These four musicians breathe new life into the genre in a special way. An American, a Welshman, an Irishman and a German with a clear statement: Punk is not dead!
And you know what: neither is ska, for that matter.
The band was formed when Jake and Michael decided to try and cover the album “…And Out Come the Wolves,” one of their all-time favourites. They got to about half of it before the duo thought “Hey, in addition to Rancid covers, let’s play some original ska punk rock too, wouldn’t that be fun!”
Over a few cold bottles of their favourite drink, they went through hundreds of band names. Most of them were meaningless combinations of words that just sounded good, as many band names are. But the intense “Beer-storming” ultimately led to the goal: Mad Life Crisis. Cheers!
Jake Wiest comes from the USA and has sung, played guitar and bass for “Smoking Bill”, “Sleeve of Wizard” and “Garden Goat”, among others. He is the frontman and singer for Mad Life Crisis and plays guitar.
Michael Alderton-Smith comes from Wales where he played in numerous bands including the dark rock/grunge outfit “Blue Tribe Gods”. He took over bass duties in the cult art-rock band, “Jon Downes and the Amphibians from Outer Space”, when the original bass player was crushed by a shipment of margarine, and played in numerous bands in Mallorca, including the contemporary rock band “Hotwired”, and the “Dirty Boogie” blues band.
Glenn Connolly is from Ireland. He plays guitar and also produces music independently, with influences stemming from punk, dub, and various kinds of electronic music.
Itong Ehrke plays drums with Mad Life Crisis and with her friends at Schokoladen. She is the original German of the group, though everyone in the band is now based in Berlin for many years.
Glenn joined the band after hearing Jake play Irish songs at a St. Patrick’s Day show, and chatting afterwards, to find that Mad Life Crisis plays the exact type of music that he also wants to play in a band: Rancid/Operation Ivy style ska punk!
And Itong, the newest member, joined after hearing that Mad Life Crisis needed a new drummer. She heard the word through the network of the Berlin Drum Experience drum school.
Though a relatively new band, Mad Life Crisis is composed of slightly older punk rock musicians. Is this band a symptom of a midlife crisis, hence the name? “No,” they all agree! “We are, like most artists, musicians and old punks of our generation, just a little bit crazy.” A midlife crisis? “No! – well, probably not. We are stuck in a crisis our whole lives, a crisis of madness. We refuse to accept the powerful who are destroying our world and that of our children. We mock authority and celebrate our madness and our crazy fellow human beings.
Our tool is Ska-Punk.
We live in a perpetual state of Mad Life Crisis!
Members
Jake
Aries
Vocals, Guitar
Bass, Mandolin, Ukelele
Bike tour guide, actor/improv actor, musical comedian, singer/songwriter, mermaid swimming instructor, Dungeons and Dragons player & podcaster.
How I ended up in the band:
Playing Rancid covers with Michael.
Favourite Food: Spicy Burritos
Music: Ska, punk, reggae – punk for its rebellious spirit, refusal of complacency, recalcitrant and turbocharged energy; ska and reggae because they are irresistibly danceable; and all these genres because the sound of the music is just so fun, and/or celebratory of being alive, even while at times criticising life.
Little known fact: I love lamp!
Michael
Aries
Bass
Guitar, Drums
Luthier, Studio Engineer, IT Dude, Writer, Podcaster, D&D and RPG maniac and music addict, watching far too much Netflix, and learning too many random facts.
How I ended up in the band:
Stupidly proposed that I would learn all the bass lines for Rancid’s “Out Come The Wolves”.
Favourite Food: Curry, hot as hell, Chilli, hot as hell, Anything spicy.
Music: Ska, Punk, Reggae, Rock, Metal, Blues
Little known fact: I’m actually left handed.
Glenn
Gemini
Guitar
Bass
Skater, guitar player, music producer and hot sauce enthusiast.
How I ended up in the band:
I met Jake in a bar on St Patrick’s day when he was playing Irish tunes and then saw he was in another band so asked to get involved after realising we played similar music.
Favourite Food: Joe Rogan (Rogan Josh).
Music: Punk, Reggae, Ska, House, Electronic
Little known fact: Ate an egg for the first time at 24, by mistake.
Itong Ehrke
Leo
Drums
Itong Ehrke is a dedicated new member of the band from Germany and a passionate music lover. Having jammed and played with various people, she is always excited to grow as a musician. She is an enthusiastic member of the Berlin Drum Experience.
Project Manager and Fundraiser in an Inclusive Sports Club, Photographer, Fitness Instructor, Late-blooming drum enthusiast, professional optimist and comedy nerd.
How I ended up in the band:
After the band grew tired of rehearsing drummers to replace a beloved friend, I became the chosen one. Lucky me!
Favourite Food:
Vegetarian stew. And Germans love bread—that’s not just a stereotype.
Music:
Punk rock is my favourite genre for its energy and attitude. I also enjoy Ska, Folk Punk, Crossover, Rock, Glam Rock, Prog Rock, and Psychobilly. Ultimately, I love anything that touches my heart or is great for singing along in the car.
Little known fact: I can clap on 1 + 3 and 2 + 4.
Previous Members
Voytech
Gemini
Drums, Backing Vocals
Guitar, Bass
Mechanical engineer, interested in music & art.
How I ended up in the band:
Heroically volunteered to join the others on stage when their drum track failed and the rest is history!
Favourite Food: Everything with meat, cabbage, cheese and wheat.
Music: Led Zeppelin, Dream Theater. I love this complexity and power.
Little known fact: Punk’s not dead!