Christine Chung (a.k.a. Little Red) on vocals, theremin, costumes, glock, and keys
August August (a.k.a. Aug Horner) on guitar, some keys
Will Donis (a.k.a. Jack B. Nimble) on bass guitar,
Peter Park (a.k.a. Wolfie) on drums,
Phil Beskid (a.k.a. The Beanstalk) on woodwinds,
Jen Slotterback (a.k.a. The Cat and the Fiddle) on violin,
The Bo Peeps (Juli Rossi, Emi Fukuda, Amy Schmitz, Ellie Maybe) singing backup and playing various percussion,
... and many guests, including Devin Davis (theremin on our spooning buddies recording), as well as Mikey H. and Dustin Mertz as guest soloists.
Influences
Os Mutantes, Queen, Dolly Parton, The Left Banke, Cinerama, Rilo Kiley, The New Pornographers, Dresden Dolls, Poppy Family, T. Rex, The Detroit Cobras, Elton John, David Bowie, The Zombies, tons of garage, psychedelic, pop, "chicago local", and 90's girl rock influences.
Sounds Like
Fluffy things dancing... and crying... and dancing... and as you are about to cuddle they punch you in the face. Think: manic love songs for commitment-phobes.
Musically, the songs range from oldies-influenced pop with a charming old country twang, to cabaret-style rock symphonies that fall into tangible psychedelia, to pretty, jangly, glockenspiel-assisted pop, to rock-n-roll variations on Eastern Europia-influenced themes. What they do have in common is that every song has a feel (perhaps a desire) for simplicity, but taken apart, structurally, no song is nearly as simple as it would like to let on.
At a Little Red and the Hoods show, one would expect to see a spectacle. Even in rehearsal there is much dancing, costumes and a collage instruments. But this is not meant to overshadow the music. The philosophy of the band is to create a Magical Forest kind of experience for its audience… and not really in that hippie sense, either.
Once upon a time in a land far away, Little Red was walking through Wood Street, delivering melodies to Grandma, when an evil theremin put her under a terrible spell.
Days later, the spellbound Little Red was discovered by members of an assiduous gang of musicians called the Hoods.
“Let’s take her home with us. She can sleep in my bed,” said Aug Horner. He was a guitarist whose alter ego, Augie Horny, led to a shameful banishment (involving pies and plums) from Bostonia into Wood Street. With him was Jack B. Nimble, a bassist the size of a thimble, who had once played a costumed Crazy Horse with a Dirty Rug.
Down Wood Street they traversed, into the Hoods’ humble abode. Sleeping on the floor was Wolfie, exhausted from a day of rollicking high on the hills, on the grass, to the beat of his own drums. The Cat and the Fiddle wove around the sleeping beast, meowing lullabyes.
Cinderossi, with keys jangling from all pockets, danced to the entrance to introduce herself. “Hello, Little Red. I’m tickled ivory by the color of your hair. The Bo Peeps are in the kitchen, if you’d like a cup of harmony to get warm.”
“Thank you, but what I need most to control my spell is some fresh air.”
“We have just the trick,” the Hoods replied in unison, and led Little Red to the backyard where a giant beanstalk had sprouted. “Little Red, meet Beanstalk, our woodwind specialist. He is quite literally fresh air.”
The Beanstalk played his flute and Little Red looked around as Augie, Jack, Wolfie, the Cat and the Fiddle, Cinderossi, and the Bo Peeps joined in. Oh, the harmony! The manic dynamics! The costumes! The melodious Little Red knew, right then, that she could conquer her spell with these Hoods. This is where the fairy tale of Little Red and the Hoods begins.
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