Dan Werb and Paul Banwatt, alongside producer Roger Leavens, are Woodhands -- a synth and drums duo intent on injecting the world of electro-pop with a dose of emotional intensity and a generous portion of glam rock swagger.
Known for their vivid live performances, free from the calculable presence of pre-recorded samples, laptops or other safety nets so aptly found in so many of their contemporaries, Woodhands compiles original dance tracks that rise forth from the pain of their own blood, sweat and tears. This innovative two-piece rely on monstrous drum patterns, speedy keytar licks, and punk rock lyricism guaranteed to overheat any room with a threshold of sound and complexity. Since the 2008 release of their debut album Heart Attack, Woodhands has received impressive accolades for both their recorded work and their relentless live performance, appearing on several ‘Best Of’ lists including a recent anointment as one of the '10 Best New Bands On Earth' by British tastemaker Q Magazine following their coverage of SXSW 2009.
After spending the past year and a half touring Canada, the United States, China, and Japan in support of Heart Attack, and delivering a slew of remixes and cover songs that have kept the party going strong, Woodhands is back with a stimulating plethora of darker, energetic dance tracks. The forthcoming sophomore offering from Woodhands, Remorsecapade, dives deeper into the emotional territory of Heart Attack, painting strangely compelling portraits of lost souls inhabiting the late night abyss of dance clubs (“I Should Have Gone With My Friends”), sweaty hand-holding (“Pockets”), and – of course – heartbreak, here described as ‘doubling’. The songs of Remorsecapade run from the deceptive bubble gum pop arrangement of “Dissembler” to the explosive punk rock/electro hybrid of “Coolchazine,” and throughout, Woodhands offers listeners a rich journey throughout the scorched landscape of what their sweaty brand of electronic has now become: Risky, emotionally resonant, and dangerously addictive.
"Blue Monday period New Order with the pop elements of Depeche Mode"
Q Magazine, June 2009: “The 10 Best New Bands On Earth”
"A whirlwind of synths and beats"
XLR8R "Video game sound influenced party starting, groove inflected, but dissident music that gets all the punk-type kids moving"
'SUP Magazine
By far the toppest of my tips is Woodhands. Energetic synthy new wave 'Montreal sound', but with added bite and more than a bit of Soulwax about it, their energetic show is the highlight of an above-average programme."
NME, Live Review
"If you combine recorded output with live shows, there might not be a better band around than Toronto's Woodhands." Chartattack
"Primal human emotion"
Alarm "Heart Attack’s love sexy electro jams are anything but dim-witted dance-floor fodder ..It’s an intense real-time approachthat hits hard and gives a whole new meaning to the term “banging.”
Exclaim!
"Woodhands‘ ... injects a bit of violence into the mix, scattering shards of synths across Grant‘s tale of political and economic flameout." Rock & Roll Daily, On Eddy Grant's "Electric Avenue" Cover
"A sweaty, two man disco party"
Brooklyn Vegan
"An electronic duo that dares to have fun"
The Star.Com
Track Listing:
1. Pockets
2. Talk
3. CP24
4. SLUTS!
5. Coolchazine
6. I Should Have Gone With My Friends
7. Dissembler
8. When The Party Is Over
9. I Want To Be Together
10. How To Survive A Remorsecapade (Outro)
DOWNLOAD FOR FREE THE NEW ELETRIKA "S.O.B./v3.1beta" (LIMITED) www.myspace.com/eletrika
"v3.1beta" is a NEW version of the EletriKa album "S.O.B." soon to be released in the North American market. It features re-recordings of the songs "Hey Mister" and "Give It Back" , which have been enriched by new arrangements and powerful interpretation by Ney Melo, new EletriKa singer. It also includes a new version of "Zombie Factory" with some new voice takes, new mix and mastering, and "Roda o Pe", a tune extracted from "V.S.F.", Eletrika's previous album. The other songs were completely re-mastered and have had some mix changes. We hope you enjoy "S.O.B./v3.1beta". Thanks a lot for the attention and support. Keep in touch.
Excellent article in MetroNews, "The third full-length in the canon aggressively picks up where 2008’s critically acclaimed Heart Attack left off, this time with a balance of coked-up (just an adjective!) momentum of gritty synths, relentless, sweaty drumming and emotionally invasive balladeering"
Nice mention of the Hillside Inside set in Exclaim Magazine "However, the most danceable set of the night came from Woodhands" and also the review of Remorsecapade "Their formula pushes the boundaries of dance rock, convincing it to go places that mainstream artists never visit. At the end of the night, everyone's sweaty and their heartbreak has been mended with a few dance moves"
Hey thakyou for being friends with n3rdy productions we are looking for new artist who want to get their music heard if you would like you music and bands info featured on WWW.N3rdyProductions.com please submit band/group bio and music to Get_Heard@N3rdyProductions.com we currently are accepting all genres of music thank you and we look forward to a great year full of great music...
Hi woodhands How are things? We have 2 tracks FREE for you to download from 22nd February at cinematicasounds.com Let us know if you like them?? Cheers! Cinematica
PEACE & BLESSINGS. AKASHIK ANCESORZ EP. FREE DOWNLOAD NOW AVAILABLE! http://www.bouriblog.com/bouriblog/releases/913-akashik-ancestorz-ep.html SUPPORT UNDERGROUND HIP HOP!