Emeralds (band)
Encyclopedia
Emeralds is an ambient
/drone
/electronic music
trio currently based in Cleveland, Ohio
and Portland
, Oregon
, United States
.
and Westlake
. However, due to a desire to simplify and focus more on live improvisation, they re-formed as Emeralds, playing their first show under that name in June 2006. Since then the group has released over forty recordings, on various independent labels including their own imprints Wagon and Gneiss Things. The album Does It Look Like I'm Here?, released on Editions Mego
in 2010, is their most widely known release to date. It received the Album of the Year award from Drowned in Sound
amongst favorable reviews from other publications. Mark McGuire and Steve Hauschildt also perform and record under their own names, while John Elliott performs as Outer Space and records under the Imaginary Softwoods, Colored Mushroom and the Medicine Rocks and other aliases.
From September 19 through October 31, 2010 the band opened for Caribou
on a North American tour.
In April 2009, the band opened for Throbbing Gristle
in Chicago, IL and New York, NY.
When asked about the follow-up to the band's most recent release, Does It Look Like I'm Here? Mark McGuire said, "We want people to still digest Does It Look Like I'm Here? for a while, and we really think about what we want to say next. I think it's going to be really, really sick when it happens, but I can't really guarantee when that's going to be."
music with 80's synthesizer textures, German Kosmische music and the minimalism of Terry Riley
.
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
/drone
Drone music
Drone music is a minimalist musical style that emphasizes the use of sustained or repeated sounds, notes, or tone-clusters – called drones. It is typically characterized by lengthy audio programs with relatively slight harmonic variations throughout each piece compared to other musics...
/electronic music
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
trio currently based in Cleveland, Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
History
John Elliott, Mark McGuire and Steve Hauschildt began playing music together under the name Fancelions in 2005 in Cleveland's western suburbs of Bay VillageBay Village, Ohio
-Education:Bay High School was awarded the blue ribbon award in the school year of 2010-11.Newsweek magazine placed Bay High School 793rd in its 2009 ranking of the top 1,500 U.S...
and Westlake
Westlake, Ohio
Westlake is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. The population was 32,729 at the 2010 census. It is an affluent suburb of Cleveland, Ohio and is located 12 miles from Cleveland's downtown.-Geography:Westlake is located at...
. However, due to a desire to simplify and focus more on live improvisation, they re-formed as Emeralds, playing their first show under that name in June 2006. Since then the group has released over forty recordings, on various independent labels including their own imprints Wagon and Gneiss Things. The album Does It Look Like I'm Here?, released on Editions Mego
Editions Mego
Editions Mego is a non-funded independent record label, founded 1 January 2006 by Peter RehbergIts aims are to maintain the back catalogue and legacy of the Mego label, as well as releasing new works.- Releases :...
in 2010, is their most widely known release to date. It received the Album of the Year award from Drowned in Sound
Drowned in Sound
DrownedinSound.com or DiS is a UK based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway . The site is an editorially independent music website.-History:...
amongst favorable reviews from other publications. Mark McGuire and Steve Hauschildt also perform and record under their own names, while John Elliott performs as Outer Space and records under the Imaginary Softwoods, Colored Mushroom and the Medicine Rocks and other aliases.
From September 19 through October 31, 2010 the band opened for Caribou
Caribou (musician)
Daniel Victor Snaith is a composer, musician and recording artist under stage names Caribou, Manitoba and Daphni. Under the supervision of Kevin Buzzard, he obtained a PhD in mathematics at Imperial College London.- Career:...
on a North American tour.
In April 2009, the band opened for Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle were an English industrial, avant-garde music and visual arts group that evolved from the performance art group COUM Transmissions...
in Chicago, IL and New York, NY.
When asked about the follow-up to the band's most recent release, Does It Look Like I'm Here? Mark McGuire said, "We want people to still digest Does It Look Like I'm Here? for a while, and we really think about what we want to say next. I think it's going to be really, really sick when it happens, but I can't really guarantee when that's going to be."
Albums
- Solar Bridge (Hanson RecordsHanson RecordsHanson Records is an American independent record label founded in Brighton, Michigan and now based in Oberlin, Ohio. It is operated by the musician Aaron Dilloway, formerly of the band Wolf Eyes.-History:...
, 2008) - CD/LP - What Happened (No Fun Productions 2009, Editions MegoEditions MegoEditions Mego is a non-funded independent record label, founded 1 January 2006 by Peter RehbergIts aims are to maintain the back catalogue and legacy of the Mego label, as well as releasing new works.- Releases :...
2010) - CD/2xLP - Emeralds (Hanson RecordsHanson RecordsHanson Records is an American independent record label founded in Brighton, Michigan and now based in Oberlin, Ohio. It is operated by the musician Aaron Dilloway, formerly of the band Wolf Eyes.-History:...
, Wagon/Gneiss Things, 2009) - CD/LP - Does It Look Like I'm Here?Does It Look Like I'm Here?Does It Look Like I'm Here? is a 2010 album from the band Emeralds. Pitchfork Media placed it at number 36 on its list "The Top 50 Albums of 2010"...
(Editions MegoEditions MegoEditions Mego is a non-funded independent record label, founded 1 January 2006 by Peter RehbergIts aims are to maintain the back catalogue and legacy of the Mego label, as well as releasing new works.- Releases :...
, 2010) - CD/2xLP
EPs and Singles
- Shade / August (Wagon/Gneiss Things, 2010) - 7"
- In Love / Summerdata (Wagon/Gneiss Things, 2010) - 7"
- Lake Effect Snow / Science Center (Wagon/Gneiss Things, 2010) - 7"
- Candy Shoppe / The Cycle of Abuse (Wagon/Gneiss Things, 2010) - 7"
- Fresh Air (A Soundesign Recording, 2009) - 7"
- Live (Gneiss Things, 2008) - CDr
- Queen of Burbank Vol. 2 (Editions Brokenresearch, 2007) - CDr
- Ledges (Gneiss Things, 2007) - CDr
- Golden Swirl (Wagon, 2007) - CDr mini
- Hallucinations (Wagon, 2007) - CDr mini
- A Row of Exposed Columns (Chondritic Sound, 2007) - CDr mini
- Dirt Weed Diaries Vol. 2 (Maim & Disfigure, 2007) - CDr
- No More Spirits Over The Lake (Wagon, 2006) - CDr
- Bullshit Boring Drone Band (American Tapes, 2006) - CDr
- Dirt Weed Diaries Vol. 1 (Maim & Disfigure, 2006) - CDr
- Hidden Field (Wagon, 2006) - CDr mini
- Demo no. 2 (Wagon, 2006) - CDr
- Demo no. 1 (Wagon, 2006) - CDr
Cassettes
- The Overlook (Wagon, 2009)
- Planetarium (Tapeworm Tapes, 2008)
- Allegory of Allergies (Gods of Tundra, 2007)
- A Real Clean Gang (Together Tapes, 2007)
- Grass Ceiling (Fag Tapes, 2007)
- Servant (Wagon, 2007)
- Smoke Signals (Wagon, 2007)
- Emeralds (Hanson RecordsHanson RecordsHanson Records is an American independent record label founded in Brighton, Michigan and now based in Oberlin, Ohio. It is operated by the musician Aaron Dilloway, formerly of the band Wolf Eyes.-History:...
, 2007) - Laying Under Leaves (Wagon, 2006)
Split Releases and Collaborations
- with Pain Jerk (No Fi, 2009) - CD
- Under Pressure with Aaron Dilloway (Hanson RecordsHanson RecordsHanson Records is an American independent record label founded in Brighton, Michigan and now based in Oberlin, Ohio. It is operated by the musician Aaron Dilloway, formerly of the band Wolf Eyes.-History:...
, 2008) - cass - with Quintana Roo (Arbor, 2008) - LP
- with Tusco Terror (Ecstatic Peace!, 2008) - LP
- with Sunburned Hand of the ManSunburned Hand of the ManSunburned Hand of the Man are a band from Massachusetts that formed in 1997 from the remnants of the Boston psychedelic punk trio Shit Spangled Banner....
(Manhand, 2007) - cass - with Birds of Delay (Wagon, 2007) - cass
- with Sam Goldberg (Wagon, 2007) - cass
- with Tusco Terror (Tusco/Embassy 2006, 2007) - cass
Influences
Emeralds are noted for blending ambientAmbient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
music with 80's synthesizer textures, German Kosmische music and the minimalism of Terry Riley
Terry Riley
Terrence Mitchell Riley, is an American composer intrinsically associated with the minimalist school of Western classical music and was a pioneer of the movement...
.