Schatzi
Encyclopedia
Schatzi is an American band from Oklahoma
, based in Austin
, Texas
, formed in 1996 by Montez Williams, Christian Kyle, Jason Westbrook and Jason Altman.
In 2000, with funding from the members of fellow Austin band Dynamite Hack
, they recorded the Death Of The Alphabet EP with drummer Kyle Schneider and bassist Erick Sanger releasing it locally under Woppitzer Records. Their song "Death Of The Alphabet", that included back-up vocals by Adrianne Verhoeven of The Anniversary
, received heavy airplay on Austin's KROX-FM
. This allowed them to get a spot in the KROX Christmas concert. The band and its EP became the subject of major-label bidding in 2001, and they were ultimately signed by Mammoth Records
, who re-released their EP (produced by Ed Rose
) nationally. Marc Fort and Mark Ford joined on bass and drums, respectively, between the release of the two versions.
Four songs from Death Of The Alphabet made it onto their 2002 full-length album, Fifty Reasons To Explode. Released by Mammoth, Fifty Reasons to Explode reached #1 on the "Radio 200 Adds" chart of CMJ New Music Report in March 2002 and appeared on the magazine's "Radio 200" list for 11 weeks during that year, peaking at #20. CMJ New Music Monthly
called the album "well produced pop punk that has just as much in common with NOFX
and Lagwagon
as it does with Jimmy Eat World
and Braid
." The Post and Courier
s reviewer cited the record's "power pop gems and compared the band to Foo Fighters
, Superdrag
, The Ramones, and The Posies
.
In 2003 they released a split EP with Motion City Soundtrack
on Doghouse Records. That same year they recorded their third full-length, Snow Is For Saving Hearts in Lincoln, NE with producer Mike Mogis
although the album was never officially released. After the departure of Williams, the band continued touring through 2004. Their final show was in 2005 with Motion City Soundtrack in Austin.
Throughout their career they played and toured with the likes of The Get Up Kids
, Motion City Soundtrack
, Shiner, Superchunk
, Promise Ring, Hey Mercedes
, Jimmy Eat World
, At The Drive-In
, Ultimate Fakebook, The Anniversary, Ozma
, Cadillac Blindside
, Seville
among others.
Fort posted Snow Is For Saving Hearts on his soundcloud
account in June 2011.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
, based in Austin
Austin
Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas.Austin may also refer to:-In the United States:*Austin, Arkansas*Austin, Colorado*Austin, Chicago, Illinois*Austin, Indiana*Austin, Minnesota*Austin, Nevada*Austin, Oregon...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, formed in 1996 by Montez Williams, Christian Kyle, Jason Westbrook and Jason Altman.
Biography
Montez Williams, Christian Kyle, and Jason Westbrook met each other in Oklahoma, and played together in Brave New World. They moved on to start their own band, Blunderwheel that recorded one album, Roly Poly, and promptly moved to Austin, TX. The album was released in 1993 in Austin by Humongous Fungus Records. The band added drummer Jason Altman and eventually changed the name to Schatzi in 1996. This lineup recorded their first album, Joanie Loves Schatzi, also released by Humongous Fungus in 1998. Only 200 copies of the album were made.In 2000, with funding from the members of fellow Austin band Dynamite Hack
Dynamite Hack
Dynamite Hack is a post-grunge band, formed in Austin, Texas in 1997 taking its name from a line in the film Caddyshack in which Carl Spackler describes the marijuana he is smoking as "dynamite hack" to Ty Webb ....
, they recorded the Death Of The Alphabet EP with drummer Kyle Schneider and bassist Erick Sanger releasing it locally under Woppitzer Records. Their song "Death Of The Alphabet", that included back-up vocals by Adrianne Verhoeven of The Anniversary
The Anniversary
The Anniversary was an American band formed in Lawrence, Kansas in 1997 by Josh Berwanger, James David, Christian Jankowski, Adrianne Verhoeven and Justin Roelofs. The Anniversary was the solidification of a line-up that had been in flux for a year...
, received heavy airplay on Austin's KROX-FM
KROX-FM
KROX-FM, aka 101X, is an alternative rock terrestrial radio station in Austin, Texas, United States.-History:101X signed on as "Austin's New Rock Alternative" on June 8, 1995....
. This allowed them to get a spot in the KROX Christmas concert. The band and its EP became the subject of major-label bidding in 2001, and they were ultimately signed by Mammoth Records
Mammoth Records
Founded by Jay Faires in 1989 in Carrboro, North Carolina, Mammoth Records was one of the premiere independent record labels of the 1990s. Its roster featured such diverse talent as Antenna, Blake Babies, Chainsaw Kittens, Dash Rip Rock, Dillon Fence, Far Too Jones, Frente!, Fun-Da-Mental, Fu...
, who re-released their EP (produced by Ed Rose
Ed Rose
Ed Rose is an American sound engineer and record producer. He has worked extensively with groups in the modern emo and pop punk scenes. He also co-owns Black Lodge Recording with Rob Pope and his brother Ryan Pope.-History:...
) nationally. Marc Fort and Mark Ford joined on bass and drums, respectively, between the release of the two versions.
Four songs from Death Of The Alphabet made it onto their 2002 full-length album, Fifty Reasons To Explode. Released by Mammoth, Fifty Reasons to Explode reached #1 on the "Radio 200 Adds" chart of CMJ New Music Report in March 2002 and appeared on the magazine's "Radio 200" list for 11 weeks during that year, peaking at #20. CMJ New Music Monthly
CMJ New Music Monthly
CMJ New Music Monthly was a monthly music magazine with interviews, reviews, and special features. Each issue included a compact disc with 15 to 24 songs by well established bands, unsigned bands, and everything in between...
called the album "well produced pop punk that has just as much in common with NOFX
NOFX
NOFX is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California .The band was formed in 1983 by vocalist/bassist Fat Mike and guitarist Eric Melvin. Drummer Erik Sandin joined NOFX shortly after. In 1991 El Hefe joined to play lead guitar and trumpet, rounding out the current line-up...
and Lagwagon
Lagwagon
Lagwagon is an American punk rock band originally from Goleta, just outside Santa Barbara, California. They formed in 1990 and went on hiatus and reunited several times over the years...
as it does with Jimmy Eat World
Jimmy Eat World
Jimmy Eat World is an American alternative rock band from Mesa, Arizona, that formed in 1993. The band is composed of lead vocalist and guitarist Jim Adkins, guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch and drummer Zach Lind....
and Braid
Braid
A braid is a complex structure or pattern formed by intertwining three or more strands of flexible material such as textile fibres, wire, or human hair...
." The Post and Courier
The Post and Courier
Charleston's The Post and Courier is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the South and the eighth oldest newspaper still in publication in the United States. It is published in Charleston, South Carolina. It traces its ancestry to three newspapers, the Charleston Courier, founded in 1803, the...
s reviewer cited the record's "power pop gems and compared the band to Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters is an American alternative rock band originally formed in 1994 by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl as a one-man project following the dissolution of his previous band. The band got its name from the UFOs and various aerial phenomena that were reported by Allied aircraft pilots in World War...
, Superdrag
Superdrag
Superdrag is an alternative rock band from Knoxville, Tennessee. The band had a hit with its 1996 single "Sucked Out" off their album Regretfully Yours, for which a video clip was broadcast regularly on MTV...
, The Ramones, and The Posies
The Posies
The Posies are an alternative rock/power pop group. The band was formed in 1987 in Bellingham, Washington by primary songwriters Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow. They are best known for their radio hits "Golden Blunders" , as well as "Dream All Day", "Solar Sister" and "Flavor of the Month"...
.
In 2003 they released a split EP with Motion City Soundtrack
Motion City Soundtrack
Motion City Soundtrack is an American rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota, formed in 1997. The band consists of founding members Justin Pierre and Joshua Cain , along with keyboardist and moog synthesist Jesse Johnson, bassist and backing vocalist Matthew Taylor, and drummer, percussionist and...
on Doghouse Records. That same year they recorded their third full-length, Snow Is For Saving Hearts in Lincoln, NE with producer Mike Mogis
Mike Mogis
Mike Mogis is a Nebraskan producer/engineer and multi-instrumentalist who, along with his brother A.J. Mogis, founded Presto! Recording Studios ....
although the album was never officially released. After the departure of Williams, the band continued touring through 2004. Their final show was in 2005 with Motion City Soundtrack in Austin.
Throughout their career they played and toured with the likes of The Get Up Kids
The Get Up Kids
The Get Up Kids are an American alternative rock band from Kansas City, Missouri. Formed in 1995, the band was a major player in the mid-90's emo scene, otherwise known as the "second wave" of emo music...
, Motion City Soundtrack
Motion City Soundtrack
Motion City Soundtrack is an American rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota, formed in 1997. The band consists of founding members Justin Pierre and Joshua Cain , along with keyboardist and moog synthesist Jesse Johnson, bassist and backing vocalist Matthew Taylor, and drummer, percussionist and...
, Shiner, Superchunk
Superchunk
Superchunk is an American indie rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, consisting of singer/guitarist Mac McCaughan, guitarist Jim Wilbur, bassist Laura Ballance, and drummer Jon Wurster. Formed in 1989, they were one of the bands that helped define the Chapel Hill music scene of the 1990s...
, Promise Ring, Hey Mercedes
Hey Mercedes
Hey Mercedes was an emo band from Milwaukee, WI/Chicago, IL, USA, that formed in 1999/2000 after the dissolution of Braid. The band consisted of Bob Nanna on guitar and vocals, Todd Bell on bass and vocals, Mark Dawursk on guitar and vocals and Damon Atkinson on drums.Hey Mercedes' first release...
, Jimmy Eat World
Jimmy Eat World
Jimmy Eat World is an American alternative rock band from Mesa, Arizona, that formed in 1993. The band is composed of lead vocalist and guitarist Jim Adkins, guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch and drummer Zach Lind....
, At The Drive-In
At the Drive-In
At the Drive-In was an American rock band from El Paso, Texas, considered part of the post-hardcore genre and active from 1993 to 2001. They were known for their extremely energetic stage shows which hearkened back to the 1980s hardcore scene...
, Ultimate Fakebook, The Anniversary, Ozma
Ozma
Ozma may refer to:* Ozma of Oz, a 1907 and third book in the Oz series* Ozma , a 1989 album by the Melvins* Ozma , a rock band from Pasadena, California* Ozma Wars, a 1979 arcade game...
, Cadillac Blindside
Cadillac Blindside
Cadillac Blindside was an emo/post-hardcore rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Cadillac Blindside combined slower chords with fuzzy guitar sounds and darker melodies for a sound decidedly more "rock" than emo...
, Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
among others.
Post-breakup
Schatzi played a reunion show in 2009 at Emo's in Austin, TX. Drummer Mark Ford continues to play in the band Magnet School (where he sings and plays guitar) and bass guitarist Marc Fort plays in the dream pop/rock band Norushi Minx. Christian plays with Erick Sanger in Lights Go Out and is the owner of Orbit Salon (2000-present)Fort posted Snow Is For Saving Hearts on his soundcloud
SoundCloud
SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform which allows collaboration, promotion and distribution of audio recordings.-History:SoundCloud was originally started in Stockholm, Sweden, but was established in Berlin, Germany in August, 2007 by sound designer Alex Ljung and artist Eric Wahlforss...
account in June 2011.
Current
- Montez Williams - lead vocals, guitar (1996-present)
- Christian Kyle - vocals, guitar (1996-present)
- Marc Fort - bass guitar (2000-present)
- Mark Ford - drums (2000-present)
External links
- Schatzi at Allmusic
- https://www.facebook.com/schatzirocks?sk=info
- http://schatzi.net/main.htm
- http://www.last.fm/music/Schatzi