Pet Sounds #75: Brokedowns’ Drum Kit Player Can’t Get Enough of His Kitty Cats
If you’re unfamiliar with the Brokedowns, a punk band out of Chicago, than shame on you. Less than three weeks ago, the band’s irrepressibly good-natured and good-humored guitarist/vocalist, Kris Megyery, bravely participated in our On Tyranny series, informing us how he had personally witnessed despicable ICE raids at his workplace. He also agreed to speak with The Bad Penny because the Brokedowns’ new record, Let’s Tip the Landlord, which just came out a few weeks ago through Red Scare Industries.
During the same interview, Megyery informed us that the Brokedowns’ drummer, Mustafa Daka, has limitless love for his pets, making him an ideal candidate for the Bad Penny’s other popular series, Pet Sounds. Megyery’s claims proved to be very well-founded, as Daka got back to us speedy, ready to gush over his cats.
“My precious angels, sisters Ava and Olive … are my favorite topics to talk about!” he gushed during an email exchange.
Thanks for participating in the 75th edition of Pet Sounds, Mustafa. Can you tell us the bare bones of your small-boned pets?
Olive is a domestic longhair/medium hair, and Ava is a domestic shorthair spotted tabby. They’re sisters, and Olive looks closer to their mom than Ava, Daka says. They’ll turn 5 in human years the day after Valentine’s Day next year.
Is it a coincidence that Olive and Ava came into your life around Valentine’s Day (2021) or is there a larger story there? If nothing else, COVID likely played a role with you taking them in, no?
My wife Shannon and I had just lost our cat that she had for 16 years, the last 4 of those were shared with me. That cat was Lucy. The cat to make me a cat lover! I have been allergic to cats my whole life and after seeing just how much of a sweetheart Lucy was, it made me decide to try and get over my allergies so that I can pet her and play with her. Slowly but surely, like vaccines and small doses, I seem to have gotten over it!
Lucy really did change my life in so many ways that when she died, we were just so sad and this apartment felt empty. During Covid I lost my parents about 1 year apart and with Lucy it was just too much. We decided we wanted cats. Kittens. 2 of them. A brother and sister or 2 sisters. I saw in a friend’s instagram story that a warehouse cat at her job had kittens that were 7 weeks old and needed homes. I went there and picked out two sisters! We love them and they honestly inspire us to be more successful so that we can afford them the best lives!
Did you intend to adopt, buy or inherit two tabbies, or had you planned on taking in one but then found the other too irresistible to turn down?
I got carried away in the first question and kind of answered the second question in there! We definitely wanted two so that they could have company – especially with a sibling. Our only regret is that we weren’t in a position to take in the whole litter!!
In what ways do Olive and Ava mimic each other’s behavior?
They have such different personalities however the one thing they have in common is they love to play. Mostly with us, lol. But they do take turns attacking and being attacked.
In what ways do Olive and Ava contrast with one another?
Ava is such a Daddy’s girl and Olive is obsessed with my wife, Shannon. Ava is so talkative and lays on the cuteness pretty thick whereas Olive keeps the talking down to just complaining about not getting treats or her way. She is not afraid to hiss to let you know she doesn’t like something but damn it if I don’t respect her for it. When they speak, I listen.
Is it immediately apparent that they’re sisters? If they tried to rob a bank … or a liquor store, whatever … what would the eyewitnesses say first in terms of identifying them as being related?
Only their eyes are similar! lol. They don’t look related much. They have different meows. Different tones. Different length hair. Different colored noses and toe beans. Olive is so soft and fluffy. She always looks like she is holding locks of fur in her paws. It definitely cushions her landings. They’re so quiet! lol. But I assure you, they are sisters.
Even in the case of twin siblings, one typically dominates over the other, or they each have their own way of claiming the upper hand. Please describe the power dynamic in which your two cats are engaged, Mustafa.
Olive seems like the boss. She looks bigger, and because she’s dark, her face seems more ominous. Ave seems like her eyes are slightly bigger so she comes off like a cute cartoon cat. Pink nose and all. She has what seems like black lip liner only on her bottom lip, it’s too funny! However the truth is that Ava is actually 1 pound heavier than Olive and while I’ve seen her look like the victim before, she has actually made Olive hiss way more times than Olive has made her hiss.
But they both know when to stop. We’ve never really had to break them up. Once in a while when they play too hard I’ll do an impression of my mom when my brother and I would fight and I’ll say to the girls “Stop fighting! Because after your mother and I are gone you two are all you got!” Lol. Good old Albanian guilt.
When asked to recall a situation in which one of your cats protected the other, what immediately jumps to mind?
The only thing I can think of is when they were kittens when we first got them how they would cuddle with each other a lot. So cute. Now they don’t really have much to protect each other from.
Do they ever fight? If so, who usually wins and by using what tactic or strategy?
They definitely take turns in who the badass is! I’ve seen them flip and it always seems willingly. They also seem to love to show off their moves. Whenever they do a cool move or jump, my wife and I like to encourage and hype them up, like, “Woah! That was awesome!!!”
Please humor us by retelling a situation in which Olive and/or Ava went absolutely bonkers.
In the first year we had a traumatic episode where Ava accidentally got her head stuck in a grocery bag and ran in circles. This made Olive completely snap where she was making the “ohhlongjohnson” noises and was so scared and in attack mode. She had to hide away from us for like 10 hours. We were very worried. Then she kinda just snapped out of it. But since then we cut the handles on those bags immediately!
In what ways, literally and/or figuratively, do Olive and/or Ava factor into your music? Do any songs you’ve written reference or allude to them?
As a drummer, my lifestyle plays heavily into my musicianship. So there aren’t any lyrics about my cats, but being a cat guy has evolved my love and respect for all animals that I’ve led a play-based lifestyle with significant health benefits that has allowed for a newfound love and dedication to drumming and music! It’s made me much more emotional. They make me much more sympathetic and empathetic. I make sure that I show them each some attention. We really try to show them how special they are and what they mean to us.
For more on the Brokedowns, visit their Bandcamp page.
For more editions of Pet Sounds, check out our extensive archive.
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