September 17–24, 1998

earshot|person

Atom and His Package

You might be surprised that a guy who sings about 1,500 pound hockey goalies and how "the Philadelphia Parking Authority can go fuck its own face" makes a living playing music. But Adam "Atom" Goren, 23, does just that.

Goren doesn't play drums, guitar or bass. A self-admitted "sucker for poppy '80s music" and former member of the punk band Fracture, he composes all his music with the "Package," a QY700 sequencer capable of simulating over 800 instruments. As the only other member of the "band," the Package takes on a personality of its own; it even gets its own fan mail in binary code. The result is a fusion of Dead Milkmen-style punk and '80s-style bleepy synth, with a feel not unlike Half Japanese.

Goren, an Oreland native now living in Old City, graduated from Penn with a Master's in education. But after a brief stint student teaching, he's devoted himself almost entirely to his music and the friends he grew up with in the Philly punk scene.

"Friends are really, really important to me," says Goren. And those friends turn up a lot in songs on his two albums—an eponymous debut on Bloodlink Records and last year's A Society of People Named Elihu (Mountain/Suzuki Bean). Though you may not know his friends, they quickly become secondary acquantances.

But writing songs about your pals can be tricky. In "Happy Birthday Ralph," Goren pokes fun at some of the habits of his friend Ralph, ubiquitous bike courier and member of the band Franklin. Ralph apparently wasn't thrilled with the tribute, but Goren insists that no ill will has come of it. Possibly because Goren takes even more shots at himself. On "Jenny S.," a loving tribute to his gal pal Jenn Schumow, he sings, "And she loves me, though I'm completely retarded."

It's all a little bit goofy, but it's awfully endearing. And Goren admits that he busts his ass to pull it all together. He books his own shows (about three a week, mostly with punk bands), and he's embarking on a tour of the midwest this fall.

"It started out as a joke," says Goren. "I didn't think I'd ever play a show, but it's worked out much better than I ever expected."

Things are working out well. His latest seven-inch is reviewed in the October issue of Spin. And this winter, he's releasing a seven-inch under the name Atom and his Rockage, with versions of his earlier songs set to guitars and drums. "Shhhh," whispers Goren. "The Package doesn't know about it."

For record info and a list of upcoming shows, visit the Atom and his Package Web site at home.earthlink.net/~atomgo.

-Brian Howard