Masters of the Hemisphere | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Athens, Georgia, USA |
Genres | Indie pop |
Years active | 1996–2002, 2010-present |
Labels | Kindercore Records |
Past members | Sean Rawls Bren Mead Adrian Finch Ryan Lewis (1996) Jeff Griggs (1996–2002) |
Masters of the Hemisphere are an American indie pop group, founded by Bren Mead and Sean Rawls. The two moved to Athens, Georgia, to attend college in 1996. There they met Ryan Lewis, co-founder of Kindercore Records, who played drums at the first Masters of the Hemisphere show. Jeff Griggs (also of The Mendoza Line) soon replaced Lewis. In 1997 Kindercore released their debut seven-inch ep, Going on a Trek to Iceland. The group then recorded their first full-length album, the eponymous Masters of the Hemisphere , which was released on Kindercore Records in 1998. The band soon expanded to a four-piece, adding multi-instrumentalist Adrian Finch. Several singles and compilation appearances followed, including a release on the Happy Happy Birthday To Me Records singles club, before the band released their second full length, the concept album I Am Not a Freemdoom , also on Kindercore. The record garnered mixed reviews, which in part was likely due to the album's rather complicated concept, regarding an island of reservoir-dwelling creatures being enslaved by an evil dog. The Permanent Stranger EP followed in 2002, on the dcBaltimore2012 label. The band split up after their next album, 2002's well received Protest a Dark Anniversary . A recording of their then-final show at Athens, Georgia's 40 Watt Club was later released as The Last Show Ever .
Rawls subsequently joined Je Suis France and, upon his move to San Francisco, formed the reggae-inspired band Still Flyin'. Mead eventually joined Still Flyin', and in 2010 raised money through Kickstarter [1] to release an album by his solo project Vetran. Finch released an album under the name Dances with Wolves on dcBaltimore2012 in 2002, and currently plays in Atlanta band Night Moves Gold. Griggs currently plays in Je Suis France, Murder Beach, Shitaake Knights (aka REN, aka Transmitter), and any number of other bands.
In 2006 the Masters of the Hemisphere briefly reunited to play shows in Athens, Georgia; Lexington, Kentucky; and San Francisco.
"Local Government", a song from Protest a Dark Anniversary, was prominently heard in an environmental PSA that debuted on MTV on August 31, 2006.
The Masters of the Hemisphere recorded a new album in 2010; released by Kindercore Records in 2011, the new album was entitled Maybe These Are the Breaks .
Elf Power is an American indie rock band that originated in Athens, Georgia, United States. The line-up consists of guitarist/vocalist Andrew Rieger, keyboardist Laura Carter, guitarist Dave Wrathgabar, bassist Bryan Poole, and drummer Peter Alvanos. They are part of the Elephant Six Collective.
Of Montreal is an American indie pop band from Athens, Georgia. It was founded by frontperson Kevin Barnes in 1996, named after a failed romance between Barnes and a woman "of Montreal". The band is identified as part of the Elephant 6 collective. Throughout its existence, of Montreal's musical style has evolved considerably and drawn inspiration from 1960s psychedelic pop acts.
Dressy Bessy is an indie rock band from Denver, Colorado led by songwriter, guitarist, and vocalist, Tammy Ealom. The band is associated with the Elephant Six Recording Company and shares guitarist John Hill with The Apples in Stereo. Ealom formed the band with drummer Darren Albert and bassist Rob Greene in 1996. Hill joined the band after helping engineer early recordings in 1997. The name was taken from a popular Playskool doll of the 1970s.
Kindercore Vinyl is a vinyl record pressing plant based in Athens, Georgia. It began as an independent record label, founded in 1996 by Ryan Lewis and Daniel Geller to help create a unified music scene of Athens. After the dissolution of the record label, Lewis and Geller partnered with Cash Carter and Bill Fortenberry to revive Kindercore as a vinyl pressing plant. Kindercore Vinyl is the only vinyl pressing plant in the state of Georgia. As of 2023, the plant operates as Classic City Vinyl Works under different ownership.
The Mercury Program is an American musical group composed of Dave Lebleu on drums, Sander Travisano on bass guitar, Tom Reno on guitar, and Whit Travisano on vibraphone and piano.
I Am the World Trade Center is an American synthpop duo consisting of musician Daniel Geller and vocalist Amy Dykes. Geller creates almost all of the music using his laptop, occasionally using drum machines, keyboards, or other instruments.
Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records is an American independent record label based in Athens, Georgia. Its catalogue features indie rock, indie pop and hip-hop music, with several of its artists associated with or influenced by The Elephant 6 Recording Company.
The music of Athens, Georgia includes a wide variety of popular music and was an important part of the early evolution of alternative rock and new wave. The city is well known as the home of chart-topping bands like R.E.M., Widespread Panic, The B-52's, and several long-time indie rock groups. Athens hosts the Athens Symphony Orchestra and other music institutions, as well as prominent local music media, such as the college radio station WUOG. Much of the modern Athens music scene relies on students from the large University of Georgia campus in the city. The University sponsors Western classical performances and groups specializing in other styles.
The Essex Green is an American indie rock band from Brooklyn that has released four albums to date. The band is primarily composed of songwriters Jeff Baron, Sasha Bell and Chris Ziter, and specializes in a classic sound inspired by 1960s–1970s pop and folk in the tradition of bands like The Left Banke and Fairport Convention.
The Sunshine Fix was an American indie rock group that released three albums from 1993 to 2004. Their main singer and songwriter was Bill Doss, known from The Olivia Tremor Control. The name predated the Olivia Tremor Control and remained in use until Doss's 2012 death.
Great Lakes is an American rock and roll band formed in Athens, Georgia, United States, in 1996. The band was formed by Ben Crum, James Huggins, & Dan Donahue. Great Lakes were among the second wave of bands included in The Elephant Six Collective.
Japancakes is an American indie rock group, based in Athens, Georgia, United States.
Masters of the Hemisphere is the first full album by the Athens, Georgia-based indie pop band of the same name. Though it lacks the elaborateness of their follow-up, the heavily concept-based I Am Not A Freemdoom, it still maintains the essential element of the band's indie pop songcraft, drawing comparisons to R.E.M., among others.
Maserati is a band formed in 2000 in Athens, Georgia. They are currently signed to Temporary Residence Limited.
Marshmallow Coast is an indie pop band associated with the Elephant Six Collective.
I Am Not A Freemdoom is the second album by Masters of the Hemisphere, released in 2000 on Kindercore Records. It is a concept album containing a comic book, for which the songs provide the soundtrack.
Summer Hymns is a band based in Athens, Georgia.
The Mendoza Line was an American rock band formed in the mid-1990s in Athens, Georgia, and who eventually settled in Brooklyn, New York. Their name comes from a characterization of an intolerably low batting average (.200), based on the dismal .215 batting average of Mario Mendoza. They released eight full albums of sometimes folky, occasionally country-styled indie rock that is influenced by classic songwriters like Bob Dylan, John Cale and Paul Westerberg and alt-country bands like Whiskeytown and Wilco. They recorded for several labels, such as Kindercore, Misra, Bar/None Records and Loose Music.
Still Flyin’ is an American Indie pop band based in San Francisco, founded in 2004 by Sean Rawls.
Je Suis France is an American indie rock group formed in Athens, GA, in 1997. Their albums have been released by David Lowery's Pitch-A-Tent Records, Elf Power's Orange Twin Records, and Antenna Farm Records. The band has also self-released a number of singles and CD-Rs.