A Place to Bury Strangers
Encyclopedia
A Place to Bury Strangers are a New York–based noise rock
band composed of Oliver Ackermann
(guitar/vocals), Dion Lunadon (bass) and Jay Space (drums). The band plays a heavy, atmospheric wall of sound
-influenced blend of psychedelic rock, shoegaze and space rock. The band is commonly known by the initials APTBS.
In 2006, the band gained some acclaim following their Webster Hall
performance with Brian Jonestown Massacre. They returned to Webster Hall in 2007 to play with one of their major influences, The Jesus And Mary Chain
.
Throughout these formative years, the band's live shows got increasingly chaotic which garnered them the title of New York City's "loudest band" from various indie reviewers and bloggers, as well as "the most ear-shatteringly loud garage/shoegaze band you'll ever hear" by The Washington Post
. The New York Times applauded their revival of "the ominous, feedback-drenched drones of the 1980s"
. In August 2007, the band gained national attention after a favorable Pitchfork Media
review of this album.
In 2007, the band joined Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
on the "Holy Fuck" tour.
In April 2008, it was announced that the band would open for Nine Inch Nails
for several dates on their US tour.
The band's first UK release came in May 2008 where they played a handful of UK shows and garnered strong praise from the British media with early support from NME
and Kerrang!
. In November 2008, the band returned to Europe and the UK on tour supporting MGMT
. Their album, out the same month, once again made a stir amongst UK media.
. The band also announced another European tour and appearances at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
, Seaport Music Festival
, Rock al Parque
, and Siren Music Festival
.
Their second album, Exploding Head
, was released in October 2009.
In early Spring 2010 it was discovered that Jono MOFO had decided to leave the band for personal reasons (after recently getting married) rather than tour with the band during their US tour supporting The Big Pink. He was replaced for that Spring tour by Dion Lunadon, formerly of the bands The D4
, and The True Lovers.
On July 5, 2010, APTBS went for the first time to Bogotá
, Colombia
and presented in Rock al Parque
which is the largest free rock festival in South America.
On February 14, 2011, Ackermann stated that the band has begun working on their third full-length album.
EPs
Singles
Noise rock
Noise rock describes a style of post-punk rock music that became prominent in the 1980s. Noise rock makes use of the traditional instrumentation and iconography of rock, but incorporates atonality and especially dissonance, and also frequently discards usual songwriting conventions.-Style:Noise...
band composed of Oliver Ackermann
Oliver Ackermann
Oliver Ackermann is the founder of the Brooklyn-based effects pedal company Death By Audio and is the guitarist/vocalist of A Place to Bury Strangers which has been hailed as "the loudest band in New York".-Biography:...
(guitar/vocals), Dion Lunadon (bass) and Jay Space (drums). The band plays a heavy, atmospheric wall of sound
Wall of Sound
The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, California, during the early 1960s...
-influenced blend of psychedelic rock, shoegaze and space rock. The band is commonly known by the initials APTBS.
Early days
A Place to Bury Strangers formed in 2001 when David Goffan began toying around with 8 track recorders in his spare time. In late 2002 Tim Gregorio joined up, and shortly there after, Oliver Ackerman offered to play drums for the band. He switched to guitar and vocals after the first practice. They played their first show at Luxx in Brooklyn in 2003. Jay Space and Jono Mofo, both from the New York City-based band MOFO, joined the band when Tim Gregorio left. It was then that they decided to focus on increasing the quality of their music rather than focus on pure volume. In 2006, APTBS handmade three different untitled EPs with different color schemes; these later become known as the Red, Blue, and Green EPs.In 2006, the band gained some acclaim following their Webster Hall
Webster Hall
Webster Hall is a nightclub located at 125 East 11th Street, between Third and Fourth Avenues, near Astor Place, in Manhattan, New York City. Built in 1886, its current incarnation was opened by the Ballinger Brothers in 1992...
performance with Brian Jonestown Massacre. They returned to Webster Hall in 2007 to play with one of their major influences, The Jesus And Mary Chain
The Jesus and Mary Chain
The Jesus and Mary Chain are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in East Kilbride, Glasgow in 1983. The band revolves around the songwriting partnership of brothers Jim and William Reid...
.
Throughout these formative years, the band's live shows got increasingly chaotic which garnered them the title of New York City's "loudest band" from various indie reviewers and bloggers, as well as "the most ear-shatteringly loud garage/shoegaze band you'll ever hear" by The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
. The New York Times applauded their revival of "the ominous, feedback-drenched drones of the 1980s"
The first record and touring
In 2007, Jon Whitney from Killer Pimp Records wrote on a napkin the contract for their first release, a self-titled albumA Place to Bury Strangers (album)
A Place to Bury Strangers is the self-titled first album from psychedelic rock band A Place to Bury Strangers. Most of the songs were recorded between 2004 and 2006 and released as series of ad hoc EPs and sold at shows by the band...
. In August 2007, the band gained national attention after a favorable Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
review of this album.
In 2007, the band joined Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is an American rock band from San Francisco, California, now based in Los Angeles. BRMC is known for their garage rock, blues, folk revival, neo-psychedelia sound. They are influenced by bands such as: The Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Verve, The Rolling Stones, Oasis, T...
on the "Holy Fuck" tour.
In April 2008, it was announced that the band would open for Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
for several dates on their US tour.
The band's first UK release came in May 2008 where they played a handful of UK shows and garnered strong praise from the British media with early support from NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
and Kerrang!
Kerrang!
Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...
. In November 2008, the band returned to Europe and the UK on tour supporting MGMT
MGMT
MGMT is an American alternative rock band founded by Benjamin Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden. After the release of their first album, the members of their live band, Matthew Asti, James Richardson and Will Berman, joined the core band in the studio...
. Their album, out the same month, once again made a stir amongst UK media.
Exploding Head
In early 2009, APTBS signed to Mute RecordsMute Records
Mute is an independent record label based in the UK. It was founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller and featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Goldfrapp, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure and Fad Gadget.-Beginnings:...
. The band also announced another European tour and appearances at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival is a three-day annual music and arts festival, organized by Goldenvoice and held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Inland Empire's Coachella Valley...
, Seaport Music Festival
Seaport Music Festival
Seaport Music Festival is an international indie-oriented music festival staged on Pier 17 at The Seaport in lower Manhattan during the summer...
, Rock al Parque
Rock al parque
Rock al Parque, is a rock music festival taking place in Bogotá, Colombia, since 1995. The festival's entry is free of charge. In 2004, 400,000 people reached the event. It is considered the most important rock festival in Latin America. It has ska, punk, hardcore, metal, and other genres on its...
, and Siren Music Festival
Siren Music Festival
The Siren Music Festival was an annual summertime outdoors concert held in Brooklyn's Coney Island from 2001-2010. It was run by the free arts/politics/current-events newspaper The Village Voice, and was completely free-of-charge...
.
Their second album, Exploding Head
Exploding Head
Exploding Head is the second album from noise rock band A Place to Bury Strangers. It is their major label debut and first album for their new label Mute Records. "In Your Heart" was released as the first single and "Keep Slipping Away" was released as a single on Monday December 5 in the UK.-Track...
, was released in October 2009.
In early Spring 2010 it was discovered that Jono MOFO had decided to leave the band for personal reasons (after recently getting married) rather than tour with the band during their US tour supporting The Big Pink. He was replaced for that Spring tour by Dion Lunadon, formerly of the bands The D4
The D4
The D4 was a rock band from Auckland, New Zealand. Their music was released by Hollywood Records in the U.S., Flying Nun Records in New Zealand and by Infectious Records in the UK....
, and The True Lovers.
On July 5, 2010, APTBS went for the first time to Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and presented in Rock al Parque
Rock al parque
Rock al Parque, is a rock music festival taking place in Bogotá, Colombia, since 1995. The festival's entry is free of charge. In 2004, 400,000 people reached the event. It is considered the most important rock festival in Latin America. It has ska, punk, hardcore, metal, and other genres on its...
which is the largest free rock festival in South America.
On February 14, 2011, Ackermann stated that the band has begun working on their third full-length album.
Discography
Studio albums- 2007: A Place to Bury StrangersA Place to Bury Strangers (album)A Place to Bury Strangers is the self-titled first album from psychedelic rock band A Place to Bury Strangers. Most of the songs were recorded between 2004 and 2006 and released as series of ad hoc EPs and sold at shows by the band...
- 2009: Exploding HeadExploding HeadExploding Head is the second album from noise rock band A Place to Bury Strangers. It is their major label debut and first album for their new label Mute Records. "In Your Heart" was released as the first single and "Keep Slipping Away" was released as a single on Monday December 5 in the UK.-Track...
EPs
- 2006: Red EP
- 2006: Blue EP
- 2006: Green EP
- 2008: Nine Inch Nails: Lights In The Sky Over North America Tour EP (To Fix the Gash in Your Head)
- 2009: In Your HeartIn Your Heart"In Your Heart" is the first single released from A Place To Bury Strangers's major label debut album, Exploding Head. The single contains the lead track, along with two remixes and the B-side "Strictly Looks" -Track listing:...
EP - 2010: Ego Death EP
- 2010: I Lived My Life To Stand In The Shadow Of Your HeartI Lived My Life To Stand In The Shadow Of Your Heart"I Lived My Life to Stand In the Shadow of Your Heart" is the fifth release from A Place To Bury Strangers's major label debut album, Exploding Head. After I Know I'll See You , In Your Heart , Keep Slipping Away and last April's release Ego Death .The EP contains the lead track, along with three...
EP - 2011: Onwards To The Wall EP
Singles
- 2008: I Know I'll See You (7")
- 2009: Keep Slipping Away (7")
- 2011: So Far Away