Scrabbel
Encyclopedia
Scrabbel was formed in 1999 by two old high school friends Dan Lee and Becky Barron. On the strength of their debut show in 2000 at a sold out event for the San Francisco Intl' Asian American Film Festival, they were approached by a label to record a record. They released their first full length in 2001 on Kittridge Records
. The music was full of imagination and incorporated unconventional instruments such as a Speak & Spell
. The self titled CD was rated 4 out of 5 stars by Allmusic and the SF Weekly's review called it "a Sgt. Pepper's for the twee set".
In 2002, the duo split up, but Dan Lee continued to work under the name Scrabbel. Highly influenced by all things '65 to '75, Dan drew upon his love for bands like the Beatles, Love
, the Who
, the Zombies
, David Bowie
, and T Rex to create the follow-up.
He took time off in 2003 to become the keyboard player for the The Aislers Set
, and toured extensively around the US and Europe. In between tours, Dan worked hard writing new songs and building a new live band to perform as Scrabbel.
The new recordings sought the help of guest musicians: Alicia Vanden Heuval (The Aislers Set
), Pete Nguyen (Total Shutdown), and Gary Olson (Ladybug Transistor). But the most important change was the addition of Hellen Jo, whose cello is featured throughout the CD. Released by Three Ring Records
in 2005, the follow-up CD, titled 1909, is leaps and bounds beyond the first record. The music embodies new arrangements to accompany the standard guitar, bass, and drums lineup. There are 808 beats, clarinet, and of course, cello and violin to add a unique layer of texture to these songs. Every song promises to be different from the last, but still manages to be a cohesive collection of songs that make up the album, 1909.
which has remained Scrabbel's label home for the past 4 years. Upon 1909's release, it was the 2nd most added record with the College Music Journal
the week of its release and peaked at number 53 in the top 200, a feat considering the band has never toured extensively. That same year Hijacked Tunes was released and featured a collection of covers recorded by the band and included the song Sometimes by My Bloody Valentine. After hearing Scrabbel's cover of Sometimes, Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo
was quoted in a Pitchfork article saying that, "I guess it was that same trip out to San Francisco, our friend Dan Lee, whom we met when he was playing with the Aislers Set, gave us the CD by his new band, Scrabbel. It's a record of cover songs, and they're all really good, but they cover a My Bloody Valentine song, Sometimes, and it's beautiful."
The video showcased artwork and costumes by San Francisco artist, Nathalie Roland, and a comic by James Kochalka,, which was about meeting Scrabbel member Atsushi Murase. This 3 minute video features a driving Dog and his sidekick Hot Dog, a finger skateboarder skating around San Francisco, and a dance routine by a John Lennon Yellow Submarine toy. The video was featured on the front page of YouTube in early 2008. It was then screened for audiences at the 2008 SF Intl' Asian American Film Festival, 2008 Visual Communications Film Festival in Los Angeles
, and the 2008 Chicago Asian American Film Festival.
The song, Pillowmint, which is on the self titled Scrabbel CD, is featured on the VH1
show Free Radio, once during a scene w/ Spanx
creator, and again in a scene where pro-skateboarder, Tony Hawk
, waits in the lobby.
Kittridge Records
Kittridge Records was founded in Northridge, CA in 1998 by Doug Jones. The first release was 500 copies of the 7" compilation titled "The Sidewalk Chalk Adventure". The label's headquarters are now based out of Mar Vista, CA...
. The music was full of imagination and incorporated unconventional instruments such as a Speak & Spell
Speak & Spell (toy)
The Speak & Spell line is a series of electronic handheld educational toys created by Texas Instruments that consist of a speech synthesizer, a keyboard, and a receptor slot to receive one of a collection of ROM game library modules...
. The self titled CD was rated 4 out of 5 stars by Allmusic and the SF Weekly's review called it "a Sgt. Pepper's for the twee set".
In 2002, the duo split up, but Dan Lee continued to work under the name Scrabbel. Highly influenced by all things '65 to '75, Dan drew upon his love for bands like the Beatles, Love
Love
Love is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...
, the Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
, the Zombies
The Zombies
The Zombies are an English rock band, formed in 1961 in St Albans and led by Rod Argent, on piano and keyboards, and vocalist Colin Blunstone. The group scored a UK and US hit in 1964 with "She's Not There"...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, and T Rex to create the follow-up.
He took time off in 2003 to become the keyboard player for the The Aislers Set
The Aislers Set
The Aislers Set is an indie pop band that formed in San Francisco in 1997 after the breakup of chief songwriter Amy Linton’s former band Henry's Dress...
, and toured extensively around the US and Europe. In between tours, Dan worked hard writing new songs and building a new live band to perform as Scrabbel.
The new recordings sought the help of guest musicians: Alicia Vanden Heuval (The Aislers Set
The Aislers Set
The Aislers Set is an indie pop band that formed in San Francisco in 1997 after the breakup of chief songwriter Amy Linton’s former band Henry's Dress...
), Pete Nguyen (Total Shutdown), and Gary Olson (Ladybug Transistor). But the most important change was the addition of Hellen Jo, whose cello is featured throughout the CD. Released by Three Ring Records
Three Ring Records
Three Ring Records is an independent record label based out of the San Francisco/Bay Area in northern California. Started in 2003 by Dan Crowell of the band D.W. Holiday, Three Ring saw its first release that same year with the Bother's The Night Bleeds Gold...
in 2005, the follow-up CD, titled 1909, is leaps and bounds beyond the first record. The music embodies new arrangements to accompany the standard guitar, bass, and drums lineup. There are 808 beats, clarinet, and of course, cello and violin to add a unique layer of texture to these songs. Every song promises to be different from the last, but still manages to be a cohesive collection of songs that make up the album, 1909.
2005 And Beyond
Scrabbel has seen a solid line up since March 2005 with the core members consisting of Dan Lee, Hellen Jo, Stanley Lam, Chris Cline, Atsushi Murase and Aya Nakamura. 2005 also saw the release of 1909 on the San Francisco label Three Ring RecordsThree Ring Records
Three Ring Records is an independent record label based out of the San Francisco/Bay Area in northern California. Started in 2003 by Dan Crowell of the band D.W. Holiday, Three Ring saw its first release that same year with the Bother's The Night Bleeds Gold...
which has remained Scrabbel's label home for the past 4 years. Upon 1909's release, it was the 2nd most added record with the College Music Journal
College Music Journal
College Music Journal, commonly known as CMJ, is a music events/publishing company which hosts an annual festival in New York City, the CMJ Music Marathon, as well as a weekly magazine of and for the music industry and college radio stations in the United States and Canada. It publishes top 30...
the week of its release and peaked at number 53 in the top 200, a feat considering the band has never toured extensively. That same year Hijacked Tunes was released and featured a collection of covers recorded by the band and included the song Sometimes by My Bloody Valentine. After hearing Scrabbel's cover of Sometimes, Ira Kaplan of Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo, sometimes abbreviated as YLT, is an American alternative rock band formed in Hoboken, New Jersey in 1984. Since 1992, the lineup has consisted of Ira Kaplan , Georgia Hubley , and James McNew .Despite achieving limited mainstream success, Yo La Tengo has been called "the quintessential...
was quoted in a Pitchfork article saying that, "I guess it was that same trip out to San Francisco, our friend Dan Lee, whom we met when he was playing with the Aislers Set, gave us the CD by his new band, Scrabbel. It's a record of cover songs, and they're all really good, but they cover a My Bloody Valentine song, Sometimes, and it's beautiful."
Film and television
In the fall of 2007, Scrabbel made a stop-motion music video for their song "Emily, I" with videographer, Paul Jaffe.The video showcased artwork and costumes by San Francisco artist, Nathalie Roland, and a comic by James Kochalka,, which was about meeting Scrabbel member Atsushi Murase. This 3 minute video features a driving Dog and his sidekick Hot Dog, a finger skateboarder skating around San Francisco, and a dance routine by a John Lennon Yellow Submarine toy. The video was featured on the front page of YouTube in early 2008. It was then screened for audiences at the 2008 SF Intl' Asian American Film Festival, 2008 Visual Communications Film Festival in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, and the 2008 Chicago Asian American Film Festival.
The song, Pillowmint, which is on the self titled Scrabbel CD, is featured on the VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
show Free Radio, once during a scene w/ Spanx
SPANX
Spanx, Inc. is a U.S. company that mainly manufactures footless pantyhose and other undergarments for women, particularly "body shaping" undergarments and bodysuit shapewear intended to give the wearer a slim and shapely appearance....
creator, and again in a scene where pro-skateboarder, Tony Hawk
Tony Hawk
Anthony Frank "Tony" Hawk , nicknamed "The Birdman" is an American retired professional skateboarder and actor. Hawk gained significant fame for completing the first 900 as well as his licensed video game titles distributed by Activision...
, waits in the lobby.
Members Past/Present
- Dan Lee (Guitar, Vocals, Bass, Keyboards, Clarinet)
- Becky Barron (Guitar, Vocals, Keyboards)
- Hellen Jo (Cello, Keyboards)
- Chris ClineChris ClineChris Cline is an American entrepreneur engaged in coal mining and a philanthropist. He is currently the majority owner of privately-held Foresight Reserves LP, with headquarters in Palm Beach, Florida. Regarded by Bloomberg as the New King Coal, Cline is considered responsible for reviving the...
(Drums) - Nathalie Roland (Vocals, Bells)
- Aya Nakamura (Vocals, Keyboards, Bells, Percussion)
- Atsushi Murase (Guitar, Bass)
- Stanely Lam (Bass, Guitar, Vocals)
Contributing Musicians
- Alicia Vanden Heuval/The Aislers SetThe Aislers SetThe Aislers Set is an indie pop band that formed in San Francisco in 1997 after the breakup of chief songwriter Amy Linton’s former band Henry's Dress...
- Gary Olson/Ladybug Transistor
- Pete Ngyuen/Total Shutdown
- Sadie Contini/The Invisible Cities
- Rosemary Kim
- Arel Cordero
- Jonathan Chong
Discography
- 2001 Scrabbel Kittridge RecordsKittridge RecordsKittridge Records was founded in Northridge, CA in 1998 by Doug Jones. The first release was 500 copies of the 7" compilation titled "The Sidewalk Chalk Adventure". The label's headquarters are now based out of Mar Vista, CA...
- 2005 1909 Three Ring RecordsThree Ring RecordsThree Ring Records is an independent record label based out of the San Francisco/Bay Area in northern California. Started in 2003 by Dan Crowell of the band D.W. Holiday, Three Ring saw its first release that same year with the Bother's The Night Bleeds Gold...
- 2005 Hijacked Tunes Self Released, Three Ring RecordsThree Ring RecordsThree Ring Records is an independent record label based out of the San Francisco/Bay Area in northern California. Started in 2003 by Dan Crowell of the band D.W. Holiday, Three Ring saw its first release that same year with the Bother's The Night Bleeds Gold...
- 2008 Emily,I Single (Digital Only) Three Ring RecordsThree Ring RecordsThree Ring Records is an independent record label based out of the San Francisco/Bay Area in northern California. Started in 2003 by Dan Crowell of the band D.W. Holiday, Three Ring saw its first release that same year with the Bother's The Night Bleeds Gold...
Various and Compilations
- 2000 Ocean Park Paradox California Compilation Contact Records
- 2000 Beikoku Ongaku Beikoku Ongaku
- 2003 Cool Beans Magazine Cool Beans
- 2004 Broken Umbrella Magazine Broken Umbrella
- 2005 Homemade Hits Vol. 2 Kittridge RecordsKittridge RecordsKittridge Records was founded in Northridge, CA in 1998 by Doug Jones. The first release was 500 copies of the 7" compilation titled "The Sidewalk Chalk Adventure". The label's headquarters are now based out of Mar Vista, CA...
- 2005 At The Crossroads: A Benefit For Homeless Youth Three Ring RecordsThree Ring RecordsThree Ring Records is an independent record label based out of the San Francisco/Bay Area in northern California. Started in 2003 by Dan Crowell of the band D.W. Holiday, Three Ring saw its first release that same year with the Bother's The Night Bleeds Gold...