BALTIMORE PUNK: TALKING WITH PONYTAIL

Ponytail is a four-piece band from Baltimore with a unique sound, happy and bizarre. The band, which began as an art-school assignment, is all about momentum, with two guitars, drums, shrieking vocals and quick tempos. They’re like a massive wind-up toy that just gets louder and faster.

The Ponytail spectacle is best witnessed live. At a recent show at London’s 100 Club, a crowd of about 60 people huddled right in front of the stage and danced almost in unison as Ponytail drove aggressively through each song. Molly Siegel, the lead singer, bounced her way through the set, more fitness instructor than punk star. (Before the show a friend wrote: "Don't look that girl in the eyes or she'll trap you in her insane stares and flailing.”)

In the middle of a seemingly endless tour through Europe and now America, Siegel answered a few questions about the band, which includes Jeremy Hyman on drums, Ken Seeno on guitar and vocals and Dustin Wong on guitar and vocals.

More Intelligent Life: Is this your first big tour?

Molly Siegel: We did some touring before this but never this rigorous. I think we're all a little worn out and mostly just ready to take a break and write for real. We're about to do a dark slide--on the moon.

MIL: Is Ponytail punk-rock?

MS: I think we're punk because we're doing whatever we want to do with the music, and we are so happy to be playing. But the band is not punk in the way that we have T-shirts and press photos and crap like that. We're still broke, though. Does that make us punk?

MIL: How does art influence the way the band's music sounds?

MS: Dada, ya know? It influences everything we do, like brushing our teeth and stuff.

MIL: How does the band write music?

MS: Our newest song was written in a typical fashion for us. We jammed some, recorded it, listened to the jams, and rearranged stuff. Also I think Ken or Dustin brought in some riffs and we liked ‘em and ended up using them. I usually write my parts at practice while were playing and then finish them on tour live. It takes that repetition for me.

MIL: After your London show at the 100 Club, you mentioned to me that the local Baltimore music scene used to be better. Can you elaborate?

MS: Well I think this happens to any scene that starts to get noticed. It just doesn't feel as organic anymore and the big players are on tour all the time. Also one of the main warehouses, the Copy Cat, can't really be used for shows anymore. It's just not the glory days.

There is still a functional warehouse called the H and H. The main show space there is Floristree, and it's pretty bad-ass. The old Wham City shows at the Copy Cat would be packed with, like, 300-plus kids all goin' nuts. We just played a Floristree show with hundreds of kids goin' nuts a few months ago and it was pretty rad. H and H is downtown-ish, in a cool area near a pretty historic black market. The crowds are full of art-school students and recent alums, usually.

MIL: What do you like most about being in a band right now? And what do you like least?

MS: I like travelling with a purpose. I love performing, usually. I am also tired of travelling. And personally I am ready to live somewhere else for awhile. I'm also poor. Some of us have girlfriends, and that gets hard too.

Ponytail is touring America through mid-May.

~ GARY MOSKOWITZ