Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Polka time at the Boot

Art rock band Transylvanian Polka runs the music gamut

Who: Transylvanian Polka

When: Monday, Feb. 6

Where: Boot Pub

What is a Transylvanian Polka? An elated dance of the vampires?

According to lead vocalist Evan Symons it’s the name of a Vancouver-based art rock band coming Feb. 6 to Monday Madness at the Boot Pub.

"It’s kind of a late ’60s, early ’70s thing," Symons explained of the art rock band. "Pink Floyd bordered on more of an art rock than progressive sound. It has a big classical and jazz influence in the rock context."

He said progressive rock often comes off as complicated and dizzy, where art rock is more simplistic – although he admitted the band shares some prog rock influences along with residual traces of Frank Zappa, Radiohead, Genesis, David Bowie and Led Zeppelin.

"I kind of grew up with it," he said. "I always liked prog and its complexity. I was always interested in things off the beaten path. Now things are becoming more acceptable."

These days Symons is listening to a variety of bands performing around Vancouver.

For a little over a year, Transylvanian Polka has danced its way around the Vancouver nightclub circuit with shows at the Railway Club and The Pick, along with island hopping for a handful of concerts and festivals.

Symons is joined by David Ramos on guitar, Jakub Svoboda on drums and Richard Fordham on bass.

So besides the name, what makes the band unique?

"We do a mixture of different styles," he said. "We’ve got quite a lot of energy. We play some complicated music, folk rock, hard rock and a mix of covers."

The band is also characterized by the broad spectrum of music its shows encompass.

"Our music is varied: it’s not like we are canvassing the same song over and over again," he said. "We’ve got variety and good musicianship."