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John Dwyer | |
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Background information | |
Also known as | Damaged Bug |
Born | October 3, 1974 |
Origin | Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
Genres | Garage rock, punk rock, noise rock, psychedelic rock |
Occupations | Musician, songwriter, producer |
Instruments | Vocals, guitar, bass guitar, drums, percussion, keyboards, flute, clarinet, trumpet, cello, synths |
Years active | 1997–present |
Labels | Castle Face Records, In The Red Records, Load Records, Narnack Records |
John Dwyer is an American multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter, visual artist, and record label owner. He is best known as the founding member and primary songwriter of the garage rock band Osees, with whom he has released 23 studio albums. In addition to his work with Osees, Dwyer records solo material under the name "Damaged Bug". From 2020-2021, Dwyer released several improvisation-based records with a rotating collective of different artists, including "Bent Arcana", "Witch Egg", "Endless Garbage", "Moon Drenched" and "Gong Splat". [1] He is also a former member of the garage rock acts Coachwhips, Pink and Brown and The Hospitals.
Dwyer is currently based in Los Angeles, California, although for much of his career he was based in San Francisco, California. Dwyer is originally from Providence, Rhode Island, where he first began playing.
He has been in and fronted several underground American bands since 1997. [2] In 2003, John Dwyer met Brian Lee Hughes while he was filming Rock Star Scars, which Dwyer contributed Coachwhips music to, as well as having a part in the film. In 2006, Dwyer met Matt Jones at a party, and together, with Brian Lee Hughes, they founded Castle Face Records. [3] John Dwyer was one of the curators of the Dutch festival Le Guess Who in November 2021. [4]
As OCS
As The Oh Sees
As Thee Oh Sees
As Oh Sees
As Osees
Coachwhips was a garage rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 2001. The band consisted of John Dwyer, John Harlow (drums) and Mary Ann McNamara. In their second incarnation, Val-Tronic played keyboard/tambourine, and Matt Hartman played drums.
Osees is an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1997, now based in Los Angeles, California. Originally the solo recording project of John Dwyer, the band has evolved through numerous line-up and name changes since its founding, with Dwyer serving as the band leader and primary songwriter throughout. Alongside Dwyer, the band's current line-up includes longtime members, Tim Hellman (bass), Dan Rincon (drums), Paul Quattrone (drums) and Tomas Dolas (keyboards).
Pink and Brown was a noise rock/punk rock band from San Francisco, California, formed in 1997 when the members moved west from their old home of Providence, Rhode Island. The band consisted of Pink and Brown. Pink played guitar and sang while Brown played drums. The band was influenced by the sounds and styles of bands such as Olneyville Sound System and Lightning Bolt.
Narnack Records is an independent record label founded in 2000. The label developed in New York City's underground music scene and quickly became known for its ability for developing new artists Coachwhips, OCS, Langhorne Slim, Thee Oh sees, ACID, Spiders & Hearts, Higgs, while also working with established bands like the Fall and the Slits, Lee "Scratch" Perry Narnack became home for a diversified group of musicians working with a wide variety of artists, from garage rock, alternative and punk to Americana, folk and dub/reggae.
Brigid Dawson is a musician who sings and plays keyboard and tambourine for Thee Oh Sees. She is noted for her "whimsical" harmonies and is credited with helping front man John Dwyer write melodies. Reviewing a show they played in New York, Impose Magazine wrote, "Brigid Dawson's backing vocals are the band's silver lining". Soundscapes noted in an album review, "Once again, Dwyer’s secret weapon is Brigid Dawson, whose vocal interplay gives them a leg-up in the male-dominated garage rock scene." Her voice has been compared to Kim Deal and Exene Cervenka, among others.
Warm Slime is the tenth studio album by American psychedelic rock band Thee Oh Sees, released on May 11, 2010. The album is the fourth to be released under the name Thee Oh Sees, and is the band's tenth studio album, overall.
Castlemania is the eleventh studio album by the American garage rock band Thee Oh Sees, the fifth album released by the band under the name "Thee Oh Sees" and their eleventh overall. It was released on May 20, 2011, by In The Red Records. It was the first of two studio albums to be made by the band in 2011, the other being Carrion Crawler/The Dream, which was released in November. It was recorded by a skeleton lineup of John Dwyer and Brigid Dawson along with some guest musicians.
Carrion Crawler/The Dream is the twelfth studio album by San Francisco-based garage rock band Thee Oh Sees. It was released on November 8, 2011, by In the Red Records. Despite the running time of the album being comparable or greater than most of their other full-length releases, the vinyl editions state that it is an EP.
The Cool Death of Island Raiders is the fifth studio album by the American garage rock band Osees, released on March 7, 2006, on Narnack Records. Co-produced by TV on the Radio members Dave Sitek and Kyp Malone, the album was released under the names, The Ohsees and The Oh Sees, and is the first studio album to feature backing vocalist and future keyboardist Brigid Dawson.
2 is the second studio album by American garage rock band Osees, released on June 14, 2004, on Narnack Records. Released under the name, OCS, the album was recorded entirely by John Dwyer as a side-project to his then-primary band, Coachwhips.
Songs About Death & Dying: Vol. 3 is the third studio album by American garage rock act Osees, released on May 30, 2005, on Narnack Records. Released under the name, OCS, the album was recorded as a duo by John Dwyer and drummer Patrick Mullins, and features experimental freak folk songs.
OCS 4: Get Stoved is the fourth studio album by American garage rock act Osees, released on May 30, 2005, on KimoSciotic Records. Released under the name, OCS, the album was recorded as a duo by John Dwyer and drummer Patrick Mullins, and features experimental freak folk songs.
American garage rock band Osees have released twenty-eight studio albums, two live albums, four compilation albums, eight extended plays (EPs), thirteen singles, and thirteen music videos.
Ty Segall is the self-titled debut studio album by American garage rock musician Ty Segall, released on December 9, 2008, on Castle Face Records. A cassette edition was released on Burger Records.
Sucks Blood is the sixth studio album by the American garage rock band Osees, released on May 15, 2007, on Castle Face Records. The album is the band's second to be released under the name The Oh Sees, and is their final album before changing their name to Thee Oh Sees.
Death God Records is an American independent record label, founded in 2006 by John Dwyer, Matt Jones and Brian Lee Hughes.
Nick Murray is an American drummer. He is best known as a member of the garage rock band White Fence, and as a former member of Thee Oh Sees, with whom he recorded two studio albums. Murray has also been a frequent collaborator of Tim Presley, as well as Welsh singer-songwriter Cate Le Bon, contributing to her solo album, Mug Museum (2013) and with 'DRINKS' (2015), a collaborative project with White Fence's Tim Presley and Cate Le Bon. Murray has also toured with Mikal Cronin and Gold Star.
Protean Threat is the twenty-third studio album by American garage rock band Osees, released on September 18, 2020, on Castle Face Records. Following the band's previous album, double LP Face Stabber, frontman John Dwyer has said that he intended for Protean Threat to be much like a punk album, shorter in length and composed primarily of short songs. It is the band's first full-length album to be released under the name Osees.
Witch Egg is the debut album by Witch Egg, a side project of Osees' John Dwyer. The album was released on January 22, 2021, via Rock Is Hell Records. The lineup for the album includes Dywer, drummer Nick Murray, saxophonist Brad Caulkins, keyboardist Tom Dolas, and bassist Greg Coates. It was preceded by two singles, "Greener Pools" and "City Maggot", and was received positively by critics.
Metamorphosed is the twenty-fourth studio album by American garage rock band Osees, released on October 16, 2020, by Rock Is Hell Records. The album is a mix of songs recorded for the band's 2019 album Face Stabber as well as jam sessions recorded in Mexico during the subsequent tour. It is the second of three full-length albums released by the band in 2020.