William J. Schaff Jr. is an American artist and musician based in Warren, Rhode Island and Oakland, California. He is known for artwork for the bands Okkervil River, Songs: Ohia, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and The Mighty Mighty Bosstones. [1]
Much of Schaff's art deals with death and loss, as well as the consequences of, and responses to, human violence. Stories from the Old Testament and scenes from The Holocaust are recurrent in his art. Schaff works in paintings, drawings, collages, scratchboards, mail art, motion pictures, and comics.
A graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art, Schaff has exhibited and lectured at numerous institutions, including the United States Air Force Academy, the Rhode Island School of Design, Amherst College, and East Carolina University.
Schaff is a prolific artist for musicians and is best known for producing all the art for the Jagjaguwar releases of Okkervil River. In 2009, he was the subject of Pitchfork's "Take Cover" feature, which discusses notable album art. [2] In 2012, a book of Schaff's artwork, featuring introductions by John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats, Will Sheff of Okkervil River, and Darren Jackson of Kid Dakota, was published by Graveface Records. It includes a vinyl recording of previously unreleased songs by Jason Molina.
Schaff led two acts as vocalist and songwriter, Reformation and Noel the Coward, and was part of the musical ensemble I Love You and I Miss You. He also played guitar and percussion with The Eyesores, The Iditarod, and Black Forest/Black Sea. Most recently, he was the drumming ape "Dead Chop Chop" in the What Cheer? Brigade. [3]
Schaff lives and works in a house that was passed to him by his father, but does not own it outright, and due to unsteady income, has been unable to consistently make payments. [4] As a result, the house has been in foreclosure multiple times and has been nicknamed "Fort Foreclosure" by Schaff and its other residents. [5] In an attempt to raise funds to solve the problem, Schaff launched a partially-successful Indiegogo fundraising campaign in March 2014.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor is a Canadian post-rock band that originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation, an independent record label also located in Montreal. After the release of their debut album, F♯ A♯ ∞, in 1997, the group toured regularly from 1998 to 2003. Their second album, 2000's Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven, received critical acclaim and has been named as one of the best albums of the decade. This was followed by 2002's Yanqui U.X.O. In 2003, the band went on hiatus in order for members to pursue other musical interests. In the intervening period, the group was occasionally rumored to have broken up, but eventually reconvened in 2010. Since reforming, they have released four more albums: 'Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend! (2012), which won the 2013 Polaris Music Prize; Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress (2015); Luciferian Towers (2017); and G_d's Pee at State's End! (2021).
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones were an American ska punk band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1983. From the band's inception, lead vocalist Dicky Barrett, bassist Joe Gittleman, tenor saxophonist Tim "Johnny Vegas" Burton and dancer ("Bosstone") Ben Carr remained constant members. The band's final line-up also included drummer Joe Sirois, saxophonist Leon Silva, guitarist Lawrence Katz, keyboardist John Goetchius, and trombonist Chris Rhodes.
Ska punk is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music. Ska punk tends to feature brass instruments, especially horns such as trumpets, trombones and woodwind instruments like saxophones, making the genre distinct from other forms of punk rock. It is closely tied to third wave ska which reached its zenith in the mid-1990s.
DYS is an American straight edge hardcore punk band from Boston, Massachusetts, who were part of the "Boston Crew" in the 1980s, along with contemporaries such as SSD and Negative FX. The group later expanded their sound, becoming one of the first hardcore bands to veer into heavy metal.
Lift Your Skinny Fists like Antennas to Heaven is the second studio album by Canadian post-rock band Godspeed You! Black Emperor, released as a double album October 9, 2000 on vinyl by Constellation, and November 8, 2000 on CD by Kranky. It was listed on multiple decade-end lists as one of the greatest albums of the 2000s.
Okkervil River is an American rock band led by singer-songwriter Will Sheff. Formed in Austin, Texas, in 1998, the band takes its name from a short story by Russian author Tatyana Tolstaya set on the river Okkervil in Saint Petersburg. They began as a trio made up of Sheff and friends he had met in his native state of New Hampshire but, over time, have gone through many lineups.
This is a timeline of punk rock, from its beginnings in the 1960s to the present day. Bands or albums listed either side of 1976 are of diverse genres and are retrospectively called by their genre name that was used during the era of their release.
Jason Andrew Molina was an American musician, singer and songwriter. Raised in northern Ohio, he came to prominence performing and recording as Songs: Ohia, both in solo projects and with a rotating cast of musicians in the late 1990s. Beginning in 2003, he garnered a further indie following for his releases with the band Magnolia Electric Co.
Secretly Canadian is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana, part of the Secretly Group. The Secretly Group includes record labels Dead Oceans and Jagjaguwar as well as a music publisher known as Secretly Publishing, representing artists, writers, film makers, producers, and comedians.
Efrim Manuel Menuck is a Canadian musician involved with a number of Montreal-based bands, most notably Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra. Menuck is also a frequent record producer and engineer, working with musicians from Montreal and abroad.
Don't Fall in Love with Everyone You See is the first full-length studio album from alternative folk-rock group, Okkervil River. Released on January 22, 2002 on the label Jagjaguwar, it contains the single, "Kansas City". Artist William Schaff, not to be confused with lead singer Will Sheff, designed the cover art. The album features an array of instruments including violin, pedal steel, mellotron, banjo, string and horn sections.
Black Sheep Boy is the third studio album by American indie rock band Okkervil River, released on April 5, 2005. The title is inspired by the song "Black Sheep Boy" by 1960s folk singer Tim Hardin. The album deals with Hardin's struggle with heroin addiction and Okkervil River lead singer Will Sheff's failed relationships and heartbreaks. The album cover features the work of Providence artist William Schaff.
Down the River of Golden Dreams is the second full-length studio album by Okkervil River, released on September 2, 2003. William Schaff continued to create artwork for Okkervil River with this release. The record label Jagjaguwar released the album on CD and vinyl under the catalog number JAG54.
Solace is an American heavy metal band from the Asbury Park, New Jersey.
American Hardcore: The History of American Punk Rock 1980–1986 is a documentary directed and produced by Paul Rachman and written by Steven Blush. It is based on the 2001 book American Hardcore: A Tribal History also written by Blush. It world premiered at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival and was released on September 22, 2006 on a limited basis by Sony Pictures Classics. The film features some early pioneers of the hardcore punk music scene including Bad Brains, Black Flag, D.O.A., Minor Threat, Minutemen, SSD, and others. It was released on DVD by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment on February 20, 2007.
Paul Q. Kolderie is an American record producer, engineer, and mixer. He has worked with Pixies, Radiohead, Orangutang, Hole, Dinosaur Jr., Juliana Hatfield, Wax, Warren Zevon, Uncle Tupelo, Throwing Muses, Morphine, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Abandoned Pools, the Go-Go's, and Mike Gordon of Phish. He usually works with production partner Sean Slade.
The Stage Names is the fourth full-length studio album by American indie rock band Okkervil River, released on August 7, 2007. The album was recorded in Austin, Texas, with longtime Okkervil producer Brian Beattie, and with mixing from Spoon drummer and producer Jim Eno. Like other Okkervil River albums, the accompanying artwork is the work of artist William Schaff. The cover refers to a line from "Unless It's Kicks". The record was also released as a limited-edition 2-CD set that included a second disc of solo acoustic demos. A newly recorded version of "Love to a Monster", which appeared in rough demo form on the band's tour EP, Overboard and Down, was originally intended to appear on the album, but didn't make it on, and appears as a bonus track when the album is purchased through eMusic. "Shannon Wilsey on the Starry Stairs", described by lead singer and songwriter Will Sheff as "kind of a sequel to 'Savannah Smiles' and kind of a sister song to "John Allyn Smith Sails'", is included as a bonus track when the album is purchased through iTunes.
Will Johnson is an American musician, singer-songwriter, author and painter who was the lead singer of the bands Centro-matic and South San Gabriel. Called "one of the most prolific artists in American indie rock", Johnson has also released solo records, and is a member of the bands Monsters of Folk, New Multitudes and Overseas, and has also performed as part of the Undertow Orchestra. He is currently a member of Jason Isbell's band, the 400 Unit.
The Sled Island Music & Arts Festival is an annual independent music and arts festival formed in 2007 and held in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Each June, the five-day festival showcases over 200 bands, visual artists, filmmakers and comedians as well as over 40,000 attendees in multiple venues across the city. Each year, Sled Island selects a guest curator to help set the direction and tone of the festival through specialized programming choices and with their presence at the event. Past guest curators have included Sudan Archives (2022), Julien Baker (2019), Deerhoof (2018), Flying Lotus (2017), Peaches (2016), Godspeed You! Black Emperor (2015), Kathleen Hanna (2014), John Dwyer (2013), Tim Hecker (2013), Andrew W.K. (2012), Danny Vacon (2012), Grant Lawrence (2011), Bogus Tokus (2011), Fucked Up (2010), King Khan (2010), Quintron & Miss Pussycat (2010), Colin Newman (2009), Scott Kannberg (2008) and Mark Andrew Hamilton of Woodpigeon (band) (2007).
End of the Road Festival is an annual music festival in England which focuses on independent rock and folk music. It is hosted at the Larmer Tree Gardens, on the border of north Dorset and Wiltshire, and usually takes place over the last weekend of August or the first full weekend in September. The first festival took place in 2006, and after selling out for the first time in 2008, it has sold out in advance every year since.