Artists
Biography
The Brothers Tapes are: Josh Grier (lead vocals / guitar), Jeremy Hanson (drums), Matt Kretzmann (keyboard / tamborine / backing-vocals), Erik Appelwick (bass / backing-vocals).
From the ‘City of Lakes’ (Minneapolis, Minnesota) far, far away comes a surprisingly weird and wonderful musical heritage, both eclectic and indispensable, Bob Dylan, Prince, Babes In Toyland - to name but a few.
Present day, the legacy continues with the new wave of obscenely talented whipper-snappers forming, making beautiful music and breaking-out, on the brink of spreading their talents Worldwide. I talk, of course, of none other than Tapes ‘n Tapes, highlights of this year’s SXSW festival, (nine packed-out, fun-filled gigs in four days and a whole lot of love from MTV, Radio 1, Music Week, NME, Rolling Stone and the New York Times, who joyously claimed, “Tapes ‘n Tapes were rhapsodic”). Hail Tapes ‘n Tapes, the new indie hopes and music’s future mavericks. But let’s start from the beginning....
....Spring-time 2003, Tapes ‘n Tapes began life with present members Josh and Matt. A few disasters with a shiny cd player - pre-programmed with fancy drumbeats - later and some bass guitarist re-shuffles and the ‘Brothers Tapes’ are as you find them today: Josh, Matt, Jeremy and Erik.
2004 saw their debut EP released. Though self-produced and recorded by a band with no experience past putting down 4-track demos, in a cold cabin-come-shed in the middle of Wisconsin Woods mid-Winter, Tapes ‘n Tapes had enough tunes to tour the States coast to coast alongside contemporaries including Futureheads, The Streets and Metric.
Long player ‘The Loon’ followed, being lovingly recorded in June 2005 at Short Man Studios, with close friend (and later fellow Tapes) Erik Appelwick. While Erik handled the recording, engineering and mixing, Tapes ‘n Tapes went into full-on indie DIY mode and handled the distribution, selling over 10,000 Stateside since it’s release on 1st November, all lovingly boxed and shipped from their bedroom to the many welcoming indie stores.
And the reaction? Number 21 on CMJ ‘s Top 200 in December 2005, rave press reviews, (“11 tracks stuffed with hook after addictively anthemic hook” – Pitchfork Media), a scrum of A&R people squeezing into their gigs at SXSW and a hotly anticipated UK tour planned for mid-May.
It seems the World is calling out for “left-of-centre, experimental indie” (NME), something “as loveable as it is bewildering” (Rolling Stone) and something that touches on our heroes, the basement indie of Pavement, the eclecticism of Talking Heads and frenzied power of the Pixies, but offers not some populist pastiche, but instead a vital, thrilling and unique blast of energy and melody like nothing you have ever heard before.
From the ‘City of Lakes’ (Minneapolis, Minnesota) far, far away comes a surprisingly weird and wonderful musical heritage, both eclectic and indispensable, Bob Dylan, Prince, Babes In Toyland - to name but a few.
Present day, the legacy continues with the new wave of obscenely talented whipper-snappers forming, making beautiful music and breaking-out, on the brink of spreading their talents Worldwide. I talk, of course, of none other than Tapes ‘n Tapes, highlights of this year’s SXSW festival, (nine packed-out, fun-filled gigs in four days and a whole lot of love from MTV, Radio 1, Music Week, NME, Rolling Stone and the New York Times, who joyously claimed, “Tapes ‘n Tapes were rhapsodic”). Hail Tapes ‘n Tapes, the new indie hopes and music’s future mavericks. But let’s start from the beginning....
....Spring-time 2003, Tapes ‘n Tapes began life with present members Josh and Matt. A few disasters with a shiny cd player - pre-programmed with fancy drumbeats - later and some bass guitarist re-shuffles and the ‘Brothers Tapes’ are as you find them today: Josh, Matt, Jeremy and Erik.
2004 saw their debut EP released. Though self-produced and recorded by a band with no experience past putting down 4-track demos, in a cold cabin-come-shed in the middle of Wisconsin Woods mid-Winter, Tapes ‘n Tapes had enough tunes to tour the States coast to coast alongside contemporaries including Futureheads, The Streets and Metric.
Long player ‘The Loon’ followed, being lovingly recorded in June 2005 at Short Man Studios, with close friend (and later fellow Tapes) Erik Appelwick. While Erik handled the recording, engineering and mixing, Tapes ‘n Tapes went into full-on indie DIY mode and handled the distribution, selling over 10,000 Stateside since it’s release on 1st November, all lovingly boxed and shipped from their bedroom to the many welcoming indie stores.
And the reaction? Number 21 on CMJ ‘s Top 200 in December 2005, rave press reviews, (“11 tracks stuffed with hook after addictively anthemic hook” – Pitchfork Media), a scrum of A&R people squeezing into their gigs at SXSW and a hotly anticipated UK tour planned for mid-May.
It seems the World is calling out for “left-of-centre, experimental indie” (NME), something “as loveable as it is bewildering” (Rolling Stone) and something that touches on our heroes, the basement indie of Pavement, the eclecticism of Talking Heads and frenzied power of the Pixies, but offers not some populist pastiche, but instead a vital, thrilling and unique blast of energy and melody like nothing you have ever heard before.