Episode 19: “Riding in the Tour Van” w/ Jack Abok

Our guest today is Jack Abok, a self-taught “musician” and writer of “bad” reviews in his annual Bad Vibes zine. Jack grew up in Kenya and moved to DC for university to get a degree in business. Instead, he ended up joining a band and has embedded himself in the DC music scene ever since. We talk about the differences between pursuing a career in the arts in the US vs. in Kenya, and how so many problems seem trivial to him compared to the precarity he has felt as an immigrant. We also talk about the pleasures and pains of band life, from telepathy in the song-writing process to missing your cat on tour, while covering the origin stories of his many bands, including Vampyres from Africa, Sex Faces and Des Demonas.

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Guest Bio

Jack Abok (b. 1979, Mombasa) is a Kenyan, Washington DC-based writer and composer. He plays drums in Sex Faces, handles vocals and percussion in Des Demonas and minimalist electro punk compositions in Vampyres from Africa. He also does a yearly fanzine called Bad Vibes now in its sixth year and seventh issue in which everyone covered gets a bad review, because f*ck you! A self-taught “musician” Jack Abok came to America to study at Howard University, hated it, dropped out and joined a Rock ‘n Roll band and has never looked back! The Vampyres from Africa’s next release is a free covers album out on November 5th (Guy Fawkes Day) and they are going to the studio to record their sophomore album next month. They play at Washington DC Black Cat on November 10th.

Show Notes

Follow Evil Jack Agwelt on Instagram, where you can find the Bad Vibes Zine.

Jack’s Bands: