The Red Bends, Breaks the Rules

Being somewhat of an enigma is a source of pride for the L.A.-based duo the Red.

For starters, despite using acoustic instruments, lead singer-guitarist Marco Aiello and bassist Victor Langhaar do not play folk music.

Closer in style and spirit to the Violent Femmes than Ian & Sylvia, the Red, instead will bring its free-wheeling, rock ‘n’ roll intensity and predominantly edgy, experimental songs to the Gypsy Lounge in Lake Forest on Tuesday.

The Red thrives on delivering curveballs, like the whimsical, pretty-sounding “The New York City Snowflake Song.” In this romanticized fairy tale of sorts, the protagonist, far away from his lover, becomes a snowflake that travels the skies until it eventually lands on the tongue of his sweetheart.

If this tender ballad is at odds with the album’s overall harsher, serious-minded tone, it matters not to Aiello.

“We’re really comfortable being sensitive as artists,” he said during a recent phone interview. “There are aggressive, harder songs on this record, which we obviously like too.

“As far as I’m concerned, there are absolutely no rules to art or music. Wherever the line is drawn in your head, step over it. You can’t worry about being cool. . . . It’s OK to act like an 8-year-old dork if you want to. I believe that as long as there’s truth and honesty behind what you do, you’ll be fine.”

With a fondness for unpredictability and a shared desire to create acoustic pop and rock with thought-provoking lyrics, Aiello and Langhaar formalized their musical partnership early in 1999. After disappointing stints in other bands, including the original, four-piece Red, the two recorded and released a debut CD, “Mano;” purchased a van; and booked a national tour from September 1999 to June 2000.

The material on the band’s new “Let’s Not and Say We Did” was inspired by that experience on the road. Self-released April 10 on ORC/Bella Records, the album offers an ambitious collection of story songs that peel away the complex layers of modern urban life. It’s an unsettling journey filled with dispirited tales of loneliness (“Be In L.A.”); unsavory, self-absorbed entertainers (“Go”); and unquestioned conformity to the dictates of corporate America (“Robot Man”).

“We had just finished our debut album and were pretty excited about our first tour,” Aiello said. “But until you get out there, you don’t realize that being on the road is hard and not very glamorous. No matter how many people you meet, or friends you make, you’re still an outsider. We ran into a lot of absurd, scary or funny people, so it just made sense to make a record about how we saw others around us.”

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But what about the Red’s unusual, all-acoustic format of guitar and upright bass? Can’t this be taken as an attention-getting ploy?

“It was not planned,” Aiello said. “At first, when four of us made up the Red, someone else sang and Victor and I played guitars. We went through several personnel changes because no one else was focused or dedicated enough to meet our standards. So while Victor and I were looking for a singer and drummer, we kept working as a duo just to keep from getting stale.”

The duo found that even though they turned down the volume, people listened.

“We’re still interested in adding a drummer, but I think working just as a twosome has made us better musicians. It’s pretty naked up there,” Aiello said. “If you make a mistake, there’s really nothing to cover it up.”

With two composers at work, there’s no shortage of originals in the Red’s arsenal. But onstage, the duo is known for its quirky covers, including Prince’s “Little Red Corvette,” Madonna’s “Like a Virgin,” Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean,” and the latest entry, Jennifer Lopez’s “If You Had My Love.”

Although many singer-songwriters shy away from doing covers, Aiello sees them as an important tool to sometimes help break the ice with newer audiences.

“When people hear a song, they recognize, they feel comfortable and instantly become a part of the show,” he said. “But just as important is choosing songs that are vastly different than what you’d expect to hear from us. We’ll strip it down, twist it a bit, and give it a fresh angle, like we do with ‘Like a Virgin,’ which is pretty much unrecognizable until we get to the chorus.”

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During a gig several weeks ago at the Knitting Factory in Los Angeles, a patron who didn’t appreciate the Red’s experimental approach began mildly heckling the band. Aiello, who thrives on audience interaction--good or bad--seized the moment by first asking the man for his name and occupation, and then making up a song about him.

Talk about crowd control. “Yeah, it’s called, ‘survival,’ ” Aiello said with a laugh. “But as long as people either love or hate our music, then I’m doing my job.”

Music should never walk the middle ground, Aiello said, and that is the point behind the band’s name.

“It’s an attempt to get at the emotion, rather than the color, of red. To some people, ‘red’ means sex and passion. To others, it means war, burning and blood. But it’s never neutral, and that’s what we’re striving for with our music-- that you will feel something.”

SHOW TIMES

“Unplugged Tuesdays” presents the Red, Kevin Darish and Otherwise, Gypsy Lounge, 23600 Rockfield Blvd., Lake Forest. 21 and older. Tuesday, 8:30 p.m. $5 to $8. (949) 206-9990; https://www.thegypsylounge.com.