Brandon Curtis | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Genres | Alternative rock |
Instrument(s) | vocals, bass, keyboard |
Years active | 2000–present |
Labels |
Brandon Curtis is the vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist in the space rock band The Secret Machines. Originally from Norman, Oklahoma, he was friends with members of The Flaming Lips, The Chainsaw Kittens and Tripping Daisy. Brandon and his brother Benjamin moved to Dallas and formed The Secret Machines in the early 2000s with drummer Josh Garza. The trio later moved to New York City, where Benjamin eventually left the band to pursue a career in his previous side project, School of Seven Bells.
Brandon's atmospheric keyboard style shows signs of influence from 1970s Krautrock bands like Can as well as progressive rock artists such as Pink Floyd, Hawkwind, and Roxy Music. [1]
Brandon Curtis and his brother Ben also formed UFOFU with Joseph Butcher, touring locally and recording several albums between 1993 and 1997. [2] Brandon was in Captain Audio as well, where he first played with Secret Machines' drummer Josh Garza.
Curtis performed lead vocals on "Don't Fall Softly", a track by UK synthpop band Filthy Dukes which appears on their 2009 release "Nonsense In the Dark". He also mixed/produced two records by South African rock band BLK JKS.
In June 2010, Curtis joined the touring lineup of Interpol, on keyboards and vocals. [3] In 2012, Brandon joined Interpol front man Paul Banks' live band, and he contributed to Banks' 2012 EP entitled "Julian Plenti Lives...".
Curtis contributed to the production, recording, and mixing of EmptyMansions debut album "snakes/vultures/sulfate", released in April 2013. EmptyMansions is the side project of Interpol drummer Sam Fogarino. Curtis toured with EmptyMansions in Spring 2013, on bass/vocals.
Curtis has produced three albums for the American post-metal band Russian Circles: Geneva (2009), Empros (2011) and Memorial (2013). [4]
On October 30, 2013, Curtis' new band Cosmicide released a new song entitled "Talos' Corpse" and announced a few US tour dates. [5] "Talos' Corpse" was written/produced by Brandon Curtis and mixed by Claudius Mittendorfer, who has previously worked with Paul Banks, Johnny Marr, Kaiser Chiefs, and more.
Brandon's brother Benjamin died at the end of 2013.
Cosmicide played three live shows in early 2015 (Philadelphia, Providence RI and Teaneck NJ), playing a nine-song setlist, including Talos' Corpse, consisting mostly of songs from material that is recorded and in a finished state but unreleased. In addition to Brandon, the band consisted of drums, a second keyboardist, and a guitarist.
In August of 2020, The Secret Machines released an album titled "Awake in the Brain Chamber". Curtis performed keyboard and vocals on the album. [6]
Eric Victor Burdon is an English singer-songwriter. He was previously the lead vocalist of R&B and rock band The Animals and funk band War. He is regarded as one of the British Invasion's most distinctive singers with his deep, powerful blues-rock voice. He is also known for his aggressive stage performances.
Interpol is an American rock band from Manhattan, New York. Formed in 1997, their original line-up consisted of Paul Banks, Daniel Kessler, Carlos Dengler, and Greg Drudy (drums). Drudy left the band in 2000 and was replaced by Sam Fogarino. Dengler left to pursue other projects in 2010, with Banks taking on the additional role of bassist instead of hiring a new one.
Turn On the Bright Lights is the debut studio album by American rock band Interpol. It was released in the United Kingdom on August 19, 2002, and in the United States the following day, through independent record label Matador Records. The album was recorded in November 2001 at Tarquin Studios in Connecticut, and was co-produced, mixed and engineered by Peter Katis and Gareth Jones. Its title is taken from a repeated line in the song "NYC".
The Babys are a British rock group best known for their songs "Isn't It Time" and "Every Time I Think of You". Both songs were composed by Jack Conrad and Ray Kennedy, and each reached No. 13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 8 on the Cashbox chart in the late 1970s. The original Babys line-up consisted of founding member keyboardist/guitarist Michael Corby, and, in order of joining the group, vocalist/bassist John Waite, drummer Tony Brock, and guitarist Wally Stocker.
Secret Machines are an American alternative rock band, originally from Dallas, Texas, United States, before moving to New York City. The original lineup consisted of two brothers, Brandon and Benjamin Curtis, and Josh Garza (drums). Benjamin left the band in March 2007 to focus on his work with School of Seven Bells, and was replaced on guitar by Phil Karnats. The re-activated band is a two-piece, with the remaining members being Brandon Curtis and Josh Garza.
The Buckinghams are an American sunshine pop band from Chicago. They formed in 1966 and went on to become one of the top-selling acts of 1967, charting their only five top 40 hits in the U.S. that year. The band dissolved in 1970, but re-formed in 1980 and as of 2022 they continue to tour throughout the United States.
Julien-K is an American electronic rock band based in Long Beach, California, that began as a side project for electronic music created by Amir Derakh and Ryan Shuck from Orgy, alongside Anthony 'Fu' Valcic.
Samuel J. Coomes is an American musician, and one-half of the Portland-area indie band Quasi, along with his ex-wife, drummer Janet Weiss. Coomes was also a member of the mid-1980s underground pop band The Donner Party and replaced Brandt Peterson as the bassist for the 1990s Portland indie rock band, Heatmiser, playing on their final studio album, Mic City Sons.
Samuel Joseph Fogarino is the drummer of the band Interpol. He has played in bands such as the Holy Terrors, Gus, the Wahoos, Napoleon Solo, the Ton-ups and the Last Night.
Now Here is Nowhere is the debut studio album by American rock band Secret Machines. It was released on May 18, 2004. The songs on the album are reminiscent of Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, with krautrock and shoegazing influences.
September 000 is the first EP by the American rock band The Secret Machines.
The Road Leads Where It's Led is The Secret Machines' second EP, released in 2005. In addition to the title-track, a single from their first album, Now Here Is Nowhere, the EP includes several cover versions, including Van Morrison's "Astral Weeks" and Bob Dylan's "Girl From the North Country," and a new song called "Better Bring Your Friends."
Ten Silver Drops is the second full-length album by the American rock band The Secret Machines. It was released exclusively through the iTunes Music Store on February 28, 2006, while the street date for the CD was April 25, 2006. The first single from the album, "Alone, Jealous and Stoned", was released in the United Kingdom on January 16, 2006, and in the US shortly thereafter. On January 29, 2006, Ten Silver Drops leaked onto file sharing websites following the release of the album's lead single in the UK.
The Cross were an English rock band formed in 1987 by Queen drummer Roger Taylor.
Josh Garza is an American musician and drummer for the New York City–based rock band The Secret Machines, as well as the Los Angeles–based rock band EFG. Originally from the Dallas, Texas area, Garza formed the Secret Machines with brothers Ben and Brandon Curtis, and EFG with guitarist and vocalist, Imaad Wasif, later joined by bassist and engineer, Tom Biller.[1] He was part of the original lineup for the noise pop band COMET, and in the late 1990s, Captain Audio.[2]
School of Seven Bells was an American indie rock band from New York City, formed in 2007. It originally consisted of Alejandra Deheza, her sister Claudia Deheza and Benjamin Curtis. Claudia left the group in 2010, and Curtis died of lymphoma in 2013. Using demos of songs Curtis had written prior to and during his illness, the band's fourth and final album, SVIIB, was completed posthumously and released in February 2016.
Secret Machines is the third album by the alternative group The Secret Machines. The band self-released the follow-up to 2006's Ten Silver Drops in the US on October 14 and it was scheduled for release in Europe in mid-January 2009. The album was recorded in New York City and produced by the band and Brandon Mason. It is their first album with the band's new guitarist Phil Karnats, who replaced Benjamin Curtis after he left the group in March 2007.
UFOFU was a rock band based in Dallas, Texas. The band consisted of Joseph Butcher, and brothers Brandon Curtis and Ben Curtis. It rose to local prominence in the mid-1990s through word of mouth and slots opening for other north Texas bands such as Hagfish and Tripping Daisy. While touring, the band opened for Local H, Smoking Popes, The Geraldine Fibbers and Spacehog.
Riot House Records is an independent record label specializing in rock, indie, and punk bands.
Crown the Empire is an American metalcore band formed in 2010 in Dallas, Texas. They have released one EP and four studio albums.