Verbow was an American
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band formed in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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and active between the mid-1990s and early 2000s. The band's sound was distinguished by emotionally direct songwriting and their unconventional use of cello.
History
Early period: Jason & Alison
The band grew out of a collaboration between
Jason Narducy
Jason V. Narducy is an American musician from Evanston, Illinois, United States.
After receiving his first guitar at the age of nine Narducy started his music career, playing guitar and writing songs for his punk rock band, Verboten. Verboten i ...
and
Alison Chesley
Alison Chesley (born January 4, 1960), known also by her stage name Helen Money, is a Chicago-based cellist and composer.
Chesley was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She moved to Chicago to attend Northwestern University, where she ...
. They billed themselves as Jason & Alison, with Narducy singing and playing acoustic guitar while Chesley played cello. In describing their musical approach, Narducy said, "We basically took two wooden instruments and presented them in a very loud wall-of-sound way."
In 1994, the duo released the album ''Woodshed'' on the independent Whitehouse Records label. Over the next year, they were profiled in
Billboard Magazine
''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...
, and opened for nationally known artists such as
Bob Mould
Robert Arthur Mould (born October 16, 1960) is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar in the 1990s.
Early years
Born in Malone, ...
(of
Sugar
Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...
and
Hüsker Dü
Hüsker Dü () was an American punk rock band formed in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in 1979. The band's continual members were guitarist/vocalist Bob Mould, bassist/vocalist Greg Norton, and drummer/vocalist Grant Hart. They first gained notabili ...
) and
Live
Live may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film
* ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film
*'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD)
Music
*Live (band), American alternative rock band
* List of albums ...
.
After ''Woodshed'', they brought in a drummer and bassist, and started using more electric instrumentation. The band began performing under the name Skinny, which they later changed to Verbow to avoid potential legal issues with another band named Skinny.
Major label era and later years
Verbow signed to
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America
Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...
and released ''Chronicles'' in 1997. The album was recorded by Bob Mould and featured Luke Rothschild on bass and Mark Doyle on drums. The song "Holiday" was promoted as a single, and was released as an EP with two newly recorded, non-album tracks.
In 2000, the band released ''
White Out''. The title refers to a blizzard that happened during the recording sessions, which took place in a rented vacation home on the shores of Lake Michigan.
David Suycott (
Stabbing Westward,
Spies Who Surf) played drums on the album, and bass guitars were played by Rothschild and Lennie Dietsch. Most of the album was produced by
Brad Wood
Brad Wood is an American record producer located in Los Angeles. He has produced many albums, including Liz Phair's '' Exile in Guyville'' and Placebo's debut.
Career
Wood is from Rockford, Illinois, United States.
In 1988, Wood, along wi ...
, known for his work with
Liz Phair
Elizabeth Clark Phair (born April 17, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Phair was raised primarily in the Chicago area. After graduating from Oberlin College in 1990, she attempted to start a musical career ...
. "New History" was remixed by
Chris Lord-Alge
Chris Lord-Alge is an American mix engineer. He is the brother of both Tom Lord-Alge and Jeff Lord-Alge, both of whom are also audio engineers. Chris and Tom are known for their abundant use of dynamic compression for molding mixes that play wel ...
for a promotional single. A three-song EP for "New History" was also released.
Epic Records dropped Verbow following the release of ''White Out''. Alison Chesley amicably left the band in March 2001. Verbow officially dissolved in early 2003.
Reunion shows and live album
On May 15, 2010, Verbow played a "one night only" reunion show in Chicago. The lineup consisted of Narducy, Chesley, Suycott, and Dietsch. Three days later, Verbow released ''Live at Schubas'', a compilation of live performances from 1998 and 2001. In an interview that month, Narducy said that he enjoyed revisiting the songs with his former bandmates. While he has no plans to revive Verbow as a full-time band, he didn't rule out future work.
On January 22, 2011, Narducy and Chesley played their first show in ten years as an acoustic duo, under the billing "Verbow (Jason & Alison) Acoustic".
After Verbow
Former Verbow members
Jason Narducy
Jason V. Narducy is an American musician from Evanston, Illinois, United States.
After receiving his first guitar at the age of nine Narducy started his music career, playing guitar and writing songs for his punk rock band, Verboten. Verboten i ...
and David Suycott were in the band Rockets Over Sweden, which was active between 2003 and 2006.
Jason Narducy
Jason V. Narducy is an American musician from Evanston, Illinois, United States.
After receiving his first guitar at the age of nine Narducy started his music career, playing guitar and writing songs for his punk rock band, Verboten. Verboten i ...
has played bass guitar in the touring bands for several artists, including
Liz Phair
Elizabeth Clark Phair (born April 17, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Phair was raised primarily in the Chicago area. After graduating from Oberlin College in 1990, she attempted to start a musical career ...
,
Bob Mould
Robert Arthur Mould (born October 16, 1960) is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar in the 1990s.
Early years
Born in Malone, ...
,
Robert Pollard
Robert Ellsworth Pollard Jr. (born October 31, 1957) is an American singer and songwriter who is the leader and creative force behind indie rock group Guided by Voices. In addition to his work with Guided by Voices, he continues to have a prol ...
,
Superchunk, and
Telekinesis
Psychokinesis (from grc, ψυχή, , soul and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), or telekinesis (from grc, τηλε, , far off and grc, κίνησις, , movement, label=ㅤ), is a hypothetical psychic ability allowing a person ...
. He currently has a solo project called Split Single.
Alison Chesley has performed solo under the name
Helen Money
Alison Chesley (born January 4, 1960), known also by her stage name Helen Money, is a Chicago-based cellist and composer.
Chesley was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. She moved to Chicago to attend Northwestern University, where she ...
. In 2007, she released her debut album ''Helen Money'' and served as composer in residence for Mordine and Co. Dance Theater.
Her second album, ''In Tune'', was released in 2009.
Critical reaction
* "The duo radiated an electric confidence that elicited a fervent response from the capacity audience... It was a tough act to follow, even for a legendary figure such as
obMould." - Chicago Tribune
* "Bittersweet guitar pop in the grand tradition of
Big Star
Big Star was an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1971 by Alex Chilton (vocals, guiar), Chris Bell (vocals, guitar), Jody Stephens (drums), and Andy Hummel (bass). The group broke up in early 1975, and reorganized with a ne ...
and Sugar... Verbow makes a rich, emotionally textured acoustic/electric noise... The airwaves can always use literate, heartfelt rock songs (maybe now more than ever), and 'New History' is that in spades." - Billboard
Discography
Studio albums
*''Woodshed'' (as Jason & Alison) (Whitehouse, 1994)
*''Chronicles'' (Epic, 1997)
*''
White Out'' (Epic, 2000)
Compilations
*''Demos and Live Tracks'' (Aware, 2001)
*''Bootleg Volume II'' (Aware, 2002)
*''Live at Shubas'' (2010)
Singles and EPs
* "Holiday" (5-song EP) (Epic, 1997)
* "New History" (remix single) (Epic, 2000)
* "New History" (3-song EP) (Epic, 2000)
Appearances on various artist compilations
* ''Come in 773!'' (Whitehouse, 1997) - features the track "Come In Threes" by Jason & Alison
References
External links
Verbow Facebook pageJason Narducy's MySpace pageHelen Money (Alison Chesley) official web siteRockets Over Sweden official web site
{{Authority control
Alternative rock groups from Chicago