Washington DC based minimalist postpunk trio, Antelope, is hitting town tonight at The Smell along with Bad Dudes
Mi Ami (ex-members of Black Eyes from SF) and Bipolar Bear. Since we love classical minimalism, we thought to ask the band a few questions before tonight's show:

1. First, you've gotta explain what minimalist postpunk is.

It's difficult to talk about music, which is invisible. We just try to create songs that are simple and straightforward, and hopefully, somewhat unique sounding. I would say our music is in the spirit of the punk tradition to strip down an artistic statement in a search for a kind of creative authenticity. We write music until our influences fall away and something comes out that is natural and yet unexpected sounding.

2. And how does Antelope fit into the genre? What is your aesthetic?

In terms of defining our aesthetic, I'd say we use the simple instrumentation of a punk rock band but our songs have very few parts and instead utilize repetition and rhythmic counterpoint. So yes, we could be called minimalist, but I'd rather be called Meditative.

3. Have you played in Los Angeles before?

We played The Smell in LA once before and it was awesome. The live sound fell apart half way though the show but it didn't seem to matter, the people there were a fantastic audience. We played there with Mike Watt (DOS), Silver Daggers, and Black Fiction. No really crazy stories but all three of us agree that LA is a beautiful and strange city.

4. Do you guys listen to classical minimalism? If so, who? And your (post)punk influences?

As far as influences here's a few: Bach, Thelonius Monk, Kraftwerk, Pygmy Music from Congo, Ligeti, Fugazi, Casual Dots, Lungfish, Blonde Redhead, The Stooges, Velvet Underground, The Scientist, Tai Chi Chuan

Antelope's myspace page is http://www.myspace.com/ant3lop3

Photo provided by Antelope