| |
Originally
three-sixths of a Yale University rock group that went by
the name of Larry and always had at least one more keg at
the gig than the next band, the nucleus of Thunderegg (Will
Georgantas, guitar/vocal; Jake Fournier, bass; Keith "Woodpile"
Woodfin, drums) has been playing together since the fall
of 1993, back when practice space was free in cellars and
activity rooms, the conga player didn't need to be miked
at all, and, for optimum efficiency, the bass, rhythm guitar,
and keyboards were all plugged into the same Peavey amp.
After
college, some geographical adjustments had to be made. Jimmy
quit, Jody got married. Jake moved west to Portland, and
in anticipation of a relocation, the band was renamed Thunderegg
after the official state rock of Oregon. But then Will,
who's basically a chicken, stayed in New York writing and
home-recording six CDs' worth of demos (hear some of them
here), and by 1998 Jake was
back just as everyone hoped. Oregon's official state rock
band now began making its nest in and around Hartford, Connecticut,
Jake's hometown. Its central base of operations became the
Shed, a studio built in nearby Manchester by friend and
recording engineer Nathan Gohla.
After
that the reunited, incubating Egg acquired some serious
gear, played shows in New York and parties in New Jersey,
got good reviews, consumed countless cases of domestic beer,
and recorded, with Nate at the controls, its full-band debut,
A Very Fine Sample of What's Available at the Mine.
The CD's 2005 release crossed paths with that year's Song
of the Week project, in which Will posted a new song to
the band's web site for 52 consecutive Mondays with only
a handful of missed deadlines. The best of that project
is compiled on the January 2007 CD This Week.
As for
all the songs that Will recorded before the release of A
Very Fine Sample, they were compiled on the January
2006 mp3 anthology Open Book, nearly nine hours of
newly mastered music on a CD-ROM featuring bonus tracks
and a deluxe, signed and numbered,108-page illustrated lyric
booklet.
Thunderegg
also has a live, six-piece incarnation that features Bob
Porri (pedal-steel and six-string guitar), Tim Kane (brass),
and Ken Moon (keyboards); the band has played venues all
around the Northeast, including the Mercury Lounge and Arlene's
Grocery in New York, Toad's Place in New Haven, and the
Webster Theater in Hartford.
Most recently, Thunderegg completed its second full-band album, which
was recorded both by Nathan and by Al Weatherhead (Sparklehorse,
Cracker, Hotel Lights, Jason Molina) at David Lowery's Sound
of Music Studios in Richmond, Virginia. Thunderegg II
remains Thunderegg's great unreleased record.
ARCHIVES
|
|