terry—vocals, hollow body guitars, piano and trumpet chris—hollow body 12-string and 6-string guitars, electric sitar, bells and backing vocals kari—hammond organ, electric piano and backing vocals greg—drum kit, percussion and backing vocals orlando—solid body bass and backing vocals
Influences
souvenirs, national parks, jazz, children, nostalgia, midnight walks in the greenbelt ...
“subdued dreamy melodies and sleepy tempos . . . a lovely, serene, psychedelic interlude” - HARP
“lush, densely layered slices of pop that awaken the senses , an Andy Partridge wet dream” - Paste
“big, bounding Wurlitzer chords and swirls of Mellotron, Hammond, and Chamberlin; languid verses balanced with jangling guitars, a sonic signature that demonstrate the band’s talent for songcraft.” - Pitchfork
“pop detailed so beyond orchestral that it’s better examined as architecture by a band full of top-notch songwriters whose most enduring challenge is only when to pronounce something perfect. Studied songs to sit beside Odesseys and Pet Sounds one day” - District Weekly
“full of sweet melodies and whispy, moody soundscapes, sort of how a jazz ensemble would sound if they took a lot of drugs, that just-woke-up, lying-in-bed feeling... this year's eerie soundtrack music for endless midnight drives to nowhere” - OC Weekly
The summer of 1976; three months set to a sound track of AM Radio. We would sing along with the songs from the backseat and secretly hope that our moms would just keep driving and that somehow our summer would never stop. A sunset nation where each day was full of endless possibilities; we had no plans and no expectations, but every single moment was somehow magical. This was the optimism of being young, as we remember a sound inspired by the experiences of growing up in California during the 1970's.
Hailing from the burghs of Long Beach, the band Greater California bring us a whole new distinct sound on their third album All the Colors. Produced with Ikey Owens (Mars Volta, Crystal Antlers) and includes an impressive list of guest musicians (most notably percussion genius Steven Hodges of Tom Waits and golden crooner Wayne Everett of The Lassie Foundation), All the Colors is a summertime landscape likened to the works of Brian Wilson, the Zombies, Harry Nilsson, the Velvet Underground and the Byrds, full of jangly 12-string guitars, rich vocal harmonies, a big bag of percussion, vibraphones and marimbas, a stray trumpet, and the ever inviting sounds of the hammond organ and wurlitzer electric piano.
With the first two releases, Greater California established their unique blend of sunshine pop and underlying psychedelia with critical acclaim, while sharing stages with such notable acts as Calexico, Cold War Kids, Quasi, Richard Swift, American Analog Set, The Tyde, The Kingsbury Manx, Crystal Antlers, Fruit Bats, The Minders and The Watson Twins.
Greater California's music is available at your favorite local record shop (through the able hands of Revolver distribution), online at Amazon.com, or for immediate online download, visit the iTunes Music store.
GREAT show last night at the Art Theatre. What a perfect venue to watch you guys perform. Congrats on the record. Can't wait to get our hands and ears on it.
