What started as a side project for multi-instrumentalist Ryan Alfred has blossomed into a full-time band of Brooklyn kids – two from the East Coast and two from Texas – who love a good song. Featuring vocalist/guitarist Alfred, vibraphonist Omar Alvarado, drummer Jordan Teitelbaum and bass player David Kross, The Human Problem centers around Alfred’s direct, folk-based songwriting.
Though it would be easy to call The Human Problem’s music "alternative" (akin to bands like Coldplay, Calexico, and Jeff Buckley), that would only sell the band short. The music gracefully swings from an Iron and Wine-like hush to 90’s alt-rock swells. With a taste for the ambient sounds of Sigur Ros, the radiant distortion of My Bloody Valentine and, of course, the vibraphone, The Human Problem embellishes its music with unexpected textures.
Lyrically, The Human Problem deals with fundamental human topics: love, war, drug addiction, insecurity and God (and whether or not to capitalize it). Whether written from the perspective of a stripper’s old lover, a soldier in the desert, a traveler lost in Detroit or himself, Alfred presents his stories as plainly as he can so you can decide how you feel about them.
The Human Problem isn’t shy about playing other people’s great songs either. From a beautifully adorned version of Neil Young’s “Old Man†to a reverb drenched take on Gillian Welch’s “Look At Miss Ohio,†the band throws generous helpings of reworked covers into its sets. The group is even prepared to do some Skynyrd for “that guy†in the crowd.
The Human Problem’s debut, a self-produced EP simply titled “The Human Problem,†will be released on Alfred’s independent label Bootlegger’s Union in September 2007.
