In a time where people go quietly about their business, doing the job they have been programmed to do from 9 to 5, it is nice to know there are a couple of bands out there like Ulcer’ that throw caution to the wind and just play its music LOUD. On a quiet St. Louis night you might hear something go bump in the night a few miles away.

Labeled by a few of the masses as prog-punk, the band plays a brutally heavy sound that may make even the hard-core punk fans stand back a few feet and say wow.

Pat Malecek, the band’s guitarist, says its songs reflect the attitudes of people who are out there working jobs they don’t like, but do them to survive, and comments as to how he was doing the interview in a shirt and tie, and new dress shoes, but the minute he gets off of work he tosses off his shoes and throws a Godflesh’ tape in the stereo for the ride home. He said that is the type of person they play their music for.

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Our music is aimed at the people our age who are working at their jobs, but like to go out on the weekend and do some damage to themselves.

Our song lyrics gear towards a very dark type of comedy, he said. People with a good sense of humor will get our lyrics, but those out there who don’t will just think we need to be institutionalized.

One such example is This copier makes bad copies/The pages are smeared and gray/They yell and say Put more toner in’/I do it cause it’s my job, from the song My Pencil is Dull, going back on how people work these mundane jobs, but then go out to have a good time whenever they can.

Malecek said he also has a problem with the self determined mission most people seem to be on to apply a label to everything else. He said he has seen the term prog-punk used to describe his band, but he doesn’t like the label because it doesn’t necessarily do justice to the sound.

I hate to apply any type of label to anything, he said. We are individuals and I think a label takes something from that. The term punk was around when I was pretty young, and I don’t think it can really apply. To me the word punk’ applies to people who play music for themselves, and nobody else, and that is who we are. Our music can get pretty chaotic and challenging, and a label doesn’t get that message across.

Chaotic and challenging could be just a tad of an understatement, as labels such as Brutal songs about bad sex, coffee, problems going to the bathroom, and murder. So depressing you’ll feel better about yourself, start flying around.

We just have crazy lyrics, and that message lets people know what to expect, he said. All we do is play good, loud, fast and crazy music in a way that is destined never to be matched.

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Whatever the case may be, Ulcer hits the streets this weekend with a trail of bleeding eardrums and a group of satisfied party-goers lying in their wake.

Ulcer plays at 9 p.m. at Patty’s Place, 760 E. Grand, Saturday, Nov. 4. Admission is $3.