Herman Dune and Jeffrey Lewis bring the summer jams to the Iron Horse this Tuesday, June 24th

Herman Dune and Jeffrey Lewis will be gracing the Iron Horse Music Hall with their playful anti-folk songs on Tuesday, June 24th. The timing couldn't be more perfect, as Herman Dune is fresh off the release of "I Wish I Could See You Soon," the perfect summer album who's title track has been adopted as 2008's summer anthem here at IHEG towers and on WRSI 93.9 The River. The way I see it, the summer hasn't officially started until Herman Dune's delicate pop songs can be heard drifting out of the Iron Horse's doors into the warm summer night.

First, to clarify, Herman Dune is not a person. Herman Dune is a French band led by songwriter David-Ivar Herman Düne and consisting of his brother and an ever-changing line-up of friends and fellow musicians. David-Ivar's naively beautiful lyrics are loaded with a charming, child-like honesty reminiscent of Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers, Daniel Johnston, and the Silver Jews, although none of these bands reconcile this style with fun pop music as successfully as Herman Dune, who seem to have found the perfect counterpart to such genuine lyrics in simple, unabashed pop melodies and playful instrumentation. The product of this combination is blissfully sweet pop-gems that are guaranteed to improve your mood and beg you to sing along. We can hardly contain our excitement to see how Herman Dune packages their endorphin-releasing summer jams into a live performance here at the Iron Horse.

Comic book artist Jeffrey Lewis is Herman Dune's touring mate and a friend of the band. His latest release, "12 Crass Songs" is a reinterpretation of 12 the seminal punk band Crass' tunes, as the double-entendre title implies. Lewis attacks most of these songs equipped with little more than an acoustic guitar and a creative approach to song covers. Although attempting to translate any song from a style such as punk into what some might consider folk is a risky move, Jeffrey Lewis pulls off the maneuver with startling success. Indeed, if one was unfamiliar with Crass' work, they might even be convinced that the contents of "12 Crass Songs" were Lewis originals, so tactfully does he adopt them into his repertoire. His winking tongue-in-cheek approach to this project, and his retention of Crass' punk energy makes him a perfect opener for Herman Dune. - Gabe Chicoine

Herman Dune must watch video for "I Wish I Could See You Soon" below.