There was no difference between the behavior of a god and the operations of pure chance. -Thomas Pynchon
'Want real local representation? Check out the Tenant, the new band headed by former Summerbirds in the Cellar frontman Brad Register. He’s long been one of this city’s premier songwriters, and in his new band he’s brought pure melodic strength to the fore with the kind of crisp, ’60s-influenced pop that the French adore for good reason. The band’s clean guitars, warm organs and snappy rhythmic turns showed more power and texture live (Oct. 6, Back Booth) than you’d expect from their pristine recordings. If they can keep spinning out shining pop diamonds like “The Stranger,” this band is going somewhere.'
-Bao Le-Huu (Orlando Weekly/Orlando, FL)
'One of the music business' greatest injustices is that while shit always seems to float to the top, too many of the bands that really deserve to make it just don't. Such was the frustrating story of Summerbirds in the Cellar, a band that always felt like it was just on the cusp of a breakthrough, a major signing or some big break. They had the fervent hometown following (both in Orlando and in Athens, where they temporarily relocated) and the unanimous critical acclaim, but the stars just never aligned perfectly in their favor. Summerbirds singer/guitarist Brad Register says the band was always waiting for a label to pull through to help fund their recording, and in the meantime they just toured and toured and toured.
"We toured so much we kind of forgot how to write together," he says. "There was a lot of tension… When Summerbirds split up we hadn't written a new song in, like, two years. We had a bunch of ideas for different songs, but for whatever reason, over the almost six years [we were together] we started wanting different things."
Add to those creative challenges the stress of legal trouble, and it's no wonder the band had to call it quits.
"We ran into a lot of legal trouble with our first label, and the guy turned out to be a real monster, and that kind of tore us apart, too," says Register. "Our first album barely saw the light of the day, and I don't know if our second album ever will... because he continues to threaten to fuck with us more if we ever try to do something with Summerbirds. I don't know how he got this power over our band, but he did."
Following the band's dissolution, Register settled into a new life in Orlando, refocusing his creative energies. He had a handful of songs that never made it as Summerbirds tunes and wanted the chance to develop those ideas on tape.
When he was ready to head to the studio, Register called up long-time friend local musician/producer Andy LeMaster. Register and LeMaster have a long, rich musical history together. Summerbirds first came to Athens to record with him after playing a show with LeMaster's band Now It's Overhead, and before long both Register and fellow Summerbird Curtis Brown joined Now It's Overhead on guitar and bass. Register was looking forward to working with LeMaster to record these lost Summerbirds tracks as a solo project.
But just a couple weeks before his planned trip to Athens, he met Orlando musicians Travis Reed and Chandler Strang and everything changed. Inspired by the potential for a fresh collaboration, Register reached out to old friend Dave Kazyk, who was set to join Summerbirds on bass right before the band split, and the foursome came up to Athens to record as The Tenant.
While the new bandmembers made their fair share of contributions, their time in Athens was limited, and so Register and LeMaster completed the project as a duo, with LeMaster laying down backing vocals. "It turned out to be mine and Andy's project, which I was happy to do, and it seemed like he was happy to do that, too… I really like working with Andy."
The resulting four-song EP Is Listening will be available online by the time The Tenant hits the road on its maiden tour.
The airy, dark textures on The Tenant's debut album will certainly resonate with Summerbirds fans, especially the song "The Stranger," whose thudding bass line and buzzing synth are particularly Summerbirds-like. LeMaster's breathy harmonies, though, give Is Listening a more organic, gentle vibe than Register's previous recordings. The EP feels effortless and intricate at the same time, full of ringing tones, intense rhythms and breezy melodies.'
Thanks so much for the add. Did you get a chance to check my page? Let your friends know to check out my page, Thanks Also, check out my page for detail on my show at Ice UltraLounge In ATL on Oct 16th! Everyone Free til 12AM!!!!
Do me a favor, please checkout and add Nycole Valentina at www.myspace.com/nycolevalentina, or Just click on the banner below:
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!
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hey! whats going on??? We just wanted to say hi and give you free download of our song "broken to Pieces." You can get it free over at purevolume.com/inviolenttimes Talk to you soon!... write back! - Bennett IVT!
Hey,
I hope all is well. Thanks for being a friend. Would you be interested
in a couple of FREE MP3's from our latest album? If yes, send me a
message with your email and Ill send some off.
hey ,tenant! thanks for your request . nice your song , melodic and groovy ,i like it my name is hide . i am in kawasaki ,japan . this is my clip . have a nice day
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