The Reputation
Encyclopedia
The Reputation were an indie rock
band from Chicago
, Illinois
. The band was fronted by former Sarge
singer-songwriter
Elizabeth Elmore
, with other positions filled by various members.
The band, which formed while Elmore was attending law school
, released two albums between the years of 2001 and 2006, both of which were met with generally positive reviews. The band has toured the United States and the United Kingdom.
, Elmore enrolled in law school at Northwestern University
. She embarked on a series of solo tours between classes, but after growing tired of performing solo Elmore recruited ex-Sarge drummer Russ Horvath and ex-Chisel bassist and law school classmate Chris Norborg to tour with. The group toured together and recorded a five song demo
, but after a while Horvath and Norborg were no longer able to tour due to schooling. Elmore recruited friend and ex-Moreno guitarist Sean Hulet, ex-Moreno drummer Scott Rosenquist, and ex-Andiamo bassist Joel Root. The new group completed a tour of the East Coast.
Elmore requested a leave of absence
from Northwestern Law School in 2001 to focus on the band. After ex-Nymb drummer Ben Kane replaced the unavailable Rosenquist, the group signed to Initial Records
. Kane left the band, and former Sarge drummer Chad Romanski joined the group after several weeks of Elmore begging. The band completed a fall West Coast tour and began recording their debut album with Romanski. The band took on the name The Reputation at this time.
's song "Almost Blue," which was recorded with then-Wilco
guitarist Jay Bennett
on piano and production duties, as well as extra arrangements and recording on other tracks. Elmore, as she did with her work in Sarge, wrote all of the original songs and lyrics, and assisted with the production along with Matt Allison.
The album was well received critically. The Los Angeles Times
gave the album 3.5 out of 4 stars, with reviewer Kevin Bronson saying that "[Elmore's] streaming anecdotes give the listener the feeling of walking right into the middle of life-altering events." The College Music Journal
s Amy Wan called the album a "showcase for Elmore's powerfully biting lyrics and her passionate voice, dancing deftly between little-girl sweet and outright roar," and The Village Voice gave the album an A-, with famed music journalist Robert Christgau
praising the debut, saying that "Elmore left a great band to go to law school. Now she leaves a great law school to start a better band."
Along with the positive feedback for the album, the band was able to secure its first permanent drummer in Matt Espy. The band would tour the United States and parts of Canada a number of times following the release of the album. Along with the performance agenda in 2003, Elmore balanced touring, songwriting for their next album, and a return to law school while the band suffered the loss of yet another drummer, as Espy was forced to leave after a tenure of nearly a year and a half for personal reasons.
to release their follow-up. After a marathon run of shows and songwriting toward the end of 2003, the band recorded their second album. The sessions were difficult, with 14 hour recording days being balanced with Elmore attempting to finish remaining law school papers, combined with weekend tour jaunts to the East Coast. The album was unique compared to other Elmore projects in that other members of the band assisted in the songwriting process.
To Force a Fate was ultimately released in April 2004 on Lookout! Records. The album received generally positive press, including favorable reviews in Spin Magazine, calling the album "a bang of power-pop epiphany." Blender Magazine gave the album four stars, stating that "Elizabeth Elmore, a law-school graduate with boy trouble to match her student loans, writes songs that are as much legal briefs as diary entries." Entertainment Weekly
called the album "muscular yet lush," and gave the album a B+. The album would eventually reach #58 on the CMJ charts.
and Grammy nominees The Killers, Modest Mouse
, Death Cab for Cutie
, and the Donnas
. The band's performance at South by Southwest
in particular was covered positively in Entertainment Weekly
.
2005 took the band overseas to tour the United Kingdom for the first time, as well as two separate two-month United States tours. In June 2005, bassist Joel Root left the band for personal reasons. They completed their summer tour with Stereo South bassist Greg Mytych, and planned to record a new album in 2006, but came to a halt due to mitigating factors, including the issues with Lookout! Records. In September 2005, the band performed at North East Sticks Together. Elmore, in November 2006, posted a message to the band's official mailing list noting that the band had dissolved and no further plans had been announced. Drummer Steve Van Horn has joined former Chicagoan and current Austin, TX based singer/songwriter Che Arthur
's touring band.
The Reputation's music is influenced by that of Elmore's previous band, Sarge. The band also drew comparisons to the Fastbacks
, Liz Phair
, Neil Young
, and Elvis Costello
, the last of which the band covered
with their version of the song "Almost Blue". Elmore drew influence from a wide variety of music, including post-hardcore
, alternative country
, 1970s singer-songwriters, indie rock
, classical music
, country music
, bluegrass
, and 1980s pop music
. While the band's first album used conventional punk rock
instruments, To Force a Fate included more diverse instruments such as piano
, strings
, and horns
. According to a review in Allmusic, To Force a Fate' s contains "thoughtful songwriting and dashes of indie rock anthemics".
The subjects of the band's songs are frequently related to Elmore's relationships. She stated "as far as I can tell, I am too brutally honest and opinionated for most people."
Final members
Former members
Compilations
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band from Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. The band was fronted by former Sarge
Sarge (band)
Sarge was an indie rock band from Champaign, Illinois, in the United States. They released three albums on Mud Records.-History:The band was formed in 1996. Led by singer/songwriter Elizabeth Elmore, the band did some touring and released their debut album Charcoal on Mud Records...
singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Elizabeth Elmore
Elizabeth Elmore
Elizabeth Elmore is an American singer/songwriter, recently with the rock bands The Reputation and Sarge.Elmore formed Sarge in 1996, and the band broke up in 1999...
, with other positions filled by various members.
The band, which formed while Elmore was attending law school
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...
, released two albums between the years of 2001 and 2006, both of which were met with generally positive reviews. The band has toured the United States and the United Kingdom.
History
Following the disbanding of her old band, SargeSarge (band)
Sarge was an indie rock band from Champaign, Illinois, in the United States. They released three albums on Mud Records.-History:The band was formed in 1996. Led by singer/songwriter Elizabeth Elmore, the band did some touring and released their debut album Charcoal on Mud Records...
, Elmore enrolled in law school at Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
. She embarked on a series of solo tours between classes, but after growing tired of performing solo Elmore recruited ex-Sarge drummer Russ Horvath and ex-Chisel bassist and law school classmate Chris Norborg to tour with. The group toured together and recorded a five song demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
, but after a while Horvath and Norborg were no longer able to tour due to schooling. Elmore recruited friend and ex-Moreno guitarist Sean Hulet, ex-Moreno drummer Scott Rosenquist, and ex-Andiamo bassist Joel Root. The new group completed a tour of the East Coast.
Elmore requested a leave of absence
Leave of absence
Leave of absence is a term used to describe a period of time that one is to be away from his/her primary job, while maintaining the status of employee...
from Northwestern Law School in 2001 to focus on the band. After ex-Nymb drummer Ben Kane replaced the unavailable Rosenquist, the group signed to Initial Records
Initial Records
Initial Records was an iconic Louisville based independent record label during the Nineties and early part of the new millennium. Initial released records from hardcore punk to indie rock over its 12-year span...
. Kane left the band, and former Sarge drummer Chad Romanski joined the group after several weeks of Elmore begging. The band completed a fall West Coast tour and began recording their debut album with Romanski. The band took on the name The Reputation at this time.
Self-titled debut
The Reputation, the band's self-titled debut album, was released in 2002 after the band spent much of the fall and winter of 2001 in the recording studio. The majority of the album was recorded in Chicago at Atlas, with the exception of a cover of Elvis CostelloElvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
's song "Almost Blue," which was recorded with then-Wilco
Wilco
Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup has changed frequently, with only singer Jeff Tweedy and bassist John...
guitarist Jay Bennett
Jay Bennett
Jay Walter Bennett was an American guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, engineer, producer, and singer-songwriter, best known for his work with the band Wilco.-Early life and work with Wilco:...
on piano and production duties, as well as extra arrangements and recording on other tracks. Elmore, as she did with her work in Sarge, wrote all of the original songs and lyrics, and assisted with the production along with Matt Allison.
The album was well received critically. The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
gave the album 3.5 out of 4 stars, with reviewer Kevin Bronson saying that "[Elmore's] streaming anecdotes give the listener the feeling of walking right into the middle of life-altering events." 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...
s Amy Wan called the album a "showcase for Elmore's powerfully biting lyrics and her passionate voice, dancing deftly between little-girl sweet and outright roar," and The Village Voice gave the album an A-, with famed music journalist Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
praising the debut, saying that "Elmore left a great band to go to law school. Now she leaves a great law school to start a better band."
Along with the positive feedback for the album, the band was able to secure its first permanent drummer in Matt Espy. The band would tour the United States and parts of Canada a number of times following the release of the album. Along with the performance agenda in 2003, Elmore balanced touring, songwriting for their next album, and a return to law school while the band suffered the loss of yet another drummer, as Espy was forced to leave after a tenure of nearly a year and a half for personal reasons.
To Force a Fate
The band settled on their second permanent drummer, Steve Van Horn, shortly after Espy left following their round of touring. At the same time, the band began negotiations with Lookout! RecordsLookout! Records
-History:Larry Livermore and David Hayes formed the label in 1987. From the start, Lookout released punk rock records, but over time expanded its scope to include various types of pop rock, reggae fusion, acoustic rock, pop punk, and indie rock...
to release their follow-up. After a marathon run of shows and songwriting toward the end of 2003, the band recorded their second album. The sessions were difficult, with 14 hour recording days being balanced with Elmore attempting to finish remaining law school papers, combined with weekend tour jaunts to the East Coast. The album was unique compared to other Elmore projects in that other members of the band assisted in the songwriting process.
To Force a Fate was ultimately released in April 2004 on Lookout! Records. The album received generally positive press, including favorable reviews in Spin Magazine, calling the album "a bang of power-pop epiphany." Blender Magazine gave the album four stars, stating that "Elizabeth Elmore, a law-school graduate with boy trouble to match her student loans, writes songs that are as much legal briefs as diary entries." Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
called the album "muscular yet lush," and gave the album a B+. The album would eventually reach #58 on the CMJ charts.
Post-album touring
The band spent 2004 and 2005 touring the United States for over nine months, including opening slots for Ted Leo and the PharmacistsTed Leo and the Pharmacists
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists are an American rock band formed in 1999 in Washington, D.C. and currently recording for Matador Records. They have released six full-length studio albums and have toured internationally...
and Grammy nominees The Killers, Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. They are based in Portland, Oregon. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think...
, Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American alternative rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington in 1997. The band consists of Ben Gibbard , Chris Walla , Nick Harmer and Jason McGerr ....
, and the Donnas
The Donnas
The Donnas are an American all-female rock band from Palo Alto, California. They draw inspiration from The Ramones, The Runaways, AC/DC, Bachman–Turner Overdrive and Kiss. Rolling Stone has stated that "the Donnas offer a guileless take on adolescent alienation; they traffic in kicks, not...
. The band's performance at South by Southwest
South by Southwest
South by Southwest is an Austin, Texas based company dedicated to planning conferences, trade shows, festivals and other events. Their current roster of annual events include: SXSW Music, SXSW Film, SXSW Interactive, SXSWedu, and SXSWeco and take place every spring in Austin, Texas, United States...
in particular was covered positively in Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
.
2005 took the band overseas to tour the United Kingdom for the first time, as well as two separate two-month United States tours. In June 2005, bassist Joel Root left the band for personal reasons. They completed their summer tour with Stereo South bassist Greg Mytych, and planned to record a new album in 2006, but came to a halt due to mitigating factors, including the issues with Lookout! Records. In September 2005, the band performed at North East Sticks Together. Elmore, in November 2006, posted a message to the band's official mailing list noting that the band had dissolved and no further plans had been announced. Drummer Steve Van Horn has joined former Chicagoan and current Austin, TX based singer/songwriter Che Arthur
Che Arthur
Che Arthur is a singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist who currently resides in Chicago, Illinois. He is also a sound engineer/tour manager who has worked on tours with such bands as Minus the Bear, Pelican, Don Caballero, Trans Am, Thursday, Cursive, The Black Heart Procession, Jets to...
's touring band.
Musical and lyrical style
Fastbacks
The Fastbacks were a Seattle punk rock band. Formed in 1979 by songwriter/guitarist Kurt Bloch , and friends Lulu Gargiulo and Kim Warnick , they disbanded in 2001...
, Liz Phair
Liz Phair
Phair's entry into the music industry began when she met guitarist Chris Brokaw, a member of the band Come. Brokaw and Phair moved to San Francisco together, and Phair tried to become an artist there...
, Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
, and Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello
Elvis Costello , born Declan Patrick MacManus, is an English singer-songwriter. He came to prominence as an early participant in London's pub rock scene in the mid-1970s and later became associated with the punk/New Wave genre. Steeped in word play, the vocabulary of Costello's lyrics is broader...
, the last of which the band covered
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
with their version of the song "Almost Blue". Elmore drew influence from a wide variety of music, including post-hardcore
Post-hardcore
Post-hardcore is a genre of music that developed from hardcore punk, itself an offshoot of the broader punk rock movement. Like post-punk, post-hardcore is a term for a broad constellation of groups...
, alternative country
Alternative country
Alternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
, 1970s singer-songwriters, indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, classical music
Classical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
, country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, bluegrass
Bluegrass music
Bluegrass music is a form of American roots music, and a sub-genre of country music. It has mixed roots in Scottish, English, Welsh and Irish traditional music...
, and 1980s pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
. While the band's first album used conventional punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
instruments, To Force a Fate included more diverse instruments such as piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, strings
String instrument
A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
, and horns
Horn (instrument)
The horn is a brass instrument consisting of about of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. A musician who plays the horn is called a horn player ....
. According to a review in Allmusic, To Force a Fate
The subjects of the band's songs are frequently related to Elmore's relationships. She stated "as far as I can tell, I am too brutally honest and opinionated for most people."
Members
The Reputation's lineup changed numerous times during the band's existence.Final members
- Elizabeth Elmore – vocals and guitar
- Sean Hulet – guitar and vocals
- Greg Mytych – bass guitar
- Steve Van Horn – drums
Former members
- Matt Espy – drummer
- Ben Kane – touring drummer
- Chad Romanski – recording drummer on The Reputation
- Joel Root – bass guitar
- Scott Rosenquist – touring drummer
Releases
Albums- The ReputationThe Reputation (album)The Reputation is the eponymous debut album by indie rock band The Reputation. It was released in 2002 on Initial Records.Written almost entirely by lead singer Elizabeth Elmore, the album was well-received critically...
(2002) - To Force a FateTo Force a FateTo Force a Fate is the second album by indie rock band The Reputation, their first for Lookout! Records. It was released in the spring of 2004....
(2004)
Compilations
| Year | Song | Compilation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "For the Win" (Demo) | Fields and Streams Fields and Streams Fields and Streams is a double CD compilation album released by the label Kill Rock Stars on May 7, 2002.-Track list:CD 1# "Memo From The Desk of the Quails - The Quails# "Sex Object - Manda & The Marbles# "Waste of Time" - The Coolies... |
Re-recorded version appears on The Reputation |
| "For What It's Worth" | Don't Know When I'll Be Back Again: A Compilation Benefiting American Veterans of the Vietnam War | ||
| "Some Senseless Day" | OIL | Later appeared on Force a Fate | |
| 2005 | "Face It" | That's My Bag | Also appeared on Force a Fate |