The Apes are not afraid to be loud. They are not afraid to be weird. They are not afraid to be abrasive. Should you be afraid of The Apes? Only if you need your music to be pretty and unobtrusive.

At a time when it seems like a lot of bands want to be pleasant, and seem content to provide listeners with some vaguely edgy but ultimately bland background sounds, The Apes refuse to bleed into the wallpaper; they're gloriously dissonant and in your face, and without a single guitar in the mix. Their live shows, the stuff of legend after nearly a decade together, are always memorable events, as the band seems never satisfied giving anything less than a balls-out freakshow of a good time.

It's a new day now for the band: vocalist Joe Halladay parted ways with the group in 2006, and the band was left to decide what to do next. But a situation that would have disbanded a lot of groups was not unfamiliar to the Apes, who'd already replaced a vocalist once before after the departure of original singer Paul Weil. After recruiting artist Breck Brunson on a whim at a house party, the Apes have been reborn again. Tomorrow night at the Black Cat, they celebrate the release of their fourth full length (and seventh record, counting their 3 EPs), Ghost Games, the first recorded with Brunson. Bassist Erick Jackson took some time at the tail end of the band's frigid February tour of the northeast to answer a few questions for DCist.

Visit The Apes online at: theapes.com, or on Myspace at myspace.com/apes.

See them next: Tomorrow night at the Black Cat for the release party for their new record, Ghost Games, with Kid Congo Powers and Food For Animals.

Buy their new record: online via Gypsy Eyes records. Or, better yet, head to the Black Cat tomorrow night for their release party, where they'll have copies on CD and (it's rumored) vinyl. Past releases are available through Birdman Records and Frenchkiss Records.

Questions for The Apes:

Between your last release and your new one, your previous singer left. That breaks up a lot of bands. What sort of conversations did you have about your future when he left?

There really weren’t any plans to break up the band. We felt that the sound we are searching for was still in the works. We were excited to work with other people as well.
There was discussion of changing the band name but it seemed like bands constantly break up, change one member, and try to stir up some new band excitement. Many people are into “new” bands but I find it interesting to see a history. Starting a band is the easiest part. It’s like serial dating, new and magical. Turn the camera on, two years later in a cramped van in a shitty club in Dayton Ohio, and there is where the reality comes in.

After having a singer with such a distinctive style, how do you approach doing old material with a new voice?

We no longer play any of the old songs. We were playing those for a good six years and were excited to work on brand new material. At the most maybe we will incorporate bits of old riffs for remix stuff.

How did the personnel change impact the making of the new record? What is your creative process like in general?

This record was a really nice organic experience. In the past we had to work separate with the music and vocals. Paul lived in Brooklyn which made it difficult for him to practice. Every song on Ghost Games was written in the basement at practice. Someone would start with a beat, sounds and vocals were created all at the same time. We would record these jams and then fine tune what sounded best.

A lot of your records are tied together with related themes or loose storylines. What's the concept (if any) behind the new one?

“Ghosts” is more of a loose term we were playing with while coming up with songs. We were trying to think of a slang term that kind of describes the times, “Ghosts” seemed to fit the bill. Each song has a different take on the term…some personal, some social commentary. This era is very much about the end of the physical. Money is invisible (pay pal), computers can replicate music, movies, and games for free. In Star Trek they had “replicators” which created anything you wanted. This enabled people to focus on their mind and more important universal matters instead of working for material objects. Are we headed in that direction, who knows?! Music can be though of as an invisible ghost that speaks to the listener, possessing, changing thoughts and moods.

Are you conscious of not having a guitar when that's such a staple of most bands? Does it affect how you write your songs in any way?

I think of it as a hybrid guitar, I play it like a guitar/bass. My bass even has six strings. The main reason I switched to bass was that I felt it was a more physical instrument. Guitars can be too dainty with strings breaking all the time. Basically I try to cover the roles of both bass and guitar depending on what the keys do.

You've been out on tour during the past month.... how was the road?

I would call this last bunch of shows the “Das Boat” or the “Flemish Cap” tour. I don’t think I have ever been so cold in my whole life. In many places it was 8-12 degrees, the van kept stalling on the highway, not going into reverse, or start, snow was everywhere, heat died in the van, but we made it to every show. There were a few times I thought that we were screwed.

How do you compare your live show to what you put on record?

If we play a nice club with a good sound system it is basically the same but more physical freak outs. If we are playing a random space or warehouse with a crappy vocal P. A. stuff is nosier, and more chaotic, and raw.

What does it mean to you to be a "D. C. band"? How is that incorporated into your identity/how you think of yourselves, if at all?

I’ve always been a big fan of the D. C. music scene. I grew up going to D. C. Space, the old 9:30, Safari Club, BBQ Iguana, all the Positive Force shows. It shaped my musical tastes. I would like to say Apes carries on the tradition of D. C. music.

What else do you like/dislike about the music community here?

I think there are not as many bands anymore which is a drag, but these things come in waves. All it takes is three bands to put a city on the map. I find that this has always been a very supportive music scene, people come and go but those who stay are good eggs.

What's your favorite venue to play in D. C. ?

I like 9:30, Black Cat, and the Hosiery (R. I. P)

Since you've done a good bit of touring, what's your favorite place to play elsewhere?

The Vera in Holland…anyone who has ever played there will tell you the same.

What are you listening to these days that really gets you going?

Sparks “Kimono my House”, Any “Can” record, The Congos, Devo

Give our readers three reasons to come to your show tomorrow.

Here you go… for ten bucks you’ll get an amazing line-up:

1. Food for Animals
2. Kid Congo Powers (Gun club, cramps, bad seeds)
3. APES