a very personal point of view.
They have a 10-song self-titled CD out and the
music is streaming on Spotify, Apple Music,
and YouTube, as well as lots of videos on their
Facebook page. Their record label is called
‘Smallest Uncommon Nominator’. As they say
“Tight grooves, retro vibes, thoughtful lyrics. If
Violent Femmes and The Revivalists had a baby
that grew up in Florida, it’d be Citizen Badger.” I
would add Johnathan Richmond to that list for
the clever self-effacing lyrics.
The songwriting process is basically spearheaded by Daylen, who comes up with a groovy
line, title or melody and then fleshes it out with
the rest of the band.

“We kind of jam on it until we get the musical
motif we’re after,” Daylen says. “I usually start
on my acoustic guitar, fill in the melody and the
tempo from there. It’s pretty organic, though
we’re still learning to write together. Got to
keep things fresh in our lyrics, craft and the
feeling we try and get across. I don’t do a lot of
love songs, it’s more about life balance. I work
at The Breakers and see all kinds of people and
their stories, so that’s a real source of inspiration. I tap into ideas and add the hook.”

When the band did an impromptu poll and
asked the crowds what their favorite song
is, they got a different answer from almost
everyone.

“That was a great feedback to get,” Daylen
says. “To me it means I’m reaching a good
balance in the mood for each set. Jeremey has
added a lot to our live show, it’s gotten pretty
intense. The idea now is to put on some great
summer shows and work on the next album
– working title is ‘Disco Voldemort and the
Apocalypse’. Some of the songs on it will be
‘I’m Not Mad Just Disappointed’ and ‘Nostalgic
for Now’. It’s always a time versus money thing
to record and get the production right. We’d
like to expand and play more of the southeast
but it’s a challenge as we have families, work,
and have school obligations too. A bigger fan
base comes from all that. The bottom line is we
just really like making music, and everything
comes from that.” - WPB Magazine