Indian Handcrafts are a
stoner metal
Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Slee ...
band from
Barrie
Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
, Canada, consisting of members Brandyn James Aikins, Daniel Brandon Allen, and Leland Burmania.
Biography
Indian Handcrafts first formed in 2010 while Brandyn James Aikins and Daniel Brandon Allen were playing together in another band. Indian Handcrafts came together after the two realized that, as the only members in the band who got along, they would be better off as a dynamic duo. Breaking off into their own band, the pair built a sound based on a solid foundation of riff-centric sludge rock tinged with a psychedelic atmosphere, with Allen on guitars, Aikins on drums, and both handling vocal duties. A year later they had created an eponymous self-released album.
In August 2011 they emerged onto the music scene proper, with the release of a music video for the demo version of a song called ''Red Action';'' which would be later re-released on their first signed record.
They subsequently went on a self-promoted tour, during which time they were noticed by record label owner Cathy Pellow, who soon after signed them to her management and
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
based record label,
Sargent House
Sargent House is an American management company and record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in June 2006 by Cathy Pellow, who is a music video commissioner for Atlantic Records and also owns a music video production company called Ref ...
.
''Civil Disobedience for Losers'' (2012 - 2013)
In 2012, the band traveled to Sound of Sirens Studio in
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
with Japanese producer and musical engineer
Toshi Kasai to create their second album, ''Civil Disobedience for Losers'', which was then released on October 30, 2012
Their first signed release features guest appearances by
Melvins drummers
Dale Crover and
Coady Willis
Coady Willis is an American drummer and a member of Big Business, High on Fire, White Shit, and the Melvins. He previously played in the bands Dead Low Tide, Broadcast Oblivion, and The Murder City Devils.
Willis and Big Business bandmate J ...
. Following the release of the album, the group embarked on the North American leg of
Canadian punk rock The first punk rock bands in Canada emerged during the late 1970s, in the wake of the US bands Ramones, The New York Dolls, and Blondie, and the UK band Sex Pistols. The Viletones, the Diodes and the Demics were among the pioneers, together with t ...
band,
Billy Talent's Dead Silence Tour
Billy Talent is a Canadian rock band from Mississauga, Ontario. They formed in 1993 with lead vocalist Benjamin Kowalewicz, guitarist Ian D'Sa, bassist Jonathan Gallant, and drummer Aaron Solowoniuk. There have been no lineup changes, althoug ...
from March 14, 2013 to April 16. 2012 . This included opening for
Red Fang
Red Fang is an American rock band from Portland, Oregon, formed in 2005. It is composed of guitarist and vocalist Bryan Giles, bassist and vocalist Aaron Beam, guitarist David Sullivan and drummer John Sherman. The band has released five studi ...
and
Billy Talent for the first leg of the tour. During the second leg, Red Fang was switched out for the bands
Hollerado
Hollerado was a Canadian indie rock band from Ottawa, Ontario. Formed in 2007, the band consisted of Menno Versteeg (lead vocals, guitar), Nixon Boyd (lead guitar, backing vocals), Dean Baxter (bass, backing vocals) and Jake Boyd (drums, backing v ...
and
Sum 41.
On May 24, 2013, Indian Handcrafts uploaded a music video for ''Bruce Lee'', the first track from ''Civil Disobedience for Losers'' onto YouTube. Shortly after the release, Canadian entertainment magazine,
Exclaim! published a review stating "if you've got a thing for vintage
kung fu movies, then you're going to want to check out the new video for Indian Handcrafts' tune ''Bruce Lee''. This riff-rocking opening cut from last year's ''Civil Disobedience for Losers'' shows the duo battling it out in a paper-walled room. There are headbands,
nunchucks
is a traditional Okinawan martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks (traditionally made of wood), connected to each other at their ends by a short metal chain or a rope. It is approximately 30 cm (sticks) and 1 inch (rope). A person wh ...
and
roundhouse kick
A roundhouse kick (also known as round kick or turning kick) is a kick in which the practitioner lifts the knee while turning the supporting foot and body in a semicircular motion, extending the leg striking with the lower part of the shin and/ ...
s galore, while the grainy film quality adds to the
B movie chic. You might even notice a couple
pro wrestling moves thrown in for fun."
![003 - Indian Handcrafts](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/003_-_Indian_Handcrafts.jpg)
From August 10–11, 2013, Indian Handcrafts performed at the
Heavy Montreal music festival.
''Swamp Child'' and ''Creeps'' (2014 - 2018)
In January 2014, the duo teamed up with
Scion AV for their ''Scion Rock Show'' single series. As a result, the group released a split 7-inch with
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
rock band, Dirty Streets which contained two tracks; one per band. Indian Handcraft's contributed single, ''Swamp Child,'' recorded with Toshi Kasai, and featured guitar work by
King Buzzo, a founding member of the classic sludge metal band,
Melvins.
For six dates In September 2014, Indian Handcrafts traveled to various Canadian and U.S. venues with the groups,
No Joy
No Joy are a Canadian shoegaze band from Montreal formed in late 2009 by Jasamine White-Gluz and former member Laura Lloyd.
Biography
No Joy's first show was with Grant Hart of Husker Du on December 15, 2009. The band continued to play locally, ...
and
Deafheaven
Deafheaven is an American post-metal band formed in 2010. Originally based in San Francisco, the group began as a two-piece with singer George Clarke and guitarist Kerry McCoy, who recorded and self-released a demo album together. Following i ...
.
Kicking off on September 11, 2015 the band joined the lineup for
Riot Fest
Riot Fest is an annual three-day punk rock music festival based in Chicago, Illinois, at Douglass Park. It is known for booking reunions, guest performances, and full album performances. Riot Fest remains one of the largest independently owned m ...
beginning in
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
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, coordinates =
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, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, before moving onto
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
, Canada.
The band's
sophomore album, ''Creeps'', was released on October 2, 2015.
In promotion of their new release, on October 6, 2015, in
St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...
, the band began a North American tour with bands,
Kylesa
Kylesa is an American heavy metal band that was formed in Savannah, Georgia. Their music incorporates experimentalism with heavy riffs, drop-tuned guitars and elements of psychedelic rock. The group was established in 2001 by the former member ...
, Inter Arma, and Irata as their support. The opening bands were switched out starting on November 10, 2015 in
London, Ontario
London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...
, and the group was then supported for the rest of the tour by Toronto-based band, Greys
''Bastard'', ''Warsaw'' and ''Empress in Decline'' (2018 - Present)
In early 2017, fellow Barrian, Leland Burmania joined the group, changing the dynamic to a trio. On May 11, 2018, the band released an EP entitled ''Bastard'' through Barrie based record company, Atrial Records and recorded with and mixed by Andrew Shropshire. Upon release, the EP was available exclusively as a cassette tape. On May 7th, 2021, through various streaming platforms, the group released a
cover
Cover or covers may refer to:
Packaging
* Another name for a lid
* Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package
* Album cover, the front of the packaging
* Book cover or magazine cover
** Book design
** Back cover copy, part of co ...
of
Joy Division's song
Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
from their planned debut album of the same
name.
The following year, the band joined forces once again with Toshi Kasai, who produced and mixed their latest LP release, ''Empress in Decline''. Of the new addition to their discography, the group's official
Bandcamp
Bandcamp is an American online audio distribution platform founded in 2007 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with headquarters in Oakland, California, US. On March 2, 2022, Bandcamp ...
page said the following:
"The name Empress In Decline came about during the pandemic. When we were on shut down and looking at mortality on a global level, we felt it was representative of the time and what the planet had been going through for years with climate change, civil disobedience, and everyone at each others throats"
Band members
*Brandyn James Aikins - drums, vocals (2010–present)
*Daniel Brandon Allen - lead guitar, vocals (2010–present)
*Leland Burmania - bass, vocals (2017–present)
Discography
Albums
EPs
Split albums
See also
*
Stoner rock
Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sleep ...
*
King Buzzo
*
List of bands from Canada
*
Canadian rock
Rock music of Canada is a wide and diverse part of the general music of Canada, beginning with American and British style rock and roll in the mid-20th century. Since then Canada has had a considerable impact on the development of the modern ...
*
Music of Ontario
As the Canadian province with the largest population, Ontario has a particularly prominent role in Canadian music. The provincial capital city of Toronto, Canada's largest municipality, is home to much of the English Canadian music industry and ma ...
References
External links
*
*
*
Indian Handcraftsat
Sargent House
Sargent House is an American management company and record label based in Los Angeles. It was founded in June 2006 by Cathy Pellow, who is a music video commissioner for Atlantic Records and also owns a music video production company called Ref ...
{{Authority control
Canadian heavy metal musical groups
Heavy metal duos
Musical groups established in 2010
Musical groups from Barrie
2010 establishments in Ontario