meet the xylopholks

I was walking through the Union Square subway station yesterday, and heard xylophone music. It was coming from a corner where there is often a musician or band playing as part of the Transit Authority's Music Under New York program.

Sure enough, I recognized the yellow and black banner identifying the performers as "Xylopholks." Playing under the banner were two people -- a man in a penguin costume (I would later realize it was a skunk costume, but my imprerssion was penguin) and a woman (I think) in a pink gorilla costume. The punk (that's penguin/skunk mix) was playing xylophone while the pink gorilla was slappinng a stand-up bass.

The music was happy and upbeat, kind of ragtimish. The xylophone was intriguing. I didn't have time enough to watch for very long, so I bought a CD ($5) and was on my way.

Rather than try to describe Xylophopholks, I'll let their website do it for them:

The XYLOPHOLKS are a dynamic group of musicians who mostly play novelty ragtime music from the 1920′s (featuring the xylophone!). They do so while wearing furry animal costumes. The XYLOPHOLKS wish to make people happy and perhaps even dance. Please feel free to contact us about providing music and entertainment for your events

Can't complain about that. Apparently, who plays in the group depends on what gig you catch. Here's them (or a proper subset of them) on their 5 Borough Bodega tour:

As to the CD? Not bad. I'd be lying if I said that, without the costumes, the charm is still all there. On the other hand, its pleasant music. Not generally a genre I'm into. It's the kind of stuff that I'm happy to listen to for a track at a time between other things -- i.e., as part of a mix. But I'm not interested enough to listen to the whole disc at once.

music underground

One of the great things about living in New York is the music in the subway. The Transit Authority has an official program, Music Under New York, in which performers get specially designated spaces and times to perform with an official banner. Harold Allen, about whom I wrote here, performs as part of the MUNY program. Other performers I've enjoyed include the Ebony Hillbillies and Jeremiah Lockwood.

A brief video profile of the Ebony Hillbillies

Jeremiah Lockwood performing in the New York subway.

The MUNY program includes performers in a wide array of styles. Aside from the conventional, you can see people playing saws, or Chinese dulcimer.

I should note that there are plenty of musicians who perform without the MUNY imprimatur -- that will be true as long as there is potential tip money. Quality can vary, of course, but some are really good. A number of CDs in my collection were unplanned purchases from musicians whom I liked.

Now sometimes the performers get on the trains to serenade the passengers between stops. There's one particular mariachi band that I've seen a bunch of times on the E and F trains, and around twenty or so years ago their was a group of breakdancers that always seemed to find my car on the 7 train. I'm more likely to be annoyed by performers on the trains than by those on the platform, only because the close quarters and closed doors on the train make the music more of an imposition on those who may not want to listen.

If you're into a variety of styles and want a free concert (though tipping, or buying a CD is always encouraged) during the weekday, you can always find something in the subway.