theythem

This band used to be called "Norwood" because that used to be my last name. My grandfather changed it from Neusbaum in the 40s or 50s because it was too Jewish. I guess eh thought he'd get a lot of shit for it as he was opening his business and starting a family if he was also audacious enough to openly be a Jew in America. And actually, on the day I submitted the paperwork for my name change due to marriage (we were married in October 2018), I stopped into a bar to grab a drink and eat a sandwich during the clerk's lunch break. Walking into that bar was walking into an O'Neil play. The whole cast was there at full volume, including the drunk white guy casually throwing around racial slurs at the customers of color and who was very interested in knowing what I was doing in "his" bar. After hearing what my family name used to be, he immediately asked "Oh, like that fuckin' Jew who killed his family and a bunch of other people?" and spent the rest of my time there attempting to stare me down.

So I guess grandpa was right. But I've never lived as a Neusbaum, and Norwood isn't my family's real name, so where does that leave me? It leaves me with the responsibility of finding and claiming my identity for myself.

And these past few years have seen me finally doing that. I choose my name. I choose my expression. I choose what I call that expression. My name is Chris Sayre. I'm a Non-Binary songwriter and guitar tech living in Queens, New York. This band is called theythem. And this music is for the folk who approach life on a person-by-person basis.

I met Keith Michael Pinault (Bass) at a shitty server job on the upper west side of Manhattan. I've known Hannah Fairchild (Vocals) for years and she was best broad at my wedding. I met Max Maples (Drums) through Hannah, and Ben Sutin (Violin) was introduced to me by another friend of the band, Ellie Goodman. We're all musicians from different points of the spectrum trying to make good music. You can find more info on all these people on the "The Band" page on this website. There you go, there's the band bio.

What we're here for is the music. The songs. And these songs fill a very specific need. These songs live in the after-hours of the mind. These songs find their place long after the opener is through. They watch the second and third acts with a warm sensation tucked away in their ribcage. They get drunk and dance along to the headliner with everyone else until exhaustion. These songs don't fully make themselves known until after the venue lights have come back up and you're leaving with that special thrashy someone you've just met amongst the crowd during the frenzied insanity. These songs are made for the long ride home. These songs are made to share. These are songs to fall in love to.