Plenty of D.C. bands have gotten kicked out of their practice spaces because of noise-averse neighbors, but only Bad Moves has had the experience animated. Last summer, the band appeared as themselves on Cartoon Network’s “Craig of the Creek” as a garage band that helps the main characters start a band of their own.
The manner in which their animated avatars helped cartoon kids resonated with band members who have helped real life rock-stars-in-training. Guitarist David Combs, 36, volunteered for a few summers at Queer Rock Camp in Olympia, Wash., while fellow guitarist Katie Park, 29, has been a band coach and worked with Girls Rock! DC.
“I think [being in the cartoon] was one of the coolest things that I’ve ever done,” Park explains. “Seeing the kids [in the show] say, ‘Yeah, I feel powerful!” is kinda how I felt at Girls Rock.”
When they’re not getting animated, the members of Bad Moves can be found dissecting contemporary pop music as they sharpen their power pop songcraft. While they utilize a typical guitars-bass-drums lineup, the four members share the microphone, from song to song and lyric to lyric. Their style has forced them to turn individual inspiration into songs that speak to universal experiences.
For example, Park sings “Crushed Out,” which they describe as a song about “the queer crush you didn’t realize you had in middle school.” “I always think of it feeling so personal to me — it really does describe a lot of my experience — but David basically wrote that song,” they say.
And if universality doesn’t work, Bad Moves will always have “Craig of the Creek.” Combs jokingly describes the band’s “best case scenario” as being Polaris — the house band from cult ’90s kid-com “The Adventures of Pete & Pete” — for today’s generation. “If that’s the role we play, that’s pretty awesome.”
Show: Oct. 20 at 9 p.m. at Comet Ping Pong, 5037 Connecticut Ave. NW. cometpingpong.com. $12.
