Young Fresh Fellows
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Already the biggest act to come out of Deerfield, the Redwalls–brothers Justin (bass, vocals) and Logan Baren (guitar, vocals), Andrew Langer (guitar, vocals), and recent addition Ben Greeno (drums)–started out as a teenage cover band called the Pages. They played Beatles songs in north suburban venues like Nevin’s Live, where they met their future manager, Mitch Marlow, then booking the club. As they started performing their own material, an EMI publishing rep–tipped by former Wilco drummer Ken Coomer, a friend of Marlow’s–told Raymond about the group. No bidding war erupted; the band got its deal on the strength of an eight-song demo and a private performance on an LA soundstage in front of a dozen Capitol executives. The Redwalls didn’t have much of a fan base–they’d yet to even tour at that point–but in part with the label’s help, they’ve opened club tours for the national pop act Rooney and headlined all-ages bills at Metro.
The major criticism of the Redwalls has remained constant: that they still sound like a Beatles cover band even though their set now consists entirely of originals. Recorded over a series of weekends for a few thousand dollars, the group’s 11-song debut, Universal Blues–released last fall on local indie Undertow, which had dibs before the Capitol signing–is a collection of pleasant pastiches that split the difference between Hamburg-era Beatles and rooftop-era Beatles. The disc has sold an impressive 6,000 copies so far, mostly in the midwest, and the leadoff track, “Colorful Revolution,” has been spun on radio stations including WXRT and southern California tastemaker KCRW.
The major-label debut will likely be released in the first quarter of 2005. In the meantime, the group is finalizing an agreement to issue an expanded edition of Universal Blues in the UK on Shoplifter, a label co-owned by Strokes producer Gordon Raphael. They’ll hit the British festival circuit in June and July; their next local gig is April 27 at Metro.
Art accompanying story in printed newspaper (not available in this archive): photos/Doug Coombe.
