In early 2000, Christian Kuffner was playing fiddle for change in New Orleans when he spotted Eve performing on the accordion at the far end of Jackson Square. A night of inspired madness followed, as a ragtag mess of street performers made a small fortune in the alleys off of Bourbon Street, playing strange pidgin Irish tunes to the generous and drunken Mardi Gras revelers.
Eve returned to Spain later that year, and by the time she came back to New Orleans in 2003 Christian had both learned to play accordion and recruited local violinist Joe McGinty. A classical musician by training, Joe McGinty fell in love with the Irish and Cajun tunes Christian was busting out. Eve began teaching the others some of her Klezmer repertoire, and together the three-piece began performing under the name "The Zydepunks".

Needing a rhythm section, Christian convinced Joe Lilly, an old friend and a brilliant and talented drummer used to playing in punk and heavy metal bands, to add his talent to the group. No longer just a band of folk musicians scrapping together change as street performers, The Zydepunks took the New Orleans underground music scene by storm with their speedy and amped-up versions of European and Louisiana folk songs.

As an Ecuadorian-German raised in America and somehow knowing a smattering of French, Christian's vocal stylings in six languages (German, French, Spanish, Yiddish, English, Portuguese) immediately set the band apart, as well as their willingness to play tunes from countless folk music traditions, including Cajun, Irish, Breton, French, Slavic, Klezmer, and Zydeco, while drawing their sound from inspirational bands like the Pogues, the Ukrainians, and the Clash.

This diversity translates into the crowd the band attracts and the venues they play. At a Zydepunks show, youngsters can be seen throwing their bodies around the front lines, while the older generations soak up the tunes in the rear, stepping up for traditional dance numbers. The Zydepunks perform at events ranging from folk music festivals to Irish pubs to all-ages punk shows.

2005 was a seminal year for the band as they released their second album, "...and the streets will flow with whiskey", recorded by New Orleans song-writing legend Mike West at his 9th Ward Pickin' Parlor. Regional tours and festival appearances were met with great acclaim, and a new album was in the works as hurricane Katrina closed in on New Orleans.

On August 29th, 2005, the night they were ironically set to play a benefit concert for victims of the Asian Tsunami, the Zydepunks were scattered all over the South. As New Orleans descended into chaos, the future of the band was momentarily irrelevant. Though luckily none of the band members or their families were hurt, fiddling genius Joe McGinty and bass player Patrick Keenan left at that time, never to return. With their lineup and future momentarily in doubt, the band managed to reunite for their debut performance at the New Orleans Voodoo Music Festival. A wild nighttime show on Frenchmen Street followed that showed that something of the old New Orleans might come back after all.

Encouraged by the loyal, loving, and truly moving support of local fans, the remaining Zydepunks stayed together and welcomed bassist Paul Edmonds, a long-time stalwart of the New Orleans scene and fiddle player Denise Bonis, whose unique playing style and beautiful voice are an inspiring addition. Today the Zydepunks are back on a regular touring schedule and are in the studios working on two new albums scheduled for release in 2007.