ARTIST: Up the Empire
TITLE: Seaside
LABEL: Cougar Label
GENRE: Indie
BITRATE: 195kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 13m total
RELEASE DATE: 2006-01-00
RIP DATE: 2006-02-07
Track List
----------
1. Careful What You Say 3:34
2. Stars at Noon 3:24
3. Starfuck 3:07
4. Recover 3:49
Release Notes:
http://www.uptheempire.com/
http://www.cougarlabel.com/
Up The Empire was formed in the summer of 2004 in
Brooklyn, NY. Though the band was previously known
as Kilowatthours, you'd be hard pressed to tell that it
was even the same band. Once light and atmospheric,
the band has now shifted all gears towards crunchy,
dynamic and tight rhythms with playful guitars and
super melodic vocals (often with the entire band
singing together).
While Kilowatthours was singularly and softly voiced
by singer/guitarist Chris Renn, Up The Empire now
opens things up to multiple voices allowing room not
just for the softness and desperation of Chris's voice,
but for singer/bassist Dan HewinsÆ aggressive, almost
J. Robbins-ish, voice and singer/guitarist Doug Keith's
rattling, J. Mascis type voice to saturate the songs as
well. According to Keith, "People say that we sound
like what would happen if Dinosaur Jr. kicked Queens
of the Stone Age's ass and then went out back to
party with Oneida and Deerhoof."
In fact, the only member of the band that's not always
attached to a mic is drummer Ben Lord. He's a hardhitting
drum-pounding machine whose sound is often
described as being Bonham-esque, making little to no
time to worry about vocals. Prior to Up The Empire
and Kilowatthours, Ben was the drummer for
Louisville's post-hardcore darlings Elliott and before
that, Falling Forward.
Up The Empire has been recording their debut
release, the Seaside EP (released Feb 07, 2006), with
various producers over the course of the past year.
For "Stars at Noon" the band went to Dean Baltulonis
(The Explosion, Paint It Black) at Atomic Studios; for
"Starfuck" and "Recover" Jay Pellicci (Deerhoof,
Erase Errata) flew in from San Francisco to work with
the band at Seaside Studios; and for the big and open
"Careful What You Say" the band recorded themselves
in their Brooklyn rehearsal space, where they could
best capture the laid back, yet intense, nature of the
song.
The Seaside EP is full of stick-in-your head dynamic
noise-rock tunes that alternate in tone from intense
and moody to airy and upbeat, and all with lyrics that
arenÆt afraid to let it all hang out. From the quiet and
brooding disc opener "Careful What You Say" to loud
and bone-crushing "Stars at Noon", Up The Empire is
just giving you a little taste of what theyÆre capable of.