Interview: SumFX-182

By Ant Perrucci
Photos by Rachel Bardin

When Paulette Perhach, our founding editor, wrote a piece on 1980s hair-metal cover band Papercutt for the January 2008 issue, they showed up for the interview in full-on costume, makeup and tight pants and all.

So when members of SumFX 182 – which shares several members with the aforementioned band – and I made plans to hold our interview and they proposed lunch at Sonny’s, I had some idea of what I was in for.

It’s a 90s punk cover band! I told myself. They’ll be wearing Jncos and I’ll say, “Hey I had a pair of those too! Nice Airwalks!” and we’ll have a hearty laugh together and then we’ll get down to business.

But when the three members of the band showed up wearing camouflage overalls and rubber boots and the four of us walked in, I had the horrible feeling that I was the one out of place. Which I was.

So the four of us went inside and grabbed a booth and got ready to grub out. We hung out, jawing for about an hour or so and I took notes.

For two issues in a row my notebook at a band interview reads: “First impression: Pack of smartasses.”

So how did this happen, this band, SumFX 182?

“It brewed up one drunk night during Hurricane Fay at Dunes Cracker,” said Tony, the drummer. “Dude, remember?” he asked Gibby, the band’s guitar player.

“It was at Dunes,” Gibby said. “No, I don’t remember.”

Tony blazed ahead with the story. “Instead of forgetting about it, we did it.”

The band – Tony, Gibby, vocalist Zach, guitarist Brian, and bassist Tyson – are all veterans of numerous other bands, to wit: Boredom, Skif Dank, Tayst, and Papercutt, as well as the newly formed Sublime cover band, 32 Oz. To Freedom (“Because you can’t sell 40s in Florida.”)

“Out of all of us, we’ve played [on the same bill as] most of the bands we cover,” Tony said.

“It’s an emotional process picking songs” to cover, Zach said, citing one of the songs that have been given the red light: Guttermouth’s “Lucky the Donkey.”

“I’d be singing about my mom!” he said of the song.

• Saturday, Jan. 24 – 32oz to Freedom @ Zhanras

• Friday, Jan. 30 – SumFX 182 @ Panama Hatties

And it’s not about a donkey show in Mexico, which is a bonus.

Our lunch arrived (“You shoulda got the garlic toast!” Zach said, looking disapprovingly at my meal, which was on a bun) and the three guys breezed through their food in astonishingly short order as I asked questions.

So after Hurricane Fay blew through town, the guys held on to their idea for what was to become SumFX 182.

“I was a little rusty,” Tony said. “Had to get my chops back.”

Gibby interjected: “But Zach has the worst job.”

“I grew up on the ska side,” Zach explained, “they grew up on the punk side.” After working through the differences between the two styles, though, the band needed to move on to more important matters.

Costuming.

“Our first show, we dressed in vintage 1990s period costume,” Gibby said.

Tony whipped out his phone and showed me a picture. Sure enough, he’s got replicas of the neck tattoos sported by Travis Barker (drummer for the Aquabats, Blink-182).

But what of the camo?

“We spent more on these costumes than we got paid,” Tony said. “So they’re sticking around.”

Lunch ended – “Wanna try some of this?” Zach asked, referring to his bowl of banana pudding (I declined, as the vanilla wafers were already consumed) – and the four of us took our leave from Sonny’s.

“Hope y’all kill somethin’!” the hostess said in altogether too chipper a tone of voice.