Hopewell (band)

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Hopewell
Hopewell-06.jpg
Hopewell, in Staten Island, New York in 2008
Background information
Origin Hopewell Junction, New York; Brooklyn, New York, United States
Genres Psychedelic rock
Labels Tee Pee Records, Star Mole (Japan), Burnt Hair, Priapus, Sunnylane
Associated acts The Silent League, Mercury Rev, Wounded Knees, Common Prayer, Gay for Johnny Depp, Grand Mal, Whip, Pete International Airport
Website Official Website
Members Jason Russo
Jay Green
Rich Meyer
Tyson Lewis
Lyndon Roeller
Past members Justin Russo
Dalia Garih
Reno Bo
Phil Williams
Marc Boudria

Hopewell is an American rock band. The band was founded by Jason Sebastian Russo, of Hopewell Junction, New York. At 19, Russo joined Mercury Rev, and then struck out on his own with a band named after his hometown. [1]

Jason Sebastian Russo American musician

Jason Sebastian Russo is a rock musician. He was a member of Mercury Rev from 1994 to 2001, and rejoined in 2011 for the Don't Look Back concert series Deserter's Songs reunion tour. He founded the psychedelic rock band Hopewell in high school. Hopewell has since been constantly recording and touring. They released their fifth full-length album "Good Good Desperation" on Tee Pee Records in 2009. He is also leader of the band Common Prayer.

Hopewell Junction, New York Census-designated place in New York, United States

Hopewell Junction is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 376 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined Statistical Area.

Mercury Rev band

Mercury Rev is an American indie rock band formed in 1989 in Buffalo, New York. Original personnel were David Baker (vocals), Jonathan Donahue, Sean Mackowiak, known as "Grasshopper", Suzanne Thorpe (flute), Dave Fridmann (bass) and Jimy Chambers (drums).

Contents

Career

History

In 1995, seminal Detroit-based space rock label Burnt Hair Records released the band's first single, a split with Michigan-based drone-ambient group Windy & Carl. Hopewell's first full-length, Contact, came out on Burnt Hair in 1997. [2] Their second release, 2001's The Curved Glass , led to European distribution, festival appearances and a John Peel session. What followed was a transition period of line-up and stylistic changes. Most notable was the loss of Dalia Garih as drummer. After regrouping, the band signed to Tee Pee Records and released Hopewell & The Birds Of Appetite , produced by Dave Fridmann of Flaming Lips fame at Tarbox Road Studios. Its follow-up, Beautiful Targets , produced by Fridmann protégé Bill Racine, was released in 2007 and its symphonic rock leanings were often compared to Mercury Rev and the Flaming Lips. [3]

Burnt Hair Records was a record label involved with Michigan's space rock alternative music scene in the 1990s. The label is said to have been most responsible for cultivating the Detroit sound of this period. Burnt Hair recorded artists in various experimental genres also known by appellations such as indie pop, indie rock, ambient music, drone music, dream pop and electronica. The label was founded by Larry Hofmann in Dearborn. Burnt Hair released recordings by artists and bands including Windy & Carl, Hopewell, Mahogany, Ten Second Dynasty, Miss Bliss, Tomorrowland, DELTA WAVES, Starphase 23, Füxa, Auburn Lull, Monaural (Band), Gravity Wax, Asha Vida, Flowchart and Alison's Halo.

Windy & Carl is an ambient group in Dearborn, Michigan.

John Peel English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist

John Robert Parker Ravenscroft,, known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004.

The band's 2009 release, Good Good Desperation , took them in a heavier direction, aligned by critics with Pink Floyd's Meddle and Can's Tago Mago . [4]

Pink Floyd English rock band

Pink Floyd were an English rock band formed in London in 1965. They achieved international acclaim with their progressive and psychedelic music. Distinguished by their philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, extended compositions, and elaborate live shows, they are one of the most commercially successful and influential groups in popular music history.

Can (band) German experimental rock band

Can was a German experimental rock band formed in Cologne, West Germany, in 1968 by the core quartet of Holger Czukay (bass), Irmin Schmidt (keyboards), Michael Karoli (guitar), and Jaki Liebezeit (drums). The group cycled through several vocalists, including Malcolm Mooney (1968–70) and Damo Suzuki (1970–73), as well as various temporary members. Drawing from backgrounds in the avant-garde and jazz, Can incorporated minimalist, electronic, and world music elements into their often psychedelic and funk-inflected music. They have been widely hailed as pioneers of the German krautrock scene.

<i>Tago Mago</i> 1971 studio album by Can

Tago Mago is the third album by the German krautrock band Can, originally released as a double LP in 1971. It was the band's second studio album and the first to feature Damo Suzuki after the 1970 departure of previous vocalist Malcolm Mooney. Recorded in a rented castle near Cologne, the album features long-form experimental tracks blending funk rhythms, avant-garde noise, jazz improvisation, and electronic tape editing techniques.

A selective list of bands Hopewell has performed or toured with: My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Dandy Warhols, Nicole Atkins, The Sleepy Jackson, British Sea Power, The Comas, The Black Angels, Goldrush, Mark Gardener, Mike Watt, The Posies, The Lovetones, Garth Hudson, Adam Franklin, The Joy Formidable, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and others.

My Bloody Valentine (band) Irish alternative rock band

My Bloody Valentine are an Irish-English rock band formed in Dublin in 1983. Since 1987, its lineup has consisted of founding members Kevin Shields and Colm Ó Cíosóig, with Bilinda Butcher and Debbie Googe (bass). Their music is best known for its merging of dissonant guitar textures with ethereal melody and unorthodox production techniques. They helped to pioneer the alternative rock subgenre known as shoegazing during the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Sonic Youth alternative rock band formed in New York, New York, United States

Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore, Kim Gordon and Lee Ranaldo remained together for the entire history of the band, while Steve Shelley (drums) followed a series of short-term drummers in 1985, and rounded out the core line-up.

The Dandy Warhols American alternative rock band

The Dandy Warhols are an American alternative rock band, formed in Portland, Oregon in 1994 by singer-guitarist Courtney Taylor-Taylor and guitarist Peter Holmström. They were later joined by keyboardist Zia McCabe and drummer Eric Hedford. Hedford left in 1998 and was replaced by Taylor-Taylor's cousin Brent DeBoer. The band's name is a play on the name of American pop artist Andy Warhol.

In 2009, Hopewell was tapped to perform at All Tomorrow's Parties, curated by psych-rock superstars, The Flaming Lips. Performers on the bill included The Flaming Lips, Sufjan Stevens, The Jesus Lizard, No Age with Bob Mould performing Hüsker Dü, Super Furry Animals, Animal Collective, Iron & Wine, Panda Bear, Dirty Three with Nick Cave, Suicide, The Feelies, The Drones, David Cross, Deerhunter, Melvins, Boss Hog, El-P, Dead Meadow, Akron/Family, Sleepy Sun, Black Dice, Antipop Consortium, Autolux, Atlas Sound, Bridezilla, Shellac, Grouper and Circulatory System, Boredoms, Caribou Vibration Ensemble, Deerhoof with Martha Colburn, Crystal Castles, Boris, The Low Lows, Oneida, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Menomena and Birds of Avalon.[ citation needed ]

All Tomorrow's Parties was an organisation based in London that promoted music festivals, concerts and records throughout the world for over ten years. It was founded by Barry Hogan, in 2001 in preparation for the first All Tomorrow's Parties Festival, the line-up of which was picked by Mogwai and took place at Pontins, Camber Sands, England. Named after the song "All Tomorrow's Parties" by The Velvet Underground, the festival exhibited a tendency towards post-rock, avant-garde, and underground hip hop, along with more traditional rock fare presented in smaller venues than typical stadium performances. It was at first a sponsorship-free festival where the organisers and artists stay in the same accommodation as the fans. It claimed to set itself apart from festivals like Reading or Glastonbury by staying intimate, non-corporate and fan-friendly. Another difference was the line-ups being chosen by significant bands or artists, resulting in unorthodox events which often combined acts of all sizes, eras, and genres.

The Flaming Lips American rock band

The Flaming Lips are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The group recorded several albums and EPs on an indie label, Restless, in the 1980s and early 1990s. After signing to Warner Brothers, they released their first record with Warner, Hit to Death in the Future Head (1992). They later released The Soft Bulletin (1999), which was NME magazine's Album of the Year, and then Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (2002). In February 2007, they were nominated for a BRIT Award for "Best International Act". The group has won three Grammy Awards, including two for Best Rock Instrumental Performance. They were placed on Q magazine 's list of the "50 Bands to See Before You Die" in 2002.

Sufjan Stevens American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist

Sufjan Stevens is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His debut album A Sun Came was released in 1999 on the Asthmatic Kitty label, which he cofounded with his stepfather. He received wide recognition for his 2005 album Illinois, which hit number one on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart, and for the single "Chicago" from that album. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song and a Grammy Award nomination for Best Song Written for Visual Media for "Mystery of Love" from the movie Call Me by Your Name.

Film and TV

Hopewell's music has appeared on the soundtracks for films including Tarnation and PsychoGuru (Tribeca Film Festival selection 2011), [5] and television shows including One Tree Hill and Greek . Other notable appearances include skate videos by Viceland, [6] Thrasher magazine [7] and Converse, as well as the seminal Birdhouse Skateboards film The Beginning.

<i>Tarnation</i> (2003 film) 2003 film by Jonathan Caouette

Tarnation is a 2003 American documentary film by Jonathan Caouette. The film was created by Caouette from over 20 years of hundreds of hours of old Super 8 footage, VHS videotape, photographs, and answering machine messages to tell the story of his life and his relationship with his mentally ill mother Renee.

Tribeca Film Festival annual film festival held in New York, USA

The Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) is a prominent film festival held in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan, showcasing a diverse selection of independent films. Since its inaugural year in 2002, it has become a recognized outlet for independent filmmakers in all genres to release their work to a broad audience.

<i>One Tree Hill</i> (TV series) American television drama series

One Tree Hill is an American television drama series created by Mark Schwahn, which premiered on September 23, 2003, on The WB. After the series' third season, The WB merged with UPN to form The CW, and from September 27, 2006, the series was broadcast by The CW in the United States until the end of its run in 2012. The show is set in the fictional town of Tree Hill in North Carolina and initially follows the lives of two half-brothers, Lucas Scott and Nathan Scott, who compete for positions on their school's basketball team, and the drama that ensues from the brothers' romances.

Recent work

On November 2, 2010, Hopewell released the first volume of a two-part live album, Hopewell Live , recorded between Truck Festival America (2010) and All Tomorrow's Parties, New York in 2009. The first of the two volumes features several songs from Hopewell's fifth full-length, Good Good Desperation (2009, Tee Pee Records) and was released to correspond with the band's US tour supporting The Dandy Warhols. [8] In 2012 Hopewell released the Another Music EP, the lead single of which is a cover of Brian Eno's Needle In The Camel's Eye featuring Mark Gardener of the band Ride on lead vocals. [9]

Albums

Related Research Articles

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Justin Russo is a singer-songwriter-guitarist-pianist from Upstate New York. Russo began his career as a musician at the age of 18 by joining his older brother's band Hopewell, which focused mainly on psychedelic rock balladry and lengthy "shoegazing" soundscapes. After releasing their first record Contact on Burnt Hair Records, both brothers took a break from their own project and joined indie/experimental band Mercury Rev.

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References

  1. "Getting Personal With Jason Russo". Archived from the original on 2010-08-15.
  2. "Hopewell Discography at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  3. "Hopewell: Beautiful Targets | Album Reviews". Pitchfork. 2007-08-16. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  4. [ dead link ]
  5. Archived September 24, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Viceland - Sabotage Is Part Of The Game".
  7. "Thrasher Magazine - Prevent This Tragedy (2009)". Skately Library. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  8. "Live Music | New York Music Events & Concerts | Time Out New York". Newyork.timeout.com. Retrieved 2014-07-03.
  9. Schumacher, Owen (2012-09-20). "Hopewell – Another Music EP | mxdwn.com Reviews". Mxdwn.com. Retrieved 2014-07-03.