9:00 PM
to 10:00 PM
Admiral Fallow
101 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Admiral Fallow
event::about ADMIRAL FALLOW www.admiralfallow.com ALBUM “BOOTS MET MY FACE” UK WIDE RELEASE 28 MARCH 2011 SINGLE “SQUEALING PIGS” 28 MARCH 2011 SOUTH BY SOUTH WEST MARCH 2011 FREE DIGITAL DOWNLOAD OF “DELIVERED – ALT VERSION” AVAIL NOW UK HEADLINE CLUB TOUR MARCH 2011 BIOGRAPHY Admiral Fallow is the latest stunning artist whose March 21st 2011 released album Boots Met My Face has been produced by award winning engineer Paul Savage; former Delgados drummer and winner of the 2010 UK Producers’ Guild “Breakthrough Producer of the Year” award. “Boots” was recorded at Savage’s renowned Glasgow studio Chem 19, a studio that in 2009 / 2010 / 2011 alone gave us wonderful albums from Phantom Band, Twilight Sad, King Creosote, The Unwinding Hours, Emma Pollock, Idlewild, Mogwai and The Burns Unit. Paul Savage also recorded the latest Franz Ferdinand album. Admiral Fallow comprises:- Louis Abbott – singing, guitars Sarah Hayes – flute, keyboards, singing Joe Rattray - stand up double bass Kevin Brolly – clarinet, keyboards Philip Hague – drums Craig Grant – guitars, singing Lead singer and main writer Louis Abbott gives an idea of what fans can expect of the album when he says, “All of the songs document the first chapter of my life, be it memories from school or kicking a ball about with my childhood chums. All of the songs are taken from real life events. There's no fiction. I'm not into making up stories or characters for the sake of trying to stir emotions. They are songs about friends and family as well as a fair bit of self-evaluation.” Their sets go from simple voice and guitar compositions (‘Four Bulbs’), through stomping Wilco-esque tunes to riotous cacophonies of white noise; their songs about alienation within relationships and experiences of “youth” itself are sung and screamed with utter abandon while the band work themselves into a furious frenzy… “A thrilling, cathartic experience” Sub City Radio. “……could just be the start of something massive….” The Fly review of 26.07.10 King Tuts gig Here’s the story so far………. Admiral Fallow is a stunning new group, formerly known as Brother Louis Collective, born in 2007 and gathered round the precocious talent of the young foot-stamping, faintly maniacal singer/song-writer Louis Abbott. Citing influences including Tom Waits, Elbow, Low, Midlake, King Creosote, and Springsteen, Admiral Fallow adds clarinet, flute, stand up double bass and four jaw-dropping voices to the usual indie line-up to smash through their joyous, heart-filled, orchestral-tinged and beautifully well crafted songs. Louis is proud to be Scottish and his accent is to the fore in his singing, contrasting magically with the Northumbrian tones of Sarah Hayes, the second vocalist. Their live show has lead to quotes such as “…….one of the best shows I have seen at King Tuts in the last few years…..” Geoff Ellis, MD, DF Concerts of the King Tuts show 26.07.10 Fyfe Dangerfield of the Guillemots has supported and lauded this exceptional band since their formation, personally asking for them to open for the Guillemots in Glasgow and Edinburgh on their 2007 Scottish tours - and it's easy to see why. The band’s reputation quickly spread amongst Scottish promoters in 2008, culminating in their receiving the King Tut’s “Your Sound” artist of the month award and making their second appearance at the Connect Festival that summer. Headline slots at Nice and Sleazys and Oran Mor in Glasgow and The Caves in Edinburgh followed. A 5 star gig review in The Sunday Mail, a single on Euphonios Records, still using the name “Brother Louis Collective”, and Gideon Coe airplay on BBC 6Music were soon under their belts. 2008 was a year of quiet, confident progression for the band. In July 2009 the band headlined the Sunday night T Break stage at T in the Park and later that month recorded “Boots Met My Face” at Chem 19, with the UK Music Producers’ Guild “Breakthrough Producer of the Year 2010” Paul Savage at the controls, supported by The Scottish Arts Council and under the guidance of Robin and Jim at Lo-Five Management (Trashcan Sinatras, Jo Mango). They were also crowned the Scotsman’s Under The Radar band of 2009. 2010 brought the new name Admiral Fallow and the birth of the new album “Boots Met My Face”. This was self released in Scotland in partnership with the band’s management on 26 April 2010 on Lo-Five Records. (album of the week in Daily Record and Sunday Mail, **** in The List). Various Scottish bloggers’ Scottish album of the year 2010 The band decided to build up the Scottish press and general awareness in 2010, followed by a planned assault on the wider UK market later in the year and beyond to 2011, then overseas. This strategy has borne fruit so far following the BBC Introducing stage headline slot at T in the Park July 2010 and the Frightened Rabbit 13 date UK and Ireland tour December 2010 support . “Boots” gets its UK wide release on Monday 21 March 2011. On live shows in 2010, Admiral Fallow played with King Creosote at the Fence Collective’s Homegame Festival in March, toured the UK in the first 2 weeks of April and supported the Futureheads in Glasgow on 29 April. Summer festivals were good to the band who opened for King Creosote at the Glasgow West End Festival and rocked out at the Wee Chill, Rockness, the Insider festivals and, famously, on the BBC Introducing Stage at T in the Park, from where they got BBC 2 and BBC 3 TV exposure, a live Radio 1 interview with Edith Bowman and a Radio 1 daytime playlisting for “Taste The Coast”. “Absolutely beautiful…great new talent….” Edith Bowman Radio 1 “That is dreamy…really, really nice….” Fearne Cotton Radio 1 On their August 2010 Scottish tour, on consecutive nights, the band played Hometown gigs with King Creosote, Adem and Silver Columns in Anstruther and then in Paisley with Paolo Nutini, the latter broadcast for live transmission on BBC Radio2’s In Concert series. They also filmed a performance of “Subbuteo” on BBC Switch’s “The Cut” Music special, broadcast on BBC Two in August. A small UK tour in September, including 3 dates supporting the Felice Brothers, culminated in a triumphant London show at the Lexington on September 15 attended by the great and the good of the London music industry as well as an ever increasingly swelling fanbase. “The award for the best of the new acts we have seen perform recently goes to Admiral Fallow. Their excellent set at the Lexington had publishers and A&R out in force. We expect them to be huge. Led by the engaging and captivating future star that is frontman Louis Abbott the 6 piece band will soon have the world at their footballing feet” Paul Kramer, The Hit Sheet, September 2010. To round off September the band played an intimate gig at the lovely Loopallu Festival. The first single was “Subbuteo.” On BBC Radio 1’s The Review Show with Edith Bowman on 13 July 2010, guest reviewer Daniel P Carter said of “Subbuteo”……..” I bought this and listened to it 7 times in a row on the underground on my way here….its so good, so dark, so beautiful…there’s a Nick Drake feel to the guitar playing, the lyrics are really real – really amazing… ” “I really love this band. I think they’re great” Guy Garvey, Elbow, BBC 6Music With the renowned Blair McDonald of Nettwerk Publishing joining booking agent Ross Morrison of Primary Talent International aboard the good ship, and with PR from Devil PR and Radio representation from Rob Lynch at Airplayer hoving in to view, Admiral Fallow are ready to move their development to the next stage. The Frightened Rabbit support shows over the13 date tour of UK and Ireland had sold out shows in December at London, Dublin and the Glasgow Barrowlands (twice). Following this, in 2011 Admiral Fallow will undertake a headline tour of the UK in February and March 28-Feb-11 SCO EDINBURGH SNEAKY PETES 01-Mar-11 SCO ABERDEEN LEMON TREE 02-Mar-11 SCO GLASGOW ARCHES 03-Mar-11 04-Mar-11 05-Mar-11 UK LEEDS NATION OF SHOPKEEPERS 06-Mar-11 UK NEWCASTLE THE CLUNY 0…
event::tags 21+
10:00 PM
to 11:00 PM
Dry the River
51 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Dry the River
event::about The family Dry the River could not have been built from five more disparate sons. From Norwegian born singer-songwriter Peter Liddle, drawing narrative inspiration from university studies in Medicine and Anthropology, to once homeless punk-rock drummer Jon Warren and classically trained violinist William Harvey, the band grew from the haphazard seeds of varied personal and musical upbringings. Thus, whilst Liddle rifles through a musical and literary heritage which includes ethnographic texts, the works of Ted Hughes and Milan Kundera, and artists such as Leonard Cohen and Suzanne Vega, guitarist Matthew Taylor introduces the angular hum of Southern rock, blues and country records played to him in his youth, accompanied by childhood friends Jon and Scott, a rhythm section who draw heavily on 70s rock and post-punk. Each song is the offspring of this unlikely marriage: a personal tale of coming-to-terms, wrapped in gospel guitars and driven by inventive, bold percussion. Most of all, the deep involvement of all members gives birth to a live show which is both intense and honest; a band who play with their hearts on their sleeves. Since mid 2009, Dry the River have lived and worked in their shared home in Stratford, east London. Their debut EP “The Chambers & The Valves” (June 2009, self-released), was live-tracked in just two days and was closely followed by a heavy schedule of shows with acts including Hjaltalin, Port O Brien, Bowerbirds, Johnny Flynn and Magic Numbers. The band enjoyed a busy festival season, playing Glastonbury (BBC Introducing), Big Chill (Lazyland), and Standon Calling (Main Stage) and will be on tour throughout November and December 2010. A free 3 track EP is available to download from http://www.drytheriver.com/
event::tags 21+
11:00 PM
to 12:00 AM
Fences
98 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Fences
event::about FENCES www.sadcastle.com Christopher Mansfield is Fences. Don't let the brevity of that sentence deceive you; it contains universes. Fences is not merely the recording alias of the Seattle songwriter. It is the distillation of Mansfield's entire aesthetic. "I've tried to take everything in the world that I love, and turn it into this thing that's Fences," says the straightforward 27-year-old. Fences starts with Mansfield's life experience to date, and ends… well, when he says so. Hopefully not for a long time. Because right now, Fences is just coming into its own, with the release of a stunning debut album, entitled, naturally, Fences. The ten-song set was co-produced by Sara Quin of Tegan & Sara, who Mansfield credits not only with helping him sculpt the most fully realized expression of his music to date, but also giving him impetus to forge ahead before they'd ever collaborated artistically. "I was just working as a breakfast cook, spending my money at the bar, and playing songs with my friends in my kitchen. It was no big deal. And then when she contacted me, I remember thinking, Whoa! My life might be a little different from now on." Not to exaggerate the impact of her interest—this isn't The Blind Side, folks—but encouragement from an established recording artist went a long way towards making Mansfield take his music more seriously. "Everything that Chris writes, melodically and lyrically, has that rare balance of patience and urgency that I love in honest, haunting pop songs," says Quin. And she did her homework before arriving at that laudatory conclusion. Prior to recording Fences, Quin requested that Mansfield send her everything he'd written to date. From those forty selections, they winnowed the choices down. "Both of us wanted to capture the most potent Fences, the thing that sums it up as a whole, song-wise—especially since this was a debut." Fences is the culmination of Mansfield's songwriting to date, stretching back to the project's inception in the Boston area circa 2004, and continuing right up to songs written shortly before recording. "Hands," carried by hypnotic finger picking and a gauzy vocal performance, is among the oldest selections in Mansfield's catalog, while "From Russia With…" and "Sadie"—a standout that stakes out the treacherous terrain between emo and Americana with quiet confidence—are newly minted. Longtime fans will find polished renditions of concert favorites "The Same Tattoos" and the musical dialogue "My Girl The Horse," the latter's haunting refrain "neither one of us will make it down this hill alive" lingering long after the fade. Mansfield jokes that he traffics in "wussy pop music," and his full-band live performances are more upbeat than novices might anticipate, but as Fences attests, beneath his sing-along hooks and charismatic performances are songs with a steel core. Fences summarizes Mansfield's music in succinct, compelling fashion—no simple feat, considering that his sound doesn't fit neatly in any single box. He speaks with audible affection of '80s innovators like the Cure, Kate Bush, and Morrissey, icons who created a consummate, all-encompassing aesthetic, just as he aspires to do with Fences. A close listen to the rhythm tracks on several cuts also underscores Mansfield's love of down-tempo classic country. An anthology of Johnny Cash's Sun Records sides was one of his constant soundtracks while working as a dishwasher. "The tempo of that material just has a unrelenting drive," he reflects. "It carries the lyrics from start to finish before you even realize what has been said." Further enriching his sound, Mansfield also has a powerful affinity for jazz, citing John Coltrane, Miles Davis, and Wayne Shorter among his favorites. "Sometimes that music is just so chaotic, which is what growing up feels like," he observes. "I always wondered why more confused teenagers didn't listen to jazz. The girl you're in love with doesn't love you back? Go home and put on Charlie Parker playing 'Embraceable You.'" Later he studied at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Sometimes Mansfield's jazz background is reflected in something as simple as augmenting a minor chord with a major seventh, but Berklee also sold him on the value of commitment and discipline. Hence Mansfield's laser-like focus on achieving his goals. "I appreciate the workmanship, the dedication required to get the art to where it should be." Like the aforementioned Morrissey, Mansfield's involvement in Fences extends well beyond the music, to the accompanying record sleeves, promotional photos, and videos. The cover of his self-released 2008 Ultimate Puke EP may have seemed better suited to a sludge or speed metal band, with it's well-executed cartoon of a grizzly bear regurgitating a half-digested Fences logo, but Mansfield commissioned that imagery for specific reasons: "That EP was a mix of all these demos and shit on my computer," literally purged from his hard drive. Plus he wanted a sleeve that eschewed the obvious visual vocabulary a comparable artist might've chosen. "You wouldn't expect that kind of art to accompany this sort of music, you'd expect maybe a cute little bird on the cover." On the other hand, for the more thoughtful Fences, he chose a personal talisman, a found photograph (of a young girl covered in Christmas tinsel) he'd long used as a bookmark. "I wanted this album to look slightly mature and beautiful, but you still can't categorize exactly what that might be. If you just saw that art, you wouldn't really know what the music sounds like." But you would definitely be intrigued, and your curiosity would be rewarded. Or watch the video for "Girls With Accents." Despite a lyric that has been misconstrued out of context, Mansfield navigates a confusing landscape—labyrinthine houseplants, kitchen chairs stacked to the rafters, and the layered look taken to ridiculous extremes—while feeding his dog, putting away the dishes. In the clip's maelstrom of seeming insanity, he stays centered… just as his music feels rooted on terra firma no matter how unpleasant or odd the circumstances that inspired it, or how noisy the buzz surrounding it continues to grow. Chris Mansfield is Fences. And Fences is just the first taste of great things to come.
event::tags 21+
12:00 AM
to 1:00 AM
Mr. Heavenly
59 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Mr. Heavenly
event::about Mister Heavenly Is Officially Born! Spurred on by a mutual appreciation for doo-wop and doomed love songs, Nick Diamonds (Islands/Unicorns) and Honus Honus (Man Man) set out to record a one-off instrumental 7" but soon found, within a span of a few late night sessions, that they were on the path to writing an entire album. When Joe Plummer (Modest Mouse) joined in, Mister Heavenly was officially born. On the heels of recording their debut album, Mister Heavenly are excited to announce they will play a handful of West Coast shows in December. They hope and anticipate the unveiling of their doom-wop sound will bring the house down.
event::tags 21+
1:00 AM
to 2:00 AM
Trampled by Turtles
77 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Trampled by Turtles
event::about “Shooting sparks in the face of folk traditionalism, the quintet approaches the banjo and mandolin with a level of brash recklessness hardly heard since the now-mythical reign of Uncle Tupelo. Bill Monroe and Joe Strummer would both be proud.” - SF BAY GUARDIAN
event::tags 21+
8:00 PM
to 9:00 PM
Little Red
16 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Little Red
event::about Melbourne's Little Red have gone from strength to strength at home with two albums, a handful of killer singles, sold out national tours, a #2 spot in Triple J's Hottest 100, slots at every major Australian music festival, rave reviews and a bunch of awards. Now, Little Red are hitting the US for the first time. Drenched in vintage-leaning guitars, heart-melting vocals and synthy gems, their latest album Midnight Remember (the traditionally 'difficult' second album) is a quantum leap in production and song writing since their garage rock days. Today, Little Red's music is nothing short of a must-have at festivals and a veritable dancefloor staple. In 2010 Neon Gold released a 7" and Little Red is very happy to be playing the Neon Gold party in Austin this year: 8pm Wed 16 March 8pm at Bat Bar.
event::tags 21+
9:00 PM
to 10:00 PM
Walk The Moon
53 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Walk The Moon
event::about Walk the Moon are from Ohio. Their moms are cute and batty and their dads are big and strong. While singing a capella in college, listening to a lot of Talking Heads, and chasing down degrees in Music Theory, Walk the Moon formed out of a love for creative pop songs and exuberant live performances and safari animals. In 2008 Walk the Moon's debut EP 'The Anthem' stirred up attention from the likes of CityBeat Magazine and FOX News and even took them to London, UK; there they played a week of shows at the London City Showcase as the only band from North America to be selected by Sonicbids for the spot. Since then, led by singer/synth-player Nicholas Petricca, Walk has continued to make noise around the US, named by New York City's historic Arlene's Grocery one of their 'Best Bands of 2009' and by promoters at NYC's Highline Ballroom "one of the best young bands [they] have seen in a long time".
event::tags 21+
10:00 PM
to 11:00 PM
Alex Winston
68 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Alex Winston
event::about Detroit born Alex Winston announces the release of her debut mini-album, ‘Sister Wife’ out on March 4th through NYC’s label du jour Heavy Roc Records. ‘Sister Wife’ follows Winston’s critically acclaimed 7” single ‘Choice Notes’ which was released summer 2010. All tracks on ‘Sister Wife’ have been written by the rising starlet with production duties handed over to New York whizz-kids The Knocks (Rhianna, Ellie Goulding) and the award winning Charlie Hugall (Florence and the Machine). A talented multi-instrumentalist, Alex plays everything on the album however it’s her bedazzling, otherworldly vocals that truly stand out. Opener, ‘Locomotive’ sees her voice soar above a wall of percussion and melody. Then there’s ‘Sister Wife’ which shows off her soul side with the defiant chorus, “Hey there sister wife / Get the hell out / It’s my night / You don’t know they way to his heart like I do.” ‘Don’t Care About Anything’ highlights Alex’s penchant for dramatics, simple guitar lines and enchanting violins bristle excitedly with energy. ‘Choice Notes’, Alex’s incessantly catchy debut single also makes an appearance on the mini album. Highlighting Alex’s impressive skill for crafting the perfect pop song (‘Choice Notes’ & ‘Sweet James’) as well as her darker, leftfield musings (‘Don’t Care About Anything’); ‘Sister Wife’ is a rousing, off-kilter debut from Detroit’s much-fussed-over Alex Winston. Having played her first ever live shows at CMJ 2010 and her debut UK show just weeks later at The Social, London; every show she’s performed has been a sell out. Alex has confirmed a string of European dates in February including a headline NME Awards Show at The New Players Theatre.Over in New York, Alex has aligned herself with the Communion crew – headlining the legendary Mumford & Sons’ founded UK club in it’s US debut. Although, Alex only has a handful of live dates under her belt, those who have seen her live can attest to the energy and power of her performance:
event::tags 21+
11:00 PM
to 12:00 AM
Clock Opera
46 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Clock Opera
event::about CLOCK OPERA draw from such esoteric sources as the systems music of Steve Reich and Philip Glass and have played their second ever gig at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London backing the international Ballet Rambert. But you don’t need any special qualifications to enjoy what they do, just an appreciation of quirkily melodic pop. This they create via a combination of conventional instrumentation and electronic production and manipulation, with specific attention to layering and repetition, and the application of various effects and devices. Guy Connelly's vocals effortlessly swoop and soar above the music, heightening the drama and moving it ever further away from the everyday manner in which it was born and places him in that small but select pantheon of distinguished male pop vocalists that also includes Billy Mackenzie of Associates, Haydon Thorpe of Wild Beasts and Antony Hegarty of Antony and The Johnstons, singers unafraid of expressing themselves in an unguarded, emotional way. Clock Opera are a studio unit who push the recording process as far as it will go, but they are also a fully functioning performing band who can reproduce the intricacies of their music while gaining a new urgency and energy. They are one of those bands that will get under people’s skin and affect the way they feel. It demands an emotional response and will always mean something for the listener. Paul Lester
event::tags 21+
12:00 AM
to 1:00 AM
Ellie Goulding
168 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
1:00 AM
to 2:00 AM
Penguin Prison
67 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Penguin Prison
event::about In addition to his expertly crafted songwriting and production, Penguin Prison has quickly become one of the most promising new live music acts around. Screaming guitar solos, James Brown-esque vocal riffs and some rather unusual dance moves are all staples of the live show, proving his talents are not just the product of studio wizardry. Dance parties break out inevitably at every performance as the band take the songs to new heights while also faithfully recreating the sounds of the recordings flawlessly.
event::tags 21+
7:15 PM
to 8:15 PM
Sunglasses
16 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Sunglasses
event::about Sunglasses are from Savannah Georgia and have recently completed their first album entitled "Wildlife".
event::tags 21+
8:00 PM
to 9:00 PM
Sweaters
8 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Sweaters
event::about SWEATERS are doing new and exciting stuff with rock’n’roll and your girlfriend, all in their beloved Los Angeles –their “City by the Sea”. The lineup in no particular order: French Max - known for his bass guitar and a wide array of homemade tank tops. Ladyface Harkins - sex-wax & sex-guitars. And who’s this? Jordan Benik - the voice & barrel-house keys. And of course there has to be a drummer, Joel Isaac Black - proper mod-trap kit, Texas moptop. This quartet grooves with bent sounds, thick harmonies, and crucially cool vibes in a city famous for its disastrous personalities. Harry Nilsson, Keith Moon, Papa John and Dennis Wilson might have said wonderful things about them. But we will never know. Eating the past while toasting to the future. Ladies and gentleman, L.A.’s own SWEATERS. With hope and a decent amount of luck, they are today’s last great pop band. Allowing the music to be born organically while thriving on their self-proclaimed philosophy Can’t Stop Winning SWEATERS gears up for their 7” release on WHITE IRIS RECORDS. Exuding creative duplicity, SWEATERS will accompany their musical genius with a 14-page manifesto explaining their Can’t Stop Winning attitude and theory. Based on the idea of ones inability to lose, Benik explains, “CSW Theory is about relying on instinct to make natural choices so that we may explore our own limitless conscious- ness.” Following their own philosophy after their May 2010 EP (Sky Mall/investigations) with Slow Death Records, SWEATERS will finally bring you another taste of that sweet nectar that is vocally inspiring and instrumentally powerful. In the true style of rock and roll you’ll be bouncing to the guitars riffs and singing along to the chorus of Can’t Stop Winning in no time. Exciting your eardrums with steel guitars, lurching vocals, topped with a seasoning of a 70s vibe that lives in the now, the pot is boiling over and burning off taste buds.
event::tags 21+
9:00 PM
to 10:00 PM
Nite Jewel
30 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
10:00 PM
to 11:00 PM
Oberhofer
75 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Oberhofer
event::about When your songs are too big to be contained: form a band. Maybe call it after your family name because you like the way it sounds (sh*t, if it worked for Bon Jovi then who’s to argue). Record those songs in the basement of your parents house in Tacoma. When that burns down, shake it off and move to New York. Find a new band to play with, start working on a symphony (no really, do it), mix your newfound formal training with the noisy exuberance of youth. Get raucous.
event::tags 21+
11:00 PM
to 12:00 AM
Lord Huron
84 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Lord Huron
event::about In the spring of 2010 Ben S. traveled easterly from Los Angeles to Northern Michigan. He spent a week at the site of his childhood retreats: the shores of Lake Huron. It was there he set to work developing a batch of songs and a week later, the first Lord Huron EP was complete. He named the recording, Into the Sun. Upon his return to L.A., Ben set to work putting a band together. He called on his percussion-playing childhood friend Mark, who was in Nashville after performing for a time in the Caribbean. Mark swiftly packed up his drums and other gadgets and drove across country to California. The boys then recruited the rest of the Mighty Band, each of whom hails from Michigan. Lord Huron's music is an auditory travelogue. Evocative of many places, but tied to none in particular. Lush harmonies inspired by Calypso singers, folk traditions and the American frontier fuse with modern experimentation to create the distinctive sound.
event::tags 21+
12:00 AM
to 1:00 AM
Chapel Club
49 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Chapel Club
event::about It's the stuff of narcotic dreams and nightmares. It's the fulfilment of the promise of a decade of sonic cellarscapes. It's Kitchens of Distinction, Echo & The Bunnymen, Neu, My Bloody Valentine, The Cocteau Twins and - yes, okay - Joy Division encapsulated and crystallised in one almighty rush. It is 'Palace', the debut album from London's Chapel Club - and it is quite possibly the album of the year. In making the record, we were thinking in terms of artists like Mercury Rev, says drummer Rich Mitchell. We weren't scared to put extra sounds in there, to try interesting ideas. It felt like a good time to do it, at the start of a new decade. In the words of guitarist Michael Hibbert, it's also about "not being afraid to be too ambitious. We wanted to take the grandeur and force of the lyrics and make a record that resonates on a large emotional scale. It's music to thrill to." As singer Lewis Bowman explains, it's also the result of an ardent refusal to compromise. We're a new band, a young band, and we've had to find our feet quickly. Our approach this year has been to take things slowly and stick to our vision of what we are and can be. It's very much this is what we want to do and you're gonna have to make space for it in your plans because this is the way we're operating. Hence the photoshoot on the famous Abbey Road crossing wearing grotesque animal masks. Hence the unconventional recording sessions with the legendary Paul Epworth, which saw the band recording live in the same room as the producer, experimenting with Epworth's wild variety of musical toys. And hence the cult following and insane industry buzz that swiftly grew around the band when they started gigging in late 2009, eschewing regular venues to play their cavernous and brilliant spire-rock in art spaces, warehouses and the back rooms of Jamaican pubs. We did things a bit differently to make it all more interesting, says Lewis. Whereas if we told people we're third on the bill at the Purple Turtle this Tuesday and after us there's a hard rock band and before us there's an electro duo, people would've been like Mmm, yeah, think I'm busy. The resulting A&R battle for Chapel Club was among the most ardent of recent years, which came as a shock to the band. Though all apart from Lewis had been in bands before (Rich had been signed to an underground noise rock label aged 14: Our only mention anywhere was an NME review that said 'The sleeve is infinitely better than the racket it surrounds' - we split up after six months), it seemed particularly sudden to Mike, who'd been a little lost in the three years since his previous band split: I didn't have a clue what I was going to do at all. I had no money and no focus. No-one I knew had moved to London yet so I just sat there feeling sorry for myself, smoking shitloads of weed and starting to write songs. Next, Mike recruited a (then) 17-year-old bassist called Liam Arklie, new to London from Swindon, and the pair began to hang out all day and try things out, then go out drinking. We repeated that process seven days a week for a while. The line-up grew with the addition of mild-mannered guitarist Alex Parry, Liam's best friend since childhood. But it wasn't until Mike was introduced to Lewis that Chapel Club found their focus and their spark. Lewis had been writing stories and poetry for years, never showing it to anyone beyond a few close friends. "I wasn't bothered about getting published," he says. "I just wanted to get better. I had a vague hope of making something of it all one day, but I knew I had a long way to go before I could compete with the writers I respected. Then Mike asked me if I wanted to try writing something for this embryonic band he was putting together, and I thought I may as well have a go. It seemed like the perfect outlet." Of the tunes that emerged from those first attempts, several appear on 'Palace', pushing the dark arts of Interpol and My Bloody Valentine way off into the future, stunning and confrontational in equal measure. Debut single O Maybe I offers a moral tug-of-war between romantic security and recklessness (O maybe I should settle down to a quiet life, or maybe I should fuck around with someone's wife), while Surfacing - a pile-driving shimmer that'll never make the band any money since Lewis included a large chunk of the lyric from Mama Cass Dream a Little Dream of Me in the chorus - is an out-and-out hate song directed at an unnamed London scenester. I can't tell you who it's about, Lewis insists, but it doesn't matter. It's enough to say it was inspired by someone who for me represented a certain type of London life-form, totally vacuous and celebrity-obsessed and success-obsessed. I remember being at uni and putting on these club nights and it was all about music and sex. Everyone used to go back to after-parties and everyone was trying to get off with everyone else. I had a girlfriend but I was like this is the way it should be when you're young, this is fun. Then I came back to London and it all changed. Everyone here was all about success, about how much you earn and what access you've got to which parties. And 'Surfacing' is about someone who represented all that for me, a person who'd squandered their humanity or something. They were devoid of personality, of talent, of taste or insight or innocence or wisdom - yet they were doing very well despite all this. I guess you could work out who it's about if you looked into it, the clues are there. The lyric's cryptic rather than obscure. Surfacing then, is the first spite-bite of Palace, a thunderous opening like the crack of a volcano. As the record develops, however, it takes on a different form, with many lyrics drawing on a sense of almost spiritual awe for the natural world, while others reflect the confusion and romance of youth and early adulthood through the warmth and borderline mania of the hedonist's post-party haze. The Shore replays a morning-after walk home through a flower market (I felt awful," says Lewis, "I wanted to get home and get to bed, but at the same time the experience of everything was so alive and vivid), while the shoegazey Fine Light envisions a brief but grateful moment of existential calm, sat on a beach at the peak of a high, watching lights over the sea. Second single Five Trees, meanwhile, offers a vision to rival Coleridge at his most wankered. That lyric came from a scribbled paragraph based on a dream I had years ago, Lewis remembers. I'd over-indulged one weekend and woke up at a friend's house on a drizzly Monday morning feeling pretty fragile. In the last moments before waking, I had this amazing dream. I remember it so clearly. I was watching five trees on a hilltop. Each tree had five branches and there were five leaves at the end of each branch. As I looked the leaves started to glow and turned into these giant glowing snowflake-typeshapes and fell to earth. I woke up on such a comedown and I had to go to work and it was raining and I felt like crying because it was such a vivid, beautiful image in my mind. I felt my life wasn't really going anywhere and I just wanted to retreat back into the dream. Elsewhere, the krautrock drive beneath both After the Flood and White Knight Position serves as the engine room of the record, while luscious pop hits like All the Eastern Girls and Blind provide the intricate and immaculate decoration - bright, enormous love songs that illuminate the core meaning of the album. "The album's a love story," Lewis says. "The whole thing's about love, but not in a typical way, it's not about falling in or out of love. I don't really understand the concept of love as a fall. Real love doesn't strike me as being so sudden or swift or clean or complete. For me, the album is like the fragmentary history of a long relationship, as well as a reflection on some of the questions you ask yourself as you move from youth to adulthood." It's also very much the first chapter in a growing story, hence the title of the record - which refers to the band's first name. "We were called Palace for a few months, but there were too many other bands who'd gotten there first," says Alex. "C
event::tags 21+
1:00 AM
to 2:00 AM
The Strange Boys
100 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
8:00 PM
to 9:00 PM
The Nightgowns
7 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists The Nightgowns
event::about The Nightgowns are a pop group from Tacoma, WA, originally founded in 2005 as "The Elephants" by Trevor Dickson, Cody Jones, and Jason Freet. Infamous for their unpredictable and engaging live shows, their antics and memorable songs quickly made their hometown performances packed events, and won them a loyal following in Seattle and throughout the rest of the NW as well. With the departure of Freet in '06, the remaining members added drummer BJ Robertson and multi-instrumentalist Kyle Brunette and continued to perform, write, and record new material. The sound and songs evolved, becoming more dense and contemplative, and after a name change The Nightgowns' debut full-length "Sing Something" was released in June '09, receiving favorable reviews and considerable college and independent radio airplay. In 2009 the group was voted Tacoma's "best band" for the third time in four years in an annual readers poll run by South Puget Sound arts and culture publication The Weekly Volcano. After a succession of west coast performances and a brief hiatus The Nightgowns are currently hard at work finishing an EP for release in spring 2011.
event::tags 21+
9:00 PM
to 10:00 PM
Open Mike Eagle
1 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Open Mike Eagle
event::about "One of LA's smartest young voices" says the Los Angeles Times about the Chicago-born and South LA-based Open Mike Eagle. Born Michael Eagle, OME has a knack for disarming listeners with mesmerizing harmonies while presenting his droll observations of human behavior delivered with deft wit. As a student of what he calls 'the Rap Graduate School" of Leimert Park's Project Blowed, he is an heir apparent to indie rap luminaries Busdriver, Aceyalone, and Pigeon John. He has also fostered an audience in the comedy world having performed numerous times at the world famous Upright Citizens Brigade Theater and being the only hip-hop act ever invited to be the musical guest at the Paul F.Tompkins variety show. An emcee savvy enough to explain the nuances of the current financial troubles on one song, while honest enough to describe his own drunken and misguided text messaging in the next, Mike Eagle is poised to become a standout in the new order of independent hip-hop.
event::tags 21+
9:00 PM
to 10:00 PM
Qua
2 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Qua
event::about Cornel Wilczek, otherwise known as Qua, enjoys nothing more than making electronic music. Since his first sonic tinkerings gave way to complete song realizations, he has been a frontrunner in Melbourne, Australia’s bustling electronic music scene. Qua has toured with Ratatat, Caribou, Four Tet, Clue To Kalo and Triosk; remixed Architecture In Helsinki; and established himself as an in-demand composer of left-of-center soundtracks. Expertly mixing synthesizers, guitar, percussion, and field recordings in rich spatial environments, Qua’s sound is that of a intricately digitized sunrise: lush and pulsating with a playful vitality.
event::tags 21+
10:00 PM
to 11:00 PM
Thavius Beck
6 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Thavius Beck
event::about Composer of mercurial soundtracks for uncertain times, Thavius Beck conjoins various strains of electronic music to arrive at a daringly ambitious sound. He has received recognition in The Wire, Spin, and Urb for his solo releases under the moniker Adlib, the Labwaste project with fellow LA artist Subtitle, his recent production for fellow Mush artist K-The-I???, his early work with Global Phlowtations, numerous guest appearances, and producing alongside Trent Reznor for and touring in support of and accompanying Saul Williams. An exceptional programmer, engineer and multi-instrumentalist, Thavius Beck’s many talents allow him to take a song from idea to completion without ever having to leave his cluttered studio. Uncompromising vision and an ear for the unusual are staples of this writer/producer’s work.
event::tags 21+
11:00 PM
to 12:00 AM
Melting Season
1 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Melting Season
event::about Heralding from the Dallas, Texas that spaghetti westerns are made of, Melting Season is a multi-layered head-trip. A drummer from a young age and a practically-everything-else-ist from only slightly after that, Bruce Blay first came to prominence with the band Sleep Whale. His contributions on guitar, bass, violin, percussion and field recordings gave their music a sound that was described as a beautiful, somber patchwork and compared to The Books and Stars Of The Lid. Working on his own for the first time and expanding his arsenal to include kalimba, harp, noise makers, and most importantly saturated multi-tracked vocals, Melting Season was born. The layered approach to building sounds is borne of a diverse resume of experiences. Whether gaining his philosophy degree, cliff-jumping, wandering around Europe, recording bird sounds in Chile, working for the Crow Collection of Asian Art, or finding inspiration in weeping philosophers, comic books, and cats, this mad scientist of sound and emotion is an exploding musical alloy.
event::tags 21+
12:00 AM
to 1:00 AM
Her Space Holiday
70 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Her Space Holiday
event::about Recording as Her Space Holiday since 1996, Marc Bianchi creates sugarcoated dreamscapes floating alongside bitter-sweet narratives of life. He’s been featured in many of the industry's top music magazines including Spin, Mojo, and DJ, has reached #2 on the CMJ charts (with The Young Machines for Mush) and has toured with some of the world's top indie acts including Bob Mould, Bright Eyes, Arab Strap, and The Faint. Always challenging himself, Bianchi's sound has morphed with every release, proving he is equally comfortable with intricate sampling and drum programming as he is building a track around acoustic guitar, live instruments, and percussion. From his early output with NYC's TigerStyle, his releases for London's Wichita, his recent release on World's Fair, and his work with Mush, Marc Bianchi's constant evolution as a songwriter and arranger continues to enchant.
event::tags 21+
1:00 AM
to 2:00 AM
A Lull
14 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists A Lull
event::about Chicago's A Lull is nearly impossible to describe without qualifiers. Equal parts mystical and primal, the music crafted by these five multi-instrumentalists gathers the recognizable traits of a half dozen indie micro-genres, tosses out all but the stem cells, then adds the calculated, percussive verve of a half dozen rhythm sections on top of beautifully crafted songwriting to result in a sound that is as unique as it is memorable. A Lull blurs the lines between the synthesized and organic. The evocative lyrics and vocals of Nigel Evan Dennis are engulfed with music elements that live on the barriers between guitars, electronics, and effects, then (with each member of the band having at one point banged on a drum) covered with endless layers of percussion. Recording the music themselves, the band is not confined to traditional studio techniques or time constraints, and the obsessive attention to detail shows. Employing anything available to create beats, melodies, textures and layers of sound, A Lull's sonic landscape is experimental in the ways that it takes form, yet at the same time inherently musical.
event::tags 21+
8:00 PM
to 9:00 PM
Rocky Loves Emily
8 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Rocky Loves Emily
event::about What is the American dream? For Rocky Loves Emily that dream isn’t a white picket fence and a nine-to-five job. For them, the dream is something unique to each person, something that can only be defined from within. For Rocky Loves Emily, the American dream is traveling around the country in a beat-up van, making friends, and playing music that brings joy to people's hearts. The pop-rock group, who hail from a suburb of Detroit, MI, has lived their vision every day since the band formed in early 2009. They released their first EP at the stroke of midnight that New Years Eve posting three songs on the Internet “just to see what would happen.” The response was so positive the group booked a show at a local venue in Detroit— a performance that evolved into many more throughout 2009 and 2010. Rocky Loves Emily self-booked their own tours, aiming to hit the same cities every few months to reconnect with the friends and fans they met across the country.“We've definitely done this grassroots, with smaller shows,” Brandon says. “We've built our fan-base from the ground up. We like doing our own thing. I feel as if it keeps us honest and pure. You know the kids at the shows are there for you. Playing intimate shows has been a blessing because I feel like people come to our shows not just as fans, but as our buddies. We’ve made so many friends, and on top of that, I feel like I even know the name of each individual fan and what's actually going on in their lives.” Not only has the band played countless self-booked shows around the U.S., but they’ve planned their tours around Hot Topic’s in-store acoustic series. Rocky Loves Emily quickly discovered what a wonderful opportunity these shows are and began booking them almost every day on tour around the time school was letting out for the day. They played nearly 70 acoustic sets in a year and created a buzz for being the Hot Topic band. The company even invited the group to perform at a corporate meeting in Seattle in April 2010. “It was cool because we had a reputation for being constantly at Hot Topics,” Brandon says. “Kids would hang out and we would get to meet their parents, aunts, and even grandparents! The managers would say things like ‘Oh you played my friend’s store the other day!' It’s a really amazing way to connect with our fans and even though we’re signed now we'd like to keep our relationship with Hot Topic as awesome as ever!” Because of this hard-working attitude and the band’s creative ideas, Rocky Loves Emily was awarded a spot in Alternative Press’s annual Hometown Heroes feature in January of 2010. This brought record labels knocking on their door, but the band’s actual signing with Tooth & Nail happened after coincidentally meeting the label at a Copeland show in Seattle in March 2010. "We heard someone outside the venue yelling ‘Rocky Loves Emily, where are you?’” Brandon says. "Confused, we turned around and it happened to be an A&R guy from Tooth & Nail who’d heard we were at the show. We’d already been talking with the label a bit earlier that year so it was wild to get to actually meet them in person." A few months later, the label called and asked the band to drive from Detroit to Seattle, with only a day’s notice, to showcase for Tooth & Nail. “We dropped everything we had and got in the van,” Brandon says. “It was the scariest fifty-three hours of our lives. We didn’t know if the van would make the drive. Our van was acting up in Montana and we were so nervous. Trust me, those mountains were intense. We ended up arriving about six hours before we had to play, so thankfully, it all worked out. The band signed with the label shortly after and went into the studio in August with producer Casey Bates (Chiodos, Pierce the Veil, Foxy Shazam) to record their new EP, American Dream, which comes out exclusively in Hot Topics stores and online November 23. The three weeks spent in the studio in Seattle were transformative for the band, refining their hooky songs into even more compelling pop numbers. The resulting five songs are accessible, lively and fun, inspired by good-time rock 'n' roll and even a little bit of country. All this fueled the group’s mission to convey their new definition of what the American dream can mean. “Our record portrays that just because you live in America doesn’t necessarily mean that ‘the’ American dream has to be your American dream.” Brandon says. “We all know that everyone has a specific dream in their heart. For instance, our dream is tour nonstop and meet as many people as possible all while trying to be sincere in what our fans are doing. The cool thing is, that’s just our dream. Your dream is something awesome and unique.”
event::tags 21+
9:00 PM
to 10:00 PM
Young London
6 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists !!!
event::about Young London is the reformation of dance rock sensation And Then There Were None. With an album being closed to finished full of power pop hooks, and new members breathing new life into the already critically acclaimed band, 2011 has a new favorite band on their hands.
event::tags 21+
10:00 PM
to 11:00 PM
Swimming With Dolphins
13 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Swimming With Dolphins
event::about Although Swimming With Dolphins hails from the chilly climate of Minnesota, front man, Austin Tofte, with the production genius of Adam Young (Owl City), manages to create a sound with their music that is surprisingly warm and upbeat. Formed in 2008, Swimming With Dolphins released the Ambient Blue EP later that year to critical acclaim. Since then, Swimming With Dolphins has toured the country with the likes of Owl City, Lydia and Kill Paradise. He has won over countless fans with his ambient electronica pop that speaks to fans of all ages and backgrounds. Deriving his inspiration from the ocean and fond childhood memories of America's largest lakes. One can’t listen to his music without smiling from ear to ear.
event::tags 21+
11:00 PM
to 12:00 AM
Sainthood Reps
8 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Sainthood Reps
event::about Sainthood Reps was formed in the fall of 2009 and consists of Francesco Montesanto, Derrick Sherman, Bradley Cordaro, and Jani Zubkovs. Briefly following the band's inception, they immediately hit the road touring alongside the likes of All the Day Holiday, Caspian, and the Felix Culpa throughout the first several months of 2010. Their sound reflects a broad spectrum of artists spanning several decades, ranging from 1990's era Noise Rock such as Jesus Lizard, Sonic Youth, Fugazi, and Shellac, to contemporary Post-Rock veterans Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky, to more conventional Indie Rock bands such as Built to Spill, Arcade Fire, Modest Mouse, and Sunny Day Real Estate. Currently, they are amidst recording their debut full length to be released on Tooth and Nail Records, slated for a 2011 release.
event::tags 21+
12:00 AM
to 1:00 AM
The Almost
28 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists The Almost
event::about “If I were a monster/Would you wince when you looked at me?/If I were a freak/Would you stare?/If I were a leper/Would you say unclean/If I was alone… Would you help me get free?”
A Monster Monster is on the loose.
The Almost’s second album for Tooth & Nail /Virgin Records began taking shape just as soon as the band came off the road after touring for their 2007 debut, Southern Weather, including a stint on that summer’s Warped tour.
That album, which debuted at #39 on Billboard’s Top 200, earned them a Top 10 single at Alternative radio, and a spot on MTV’s Discover & Download, was essentially the work of a single individual—Underoath drummer Aaron Gillespie, who wrote all the songs, played all the instruments and then recruited a band to play them live, starting with fellow Floridian Jay Vilardi, a veteran of several well-known area bands like Metal Blade’s Phoenix Mourning and Orlando-based Hand to Hand.
“My job was to teach everyone the songs,” explains Vilardi, who describes himself as the band’s musical director. The addition of Philadelphia-based guitarist Dusty Redman, himself a veteran of Tooth & Nail bands like Beloved and Dead Poetic and Salt Lake City bassist Alex Aponte rounded out the line-up.
The now thoroughly road-tested band was intent to make their latest a completely collaborative effort, melding their talents into a whole that was more than the sum of its individual parts. The process began with Vilardi, Redmon and Aponte e-mailing files back and forth to Gillespie, who was busy penning lyrics and coming up with musical ideas of his own while touring with Underoath, before all four of them got together in the studio to jam and work out the arrangements.
It was a system that resulted in a powerfully cohesive album that melds their diverse songwriting skills, from the thudding, Raw Power-like stomp of the title track and “Monster Monster,” to the stark acoustic blues and closing psychedelic jam of “Monster,” the techno-rock laced with tribal drums of “Books and Books” and the melodic Coldplay/U2/Kings of Leon arena-rock anthem, “Hands.”
“It turned out to be a really good process because we wound up with a tremendous amount of material we can use,” says Vilardi.
“We jammed on these tracks for hours before we actually laid anything down,” nods Gillespie. “This now feels like a real band. Everyone gave up a piece of his own agenda for the good of the final result. And that’s how you end up with something special. It was a relief for me because it took a lot of the weight off my shoulders. They supplied the bricks and we built the house together.”
The guys also enlisted the help of steel guitarists Chris Scruggs (grandson of bluegrass legend Earl Scruggs) and John Davis (Superdrag vocalist/guitarist) while in the studio. Both Scruggs and Davis helped they guys broaden their musical pallets on a few tracks like “West” and “Hand Grenade.”
“It was whatever each of us could do for the song,” agrees Redmon. “There were no ego issues, no one screaming, ‘I’m Eddie Van Halen!’”
Gillespie says the songs are about the dark side of the human condition, battling your demons to come out the other side, starting with the album’s title.
“I’m giving in to you,” he roars in “Lonely Wheel,” though in “No I Don’t,” which segues from an acoustic beginning to an anthemic rock chorus, he admits, “I’m learning how to wait.” The hard-hitting “Young Again” and the country-flavored “Hand Grenade” (“Oh to be young/It sounds like so much fun”) are both about lost innocence, while “Souls on Ten,” with its piano flourish and urgent intensity, has a Springsteen feel and the grungy garage-rock of “Summer Summer” offers an elegiac nod to vintage Neil Young with Crazy Horse.
“It didn’t start out as a concept album, but by accident, I think it became one,” says Aaron. “It’s about the ‘monster’ that lives inside of all of us, which we have to fight to get rid of. It’s a battle you live with every day. In the end, when that stops, the question remains, can you now life your life? Can you get all of who you are, can you find a place that makes you happy?”
That catharsis comes across loud and clear in the final song on the album, dubbed “Monster,” which starts with Gillespie alone, accompanied by a single dobro. “Learning how to see/In this weird change of space/I’m learning to believe in this life… I feel you helping me.” The song builds until, about two-thirds of the way through, the rest of The Almost come in, embarking on a spontaneous acid-soaked jam, recorded live, that provides the ultimate release.
“Everybody needs that,” says Gillespie. “For some people, it’s drinking, others run, some throw baseballs. I play music. That’s what I do. That gets rid of the garbage in my life.”
“It’s about how terrible we can be at times,” says Vilardi. “It’s hard to be a person today who stands for something. It doesn’t make you better… sometimes it even makes you worse.”
On “Hands,” the band prove they can create an arena- and radio-ready rock anthem, with its martial beat, chiming keyboards and lush ‘80s new wave fizz
“It’s like an Achtung Baby vibe,” nods Dusty. “That song came out of nowhere. We demoed it, then got into the studio and started playing it and just got real excited.”
“I like working with a song structure,” says Gillespie. “In Underoath, that’s not what we do. We create moments, which is important, but The Almost is something different.”
“Monster Monster” and “Young Again” demonstrate Jay and Dusty’s love of classic garage punk, like the Stooges and the Velvet Undergound. “We really want to put the middle finger back in rock,” says Vilardi. “We love the attitude of bands like Guns N’ Roses.”
And that’s strange, because it turns out that rebellion doesn’t conflict with being on Tooth & Nail, where the support of community is almost as important as the religious implications.
“Music should reflect who you are,” says Aaron. “I believe there’s hope in finding who you are. That’s my conviction. At the same time, I want anybody, no matter their affiliation, to react to the music in the same way. I don’t want people to feel they’re being judged.”
With the addition of drummer Joe Musten (Gillespie played all the drums on the album), The Almost is ready to hit the road and do what they do best, play for their increasing fan base around the country.
“We plan on hitting it as hard as we can,” laughs Vilardi. “We’d like to leave and not come back for two years.”
“We’re just beginning now to establish our identity,” concludes Dusty. “There were a lot of people now who are finding out about Underoath through The Almost.”
Now there’s a transformation for you.
event::tags 21+
1:00 AM
to 2:00 AM
Emery
30 schedule::attendees
Location
The Bat Bar
eventtype Music
Artists Emery
event::about Emery, the ever-evolving rock quintet originally from South Carolina that has been making its mark since 2000, is set to release its fourth full-length album, “…In Shallow Seas We Sail,” on June 2, 2009, via longtime home Tooth & Nail Records. “…In Shallow Seas We Sail” picks up right where Emery’s last release, the EP “While Broken Hearts Prevail” (2008) left off, both thematically and stylistically. This fourth album continues the tradition of Emery’s dual front-man format, with Toby Morell and Devin Shelton once again sharing lead vocal and bass guitar duties. Emery’s fourth album combines the band’s trademark screams and breakdowns, and balances these heavy sounds with catchy hooks and melodies. The album’s single, “Cutthroat Collapse,” is about being in a relationship and making it your whole life, said Morrell. “These kinds of relationships usually end up in doom. The protagonist ends up calling his/her significant other and threatening to commit suicide. Such a great thing ends up in tragedy.” “…In Shallow Seas We Sail,” was recorded on and off between September 2008 and February 2009, and was co-produced by guitarist Matt Carter and Aaron Sprinkle, who also helmed the boards for Emery’s 2005 album “The Question.” “I think this record is the best representation of Emery,” said Morrell. “If you like Emery, this will be the record you love the most. This is our most complete album. You can listen to each individually and not get burnt out. At the same time, you will love the overall story of the record and the journey it takes you on.” The current world views, experiences and personal relationships of each individual band member contributed to the distinct sound on Emery’s fourth album. “Emery’s previous albums were written at completely different times in our lives. ‘…In Shallow Seas We Sail’ is Emery, as we are now,” said Morell. Since forming in 2000, Emery has embarked upon at least three national tours per year, sharing the stage with such artists as Chiodos, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Silverstein, Alexisonfire and Hawthorne Heights. Originally formed near Greenville, S.C., Emery is now spread throughout the U.S., with members in South Carolina, Illinois, Indiana, and Washington. “…In Shallow Seas We Sail” is Emery’s fifth release for Tooth & Nail Records. “The Weak's End” was released in 2004, followed by “The Question” in 2005 and “I'm Only A Man” in 2007. “While Broken Hearts Prevail…” was released in October of 2008. In addition to Toby Morrell, Devin Shelton, and Matt Carter, Emery includes Josh Head (keys, vocals) and Dave Powell (drums).
event::tags 21+
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