There is lit rock; then there is wizard rock.
From Remus Lupins to Draco and the Malfoys to The Whomping Willows, these bands pay homage to Rowling’s creation through simple pop songs sung through a particular character’s point of view.
No one would mistake the music as sophisticated, but as Matt from the Whomping Willows said:
“Half of these bands are populated by kids who are just learning to play an instrument and record music. The beauty of Wizard Rock is that for many of the bands, it's nothing more than a LEARNING EXPERIENCE.”
And the Boston-based Harry and the Potters have crafted a niche in the genre through their own cheeky brand of music...
At a music hall inside an abandoned
Durham, N.C. warehouse, children sporting sorcerer hats loll near their adult chaperones, while teenagers donning the familiar gold-and-garnet tie of an iconic boy wizard linger nearby.
The lights dim as Paul and Joe DeGeorge amble onstage wearing matching gray V-neck sweaters, Gryffindor-house-colored ties and black-rimmed glasses.
"I am Harry Potter."
"And I am Harry Potter.”
“We are Harry and the Potters and we are here to rock Durham!" they bellow in unison. Paul, 27, the elder statesman of the duo, then draws the microphone close to his mouth. "These songs are about sticking it to the man. Because he's the one who keeps you from rocking and hanging with your friends!” he crows, before leading a 125-person chorus of "Voldemort Can't Stop the Rock."
Crafting a new form of lit rock, the Boston-based DeGeorge brothers entice their young fans to discover music and reading through two-minute pop-punk songs infused with characters and themes from author J.K. Rowling's immensely popular Harry Potter series. Think of They Might Be Giants for school kids played everywhere for free from a library in New York to a hot dog jamboree in Braintree, Mass.
"We are interested in opening some alternative spaces to music," said Paul, the guitarist. "We have had librarians say they've been inspired by our shows, and they continue to book more bands and music programs into their library."
The duo's brief history follows closely to their DIY mentality. When all the bands pulled out of an all-day concert at the DeGeorge family's shed in summer 2002, the brothers decided to fill in after writing seven songs in about one hour at their kitchen table.
The band’s canon has grown to nearly 50 songs released over three albums. The music, found on iTunes and at the duo’s live shows, has steadily evolved from garage-rock to include more textural flourishes, including the sunny, piano-driven "This Book is So Awesome" and the light, organ-touched "The Human Hosepipe."
Lyrically, tracks such as "The Missing Arm of Viktor Krum" and "Save Ginny Weasley From Dean Thomas" make more sense to Potter connoisseurs, but the words are charming enough to make any listener smile:
"Well maybe I shouldn't have mentioned Hermione/and maybe you shouldn't have brought up Cedric Diggory/because I'd rather not talk about your dead ex-boyfriends over coffee." [“Human Hosepipe”]
"From the perspective of what a phenomenon these books have become and how they affect kids’ lives, there is no better source material than Harry Potter," said Joe DeGeorge who noted Rowling hasn't contacted the band to extract royalty payments.
The brothers will have another chance to explore the world of Harry Potter and his posse with the release of the seventh and final novel,
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. When the book arrives on store shelves this July, the DeGeorge brothers will probably sequester themselves in their Potter Mobile, a Ford Econoline van adorned with a lightning bolt on the roof.
"I'm tired of having the ending ruined for me," Paul said. "When (
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince) came out, we were on tour and we didn't have time to rip straight through the book. So by the time we did, we had people leaving stupid comments on our
myspace.com page like 'Albus Dumbledore died.' So I'm going into seclusion when the next book comes out to tear through it."
Wizard Rock Resources:
