With a debut album, Bohemia, just out and a show at Shea Stadium tomorrow night, Von Shakes has officially arrived. After a few bumps in the road.
In the months after they moved from Dublin to New York, the Irish lads crashed on couches and fed themselves by playing covers in bars. Their fate wasn’t quite as grim as their namesake — a transient named Otto Von Schmuck who followed them around while they were gigging in Munich and eventually died of Parkinson’s Disease. When they were able to afford an apartment, they moved to East Flatbush where they were “the only white boys around.” The stares on the street and the regular gunshots ringing through the night were enough to motivate them to find a place in Bushwick.
For our latest Play Room session, we visited their Willoughby Avenue apartment, where they treated us to an acoustic rendition of “Away from Here.” For the full-on version, you’ll have to catch them at Shea Stadium tomorrow at 8 p.m., at SXSW in March, or on tour in April.