Bryan Devendorf is an American drummer. He is best known as a founding member of the
indie rock
Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...
band
The National, with whom he has recorded eight studio albums. Devendorf is also a member of the
experimental rock
Experimental rock, also called avant-rock, is a subgenre of rock music that pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique or which experiments with the basic elements of the genre. Artists aim to liberate and innovate, with ...
bands
Pfarmers
Pfarmers is an American experimental supergroup, made up of Danny Seim (Menomena, Lackthereof), Bryan Devendorf
Bryan Devendorf is an American drummer. He is best known as a founding member of the indie rock band The National, with whom he h ...
and LNZNDRF.
In 2020, Devendorf released his debut solo album, ''Royal Green'', under the moniker Royal Green.
Personal life
Bryan Devendorf was raised in
Cincinnati
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
,
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
. As a child, Devendorf was tutored by
Afghan Whigs drummer Steve Earle: "My first drum teacher was Steve Earle, not the singer-songwriter, but he was in the band The Afghan Whigs. He was with them through ''
Gentleman
A gentleman (Old French: ''gentilz hom'', gentle + man) is any man of good and courteous conduct. Originally, ''gentleman'' was the lowest rank of the landed gentry of England, ranking below an esquire and above a yeoman; by definition, the ra ...
'' - all the good Whigs records."
Prior to performing in The National, Devendorf worked as a Book Publisher for
Soho Press
Soho Press is a New York City-based publisher founded by Juris Jurjevics and Laura Hruska in 1986 and currently headed by Bronwen Hruska. It specializes in literary fiction and international crime series. Other works include published by it inclu ...
: "
t was
T, or t, is the twentieth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''tee'' (pronounced ), plural ''tees''. It is deri ...
in the midst of the dot-com bubble and all that high-flying what-have-you, I was sifting through piles of manuscripts, looking for gold.
..I did get the opportunity to edit a few titles, start to finish. It was an invaluable experience all around."
In 2007, Devendorf worked at as a "
proofreader
Proofreading is the reading of a galley proof or an electronic copy of a publication to find and correct reproduction errors of text or art. Proofreading is the final step in the editorial cycle before publication.
Professional
Traditional m ...
at an "interactive" ad agency," while still performing in The National.
He later noted, in 2010: "My wife keeps trying to get on me to start writing again, but I’m just too lazy. But I think what I would do
f I wasn't in The Nationalis be a
copy editor
Copy editing (also known as copyediting and manuscript editing) is the process of revising written material (copy) to improve readability and fitness, as well as ensuring that text is free of grammatical and factual errors. ''The Chicago Manual of ...
, working on novels. I don't know if I could write a novel; I’m more of a non-fiction guy. Memoirist, I guess."
Bryan maintains an interest in
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
: "I am a golfer. I don't know if that's "shocking". I don't get to play very often, but my parents just moved down to
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
on a golf course, so I golf while I’m down there. Every once in awhile in Brooklyn, I go out to Flatbush, to Reid Park. I actually had a hole-in-one in Brooklyn two years ago. 182 yards, uphill, out at Dyker Beach Golf Club, 17th hole."
Other projects
Outside of his work with The National, Bryan is involved in a number of other projects. He is a member of LNZNDRF, a collaboration between Bryan, his brother
Scott Devendorf
Scott Devendorf is an American multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the bass guitarist for the American indie rock band The National, with whom he has recorded eight studio albums. Devendorf is also a member of the indie rock project LNZND ...
and Ben Lanz (who has played on the road and in the studio with
The National, and also with
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
). Their eponymous debut was recorded in a church in Cincinnati over two and a half days and contains eight songs, all of which were improvised and edited down from 30 plus minute jams. The album was released by
4AD on February 19, 2016. On August 5, 2016 the band released ''Green Roses,'' with a running time of just over 25 minutes, the two-track single is backed with ‘Salida’.
He is also a member of
Pfarmers
Pfarmers is an American experimental supergroup, made up of Danny Seim (Menomena, Lackthereof), Bryan Devendorf
Bryan Devendorf is an American drummer. He is best known as a founding member of the indie rock band The National, with whom he h ...
, an experimental
supergroup Supergroup or super group may refer to:
* Supergroup (music), a music group formed by artists who are already notable or respected in their fields
* Supergroup (physics), a generalization of groups, used in the study of supersymmetry
* Supergroup ...
, made up of Bryan, Danny Seim (
Menomena
Menomena is an indie rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States, made up of Justin Harris and Danny Seim. Both members of the band share singing duties and frequently swap instruments while recording. In concert, Seim plays drums, while Ha ...
,
Lackthereof
Lackthereof is the solo project of Danny Seim, a founding member of the Portland, Oregon-based band Menomena.
History
The first six Lackthereof albums were recorded at home and given out to Seim's friends on cassettes and CD-R's. In 2005, FILM ...
), and Dave Nelson (
Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens ( ; born July 1, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has released nine solo studio albums and multiple collaborative albums with other artists. Stevens has received Grammy and Academy Award nomi ...
,
St. Vincent
Saint Vincent may refer to:
People Saints
* Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr
* Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia
* Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305) ...
).
Their debut album, ''Gunnera'', was released in early 2015.
A second studio album, ''Our Puram'', was released the following year.
Bryan was also involved with ''Day of the Dead'', a charity tribute album to the
Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...
released by
4AD on May 20, 2016. The compilation is a wide-ranging tribute to the songwriting and experimentalism of the Dead which took four years to record, features over 60 artists from varied musical backgrounds, 59 tracks and is almost 6 hours long. All profits will help fight for AIDS/ HIV and related health issues around the world through the Red Hot Organization. Of the 59 tracks on the compilation, many feature a house band made up of Bryan and
Scott Devendorf
Scott Devendorf is an American multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the bass guitarist for the American indie rock band The National, with whom he has recorded eight studio albums. Devendorf is also a member of the indie rock project LNZND ...
as well as fellow
The National bandmates Aaron and Bryce Dessner, Josh Kaufman (who co-produced the project), and Conrad Doucette along with Sam Cohen and Walter Martin.
The National have a few tracks on the album, including "Peggy-O," "Morning Dew" and "I Know You Rider."
On August 28th 2020, Devendorf digitally released an album under the moniker "Royal Green". In an email to Cherry Tree members, the album is described as "Like the best of Spacemen 3, Sparklehorse or massively underrated San Fran band Skygreen Leopards — the music makes you queasy in one movement and lulls you into blissmode in the next. It’s the very edge of outsider pop songwriting."
The first single off the album ''Breaking The River'', was released with
music videoon The National's Youtube channel along with the rest of the album. Along with five new songs, the album includes the first album release of the rare
b-side
The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...
by The National ''Halo Chagrin''; and covers of
Baby, You're a Rich Man
"Baby, You're a Rich Man" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released as the B-side of their "All You Need Is Love" single in July 1967. It originated from an unfinished song by John Lennon, titled "One of the Beautiful Peop ...
by
the Beatles
The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...
,
Dreams
A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...
by
Fleetwood Mac
Fleetwood Mac are a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967. Fleetwood Mac were founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, before bassist John McVie joined the line-up for their epony ...
, and
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
's
If Not For You
"If Not for You" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan from his October 1970 album '' New Morning''. It was also issued as the A-side of a single in Europe in early 1971. The song is a love song to Dylan's first wife, Sara Dylan. H ...
.
Influences
Devendorf is greatly influenced by
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris.
Sumner and Hook formed the band after attend ...
and
New Order drummer
Stephen Morris,
and the
Krautrock
Krautrock (also called , German for ) is a broad genre of experimental rock
Experimental rock, also called avant-rock, is a subgenre of rock music that pushes the boundaries of common composition and performance technique or which experiments ...
bands,
Can and
Neu!
Neu! (; German for "New!"; styled in block capitals) were a West German krautrock band formed in Düsseldorf in 1971 by Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother following their departure from Kraftwerk. The group's albums were produced by Conny Plank, w ...
.
Discography
with The National
* ''
The National'' (2001)
* ''
Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers
Sadness is an emotional pain associated with, or characterized by, feelings of disadvantage, loss, despair, grief, helplessness, disappointment and sorrow. An individual experiencing sadness may become quiet or lethargic, and withdraw themse ...
'' (2003)
* ''
Alligator
An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...
'' (2005)
* ''
Boxer Boxer most commonly refers to:
* Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing
*Boxer (dog), a breed of dog
Boxer or boxers may also refer to:
Animal kingdom
* Boxer crab
* Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans
* Boxer snipe ee ...
'' (2007)
* ''
High Violet
''High Violet'' is the fifth studio album by The National, which was released on May 10, 2010 in Europe and on May 11, 2010 in North America via 4AD. The band produced the album themselves, assisted by Peter Katis with whom they worked on their ...
'' (2010)
* ''
Trouble Will Find Me
''Trouble Will Find Me'' is the sixth studio album by American indie rock band The National, released on May 17, 2013, on 4AD.
Produced by band members Aaron and Bryce Dessner, the album features appearances from St. Vincent, Sharon Van Etten, ...
'' (2013)
* ''
Sleep Well Beast
Sleep is a sedentary state of mind and body. It is characterized by altered consciousness, relatively inhibited sensory activity, reduced muscle activity and reduced interactions with surroundings. It is distinguished from wakefulness by a ...
'' (2017)
* ''
I Am Easy to Find'' (2019)
with Pfarmers
* ''Gunnera'' (2015)
* ''Our Puram'' (2016)
with LNZNDRF
*''LNZNDRF'' (2016)
*''Green Roses'' (2016)
As Royal Green
* ''Royal Green'' (2020)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Devendorf, Bryan
The National (band) members
Living people
American rock drummers
Year of birth missing (living people)
Musicians from Cincinnati