Fishboy is a four-piece eccentric indie pop band from Denton, TX that began as the bedroom solo project of front man Eric Michener. He was given the nickname on a middle-school field trip after a dare to pluck and swallow a fish at the Dallas World Aquarium. Six years and several shoe boxes full of cassette tapes later, Michener moved from the suburbs to the Texas rock-and-roll Mecca of Denton with a handful of low budget recordings released by the close-knit Austin music collective Business Deal Records. It’s here that the little project became a full-fledged rock band that has since taken on several forms, the most current of which meshes the band’s lo-fi twee pop roots with a loud, energetic rhythm section topped with the occasional horn, piano, or organ, the result of which is somewhere along the lines of fellow Texans Daniel Johnston and Britt Daniel (Spoon) joining the Danielson Famile to play for Anthony Daniels (C3PO) and Daniel Day Lewis (moustache) as they both drink Jack Daniels on a Sunday afternoon.
Since 2005 the band has toured across the nation more than a few times and has walked away with a couple of broken vans and a few gold nuggets, the first of which is a partnership with the Athens, Georgia label Happy Happy Birthday To Me Records. The second is a greater appreciation of their home, the folks that surround them, and the rich history of Texas music. These themes run deep through the band’s new album, Albatross: How We Failed To Save The Lone Star State With The Power Of Rock And Roll, a record that Michener calls “a rock opera about how myself, the band, and the ghost of Buddy Holly attempt to save Texas by going on a tour/crime spree in order to perform all 8,030 of the songs I've written in my sleep since I was in the womb.”
Here are some kind things people have said about ALBATROSS:
"Like the Who if the Who were four skinny kids with a surprisingly wiry strength and a predilection for wearing headbands."
-ALLMUSIC
“what may stand up to be one of the best records of the decade”
-RETROLOWFI
Fishboy is perhaps ill-prepared for taking on the second largest state in the United States by themselves but they’re quite capable of smashing out a few amazing pop hooks or two.
-SMOTHER
"this is eleven blasts of sugar rush indie power pop."
-75ORLESS
"It's nice to come across a band that genuinely makes you laugh and enjoy life. Fishboy does that and more."
PASTA PRIMAVERA
"After a brilliant story, beautifully written and performed songs, a concept that will touch your heart and make you fall in love; how can you not love this band and this album? Were this Ebert and Roeper, it would be two thumbs way up (hell, they'd throw in the other two just for fun to make it four). Were it a play it would receive massive cheers from the crowd and a standing ovation. Were it a charity, I’d give a million dollars if I had a million to give. Were this site to have ratings out of 10, my answer would be 10 ten times over."
-FENSEPOST
"Albatross stands as one of the finest rock albums to come out of Texas this year, loaded with loud guitars, catchy melodies, and fun verses."
KERA.ORG
"1 Album of 2007:
...But what's more important is that underneath all of this manic energy is a batch of amazingly catchy songs with clever lyrics,. Basically, this is one of the best records released this year, and deserving of any and all praise heaped upon it. MTQ=11/11"
INDIE PAGES
"Creating good lo-fi pop/rock music isn't an easy task, yet Fishboy have produced an entire album's worth of material that makes it seem easier to do than swallowing a fish. Gulp!"
I GUESS I'M FLOATING
Please read about our many exploits over at the FISHBLOG
Please view our many videos onYOUTUBE
andVIMEO
Hey! Take a listen to a preview of a new song "Hearts and Minds" on our upcoming EP released later this year, its less than a minute long so please take a listen and tell us what you think :D
So I was on muxtape.com the other day listening to some random artists. I got to the "F" section and the name "Fishboy" seemed to be accompanied by spotlights and confetti and I instantaneously knew that this was gonna be a winner. I decided to click on it and BOOM. Fell in love. I'm definitely gonna try and make it to one of your guys' shows when you come to the west coast (:
And also- the artwork, it's amazing and it's genius and I love it!
Ive been searching on myspace for people with similar music tastes as me. Im trying to single out the people that would most likely like my music. So check out my music and let me know if my strategy is working!
The album Worth The Weight by Sugarlust is available now on iTunes worldwide and Amazon MP3 worldwide aswell as other great MP3 stores. It should be available on CD soon from Amazon On Demand. You can listen to it now on Myspace on the Widget on the left hand side of our page. Thanks!
Online Now!
