The Polkapocalypse is nigh!

In April 2008, The Benka Boradovsky Bordello Band officially released their first ep, Danse Macabre. Since then they have been busy whipping audiences around NZ into frenzies with their crazed gypsy/east European sounds performing at Prana, Jambalaya, Parihaka, AK09, Cross St Carnival, Fleetwaters and Splore as well as undertaking three highly successful national tours which saw them playing to packed houses all over the country. During this time, the Benkas have also supported many popular NZ acts including The Hot Grits, The Mamaku Project, An Emerald City and The Jews Brothers and in March 2008 they had the honour of supporting international act Beirut in Auckland. Danse Macabre stayed in the IMNZ top 40 for several months and the video for the single, The Dance of Death, has been in the top five most watched videos on Amplifier for the better part of a year.

On May 11th, 2009 they released their highly anticipated album ‘Polkapocalypse’ followed by one final sold out show in Auckland before the band took flight for Berlin where they will be based for the next six months. Upon their return they will be touring NZ again over summer  2009-10 and playing several major festivals.

The new album fully captures the unique and thrilling experience that is a Benka performance and contains 3 originals, 5 traditional songs and two covers (The Crack of Doom by the Tiger Lillles and Too Drunk To F**k by The Dead Kennedys). Seven of the songs were recorded at Balckbridge Studios by Jamie Newman during a hot, steamy weekend in March and three are sizzling live recordings made by Andre Upston for Radio New Zealand at the Monkey Magic launch at Glatos in May last year. A music video for ‘Too Drunk to F**k’ will be released late May.

Review

With a sound based around accordion, clarinet, electric guitar, and lashings of laughs (they do a beautifully inebriated cover of the Dead Kennedy’s Too Drunk To F***), Polkapocalypse is theatrical, rebellious and fun party music.
NZ Herald