As he puts down his instrument case, we ask Tempe musician Daniel Suber, better known as MC/DC, if there are a lot of punk trombonists.
"Not that I know of," he responds with a laugh. "Everybody is like, 'Play in my jazz band,' and I don't know how to do that."
You can hear the 24-year-old Suber's punk trombone stylings over the guitars of Phoenix's Andy Warpigs on "Happy Birthday," the last track of his latest EP, Onions Make Me Cry, But Mondays Make Me Really Sad. Suber had worked in the rap genre with the nerdcore hip-hop group Something Villainous, and his trombone skills were put to good use in Naked Pizza. Eventually, he started writing songs on guitar, which led to creating a hybrid of folk-punk and rap with a raw, organic feel that captures the disillusionment of the Michigan native and recent Arizona State University graduate's young adult life.
"I have a philosophy degree, but I'm not doing that," Suber says.
Warpigs smiles and says, "That explains a lot about your raps. You're the most philosophical MC I've heard."
"I don't know what I want to do," Suber replies. "I had to find a job, and I have to wear khakis and shit everyday. That's not what I like to do."
One night, Warpigs crashed at Suber's house and realized he had found the guitar player to help bring his songs to life. The next morning, the two recorded the five tracks that make up the EP with the help of local rapper Dadadoh for his T.V. Life label. The song "Tempe's Finest" offers a fresh and humorous perspective on the frustrations of dating and sex, with nods to punk sprinkled throughout.
"I feel the media has this oversexualized point of view, but finding a human connection is so hard," Suber says.
From the beginning, Warpigs knew he was in the presence of a maturing artist.
"You have an original perspective and a way of talking about things," he says, praising Suber. "I wanted to get down with it from the start. I feel like this is a true collaboration."
A few weeks after the marathon recording session, Suber created the collage that is the EP's cover (yes, those are the eyes of Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz staring back at you) and uploaded the five tracks on his Bandcamp page.
"I get antsy," he says, "I did this. I don't know much about marketing. I wanted people to see it right away."
Warpigs adds, "I think it's punk rock to just put it out like that."
It will come out as a split EP with Warpigs' other project, Militia Joan Hart, on February 11.
They're definitely creating something honest and cutting-edge. Suber didn't intend to mash-up genres, but as he started writing the EP, it developed into this fast-paced, musical hybrid.
We ask Warpigs if folk-punk and rap normally mix.
"They're both street music, in a way," he says. "A lot of white kids listen to rap, too, so I think it blends. It's definitely a new thing."