Old Bridge NJ · pop-punk

Mikey Erg

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The Ergs! drummer-turned-frontman, a walking encyclopedia of pop-punk hooks — prolific, beloved, and seemingly playing five sets everywhere at Fest.

Mikey Erg, born Mike Yannich on February 7, 1980, grew up in Old Bridge, New Jersey. He formed The Ergs! as a teenager, serving as drummer and a principal songwriter in the pop-punk trio during its initial run.

Beyond that band he has drummed, played guitar or sung in numerous other groups, including Star Fucking Hipsters, The Dopamines, The Unlovables, Dirtbike Annie and Parasites. He also spent time in The LLC, the house band on The Chris Gethard Show, and is regularly recruited by other bands as a touring or session drummer.

In 2016 he released Tentative Decisions, his first album under his own name as a singer-songwriter. His writing sticks to short, melodic songs with clear debts to 1970s power pop and 1990s pop-punk, delivered without much studio polish.

In 2013 a change.org petition pushed for him to fill the vacant drummer slot in Against Me!; the job went to Atom Willard instead, but the campaign caught the attention of frontwoman Laura Jane Grace, who recorded a four-song demo with Erg for an unrelated project.

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pop-punk