Mark Watrous is a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and graphic/video artist from

Richland, Washington Richland () is a city in Benton County, Washington, United States. It is located in southeastern Washington at the confluence of the Yakima and the Columbia Rivers. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 60,560. Along with the nearby c ...

. He is best known as a former member of the band Gosling (also known as Loudermilk). Watrous is currently a member of Earl Burrows and

The Shins The Shins is an American indie rock band formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1996. The band is the project of singer-songwriter James Mercer, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The band's c ...

and has routinely performed as a touring member of

The Raconteurs The Raconteurs (, also known as The Saboteurs in Australia) is an American rock band from Detroit, Michigan, formed in 2005. The band consists of Jack White (vocals, guitar), Brendan Benson (vocals, guitar), Jack Lawrence (bass guitar), and ...

The Greenhornes The Greenhornes were an American garage rock band from Cincinnati, Ohio, formed in 1996 by vocalist/guitarist Craig Fox, bass guitarist Jack Lawrence and drummer Patrick Keeler. They released their debut album ''Gun For You'' in 1999, followe ...

Shudder to Think Shudder to Think was an American alternative rock band. Formed in 1986, they released three albums on the Washington, D.C.-based label Dischord Records, and two on Epic Records. Their early work was largely influenced by post-hardcore although ...

Brendan Benson Brendan Benson (born November 14, 1970) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He plays guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, and drums. He has released eight solo albums and is a member of the band The Raconteurs. Recording career ''One Miss ...

, and

Karen Elson Karen Jill Elson (born 15 January 1979) is an English model and singer-songwriter. Early life and education Elson was born in Oldham, Greater Manchester, and attended North Chadderton School as a child. She has a fraternal twin sister, filmmak ...

among others.

Biography

Loudermilk (1995–2004)

In 1995, friends Davey Ingersoll (vocals, guitar), Mark Watrous (guitar), Shane Middleton (bass) and Issac Carpenter (drums) formed the hard rock quartet Loudermilk in

Tri-Cities, Washington The Tri-Cities are three closely linked cities ( Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland) at the confluence of the Yakima, Snake, and Columbia Rivers in the Columbia Basin of Eastern Washington. The cities border one another, making the Tri-Cities se ...

. They released their own album, ''Man with Gun Kills Three!'', independently in 1998. After hearing an unauthorized demo, American Recordings subsequently signed the group. Commenting on the demoes, Ingersoll stated that the demo was made just to get songs down and that "It was something edidn't even want people to hear". Despite touring with groups such as

Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil. Mötley Crüe has sold over 100 million albu ...

and

Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wi ...

, they were dropped from the label. Speaking about the group being dropped from the label, Ingersoll stated:

DreamWorks Records DreamWorks Records (often referred in copyright notices as SKG Music, LLC) was an American record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, ...

signed them in early 2002. Several months later, they recorded and released their first official major label album, '' The Red Record''.

Gosling (2004–2006)

In 2004, Loudermilk changed their name to Gosling, after changing their musical style, retaining all members with Watrous switching from guitar to keyboards. Influenced by the likes of

Sunny Day Real Estate Sunny Day Real Estate is an American emo/ indie rock band from Seattle, formed in 1992. The band currently consists of founding members Jeremy Enigk (vocals, guitar), Dan Hoerner (guitar) and William Goldsmith (drums), alongside Greg Sura ...

The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also referred to as simply Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band from Chicago. Formed in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, bassist D'arcy Wretzky, guitarist James Iha and drummer Jimmy Chambe ...

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics an ...

and

Queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

, they released the ''Gosling EP'' through

The Control Group The Control Group is an independent record label, founded by Nabil Ayers in Seattle, Washington in 2002. Notable artists who have released albums on The Control Group include El Perro del Mar, Lykke Li, Cate Le Bon, Alice Boman and Wildb ...

in August 2004. Earlier in the year, they supported

Velvet Revolver Velvet Revolver was an American hard rock supergroup consisting of Guns N' Roses members Slash (lead guitar), Duff McKagan (bass, backing vocals) and Matt Sorum (drums, backing vocals), alongside Dave Kushner (rhythm guitar) formerly of punk b ...

The Roxy Theatre The Roxy Theatre (often just the Roxy) is a nightclub on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California, owned by Lou Adler and his son, Nic. History The Roxy was opened on September 23, 1973, by Elmer Valentine and Lou Adler, along wit ...

West Hollywood, California West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most prominent gay villages in ...

. They released their debut full-length '' Here Is...'' in 2006 through V2 and went on to tour with

Rose Hill Drive Rose Hill Drive is an American rock band. The group is often aligned with other bands that are reviving traditional hard rock and early metal–psychedelic. Combining hard-driving rock and blues with modern touches and arrangements, they are o ...

. A cover of

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

's " Cat People (Putting Out Fire)" was included on the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

to the film '' Underworld: Evolution'' in 2006.

The Shins (2012–present)

In 2012, Watrous joined

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

as guitarist and multi-instrumentalist

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watrous, Mark Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Richland, Washington American male singer-songwriters American rock singers American rock guitarists American male guitarists American rock songwriters American indie rock musicians Singer-songwriters from Washington (state) Guitarists from Washington (state) The Shins members