Viva Voce (band)
Encyclopedia
Viva Voce is an American
indie rock
band from Portland, Oregon
, formed by Kevin Robinson and Anita Robinson. Their music draws on several influences including psychedelic rock
, classic rock
, folk
and R&B.
, Alabama
, relocated to Nashville
and then to the Portland area in 2003. Their first album Hooray for Now, was released in 1998. The band formed their own label, Amore!Phonics, and released Lovers, Lead the Way! in 2003 in conjunction with Asthmatic Kitty. The follow-up, The Heat Can Melt Your Brain, was released in 2004 and received positive critical response and heightened exposure for the band.
Broadening their fanbase worldwide, Viva Voce has toured extensively in Europe after signing with UK indie label, Full Time Hobby
. They have toured with the indie band The Shins
and Jimmy Eat World. Their fourth album, Get Yr Blood Sucked Out, was released August 21, 2006, in Europe and September 12, 2006, in the USA. After playing their final show of 2007 on September 6 during MusicfestNW
, Kevin announced that Viva Voce would be working on their new album and would continue touring in 2008.
For the 2009 album Rose City, two more band members were hired for touring, Evan Railton and Corrina Repp
.
Viva Voce's sixth studio album, "The Future Will Destroy You" was released on June 21, 2011 on Vanguard Records. The Future Will Destroy You has received positive reviews from numerous music outlets. Paste Magazine gave the album a 7.2 out of 10.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
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...
band from Portland, Oregon
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...
, formed by Kevin Robinson and Anita Robinson. Their music draws on several influences including psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
, classic rock
Classic rock
Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the...
, folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
and R&B.
History
Viva Voce was formed in 1998 in the Robinsons' native Muscle ShoalsMuscle Shoals, Alabama
Muscle Shoals is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States. As of 2007, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population of the city to be 12,846. The city is included in The Shoals MSA. It is famous for its contributions to American popular music.-Geography:Muscle Shoals is located...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, relocated to Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
and then to the Portland area in 2003. Their first album Hooray for Now, was released in 1998. The band formed their own label, Amore!Phonics, and released Lovers, Lead the Way! in 2003 in conjunction with Asthmatic Kitty. The follow-up, The Heat Can Melt Your Brain, was released in 2004 and received positive critical response and heightened exposure for the band.
Broadening their fanbase worldwide, Viva Voce has toured extensively in Europe after signing with UK indie label, Full Time Hobby
Full Time Hobby
Full Time Hobbyis an independent record label formed in London in January 2004. Since its inception it has released records by artists such as White Denim, Tunng and Malcolm Middleton.-History:...
. They have toured with the indie band The Shins
The Shins
The Shins are an American indie rock band comprising singer, songwriter, and guitarist James Mercer, guitarist/bassist Dave Hernandez, Eric Johnson of Fruit Bats, drummer Joe Plummer and bassist Ron Lewis. Their sound draws on several musical genres, including pop, alternative rock, indie rock,...
and Jimmy Eat World. Their fourth album, Get Yr Blood Sucked Out, was released August 21, 2006, in Europe and September 12, 2006, in the USA. After playing their final show of 2007 on September 6 during MusicfestNW
MusicfestNW
MusicfestNW is a multi-venue music festival that takes place every fall in Portland, Oregon.- History :MusicfestNW was founded by Mark Zusman and Richard Meeker in 1995 as a joint venture between Willamette Week, Meeker and Zusman's Portland Pulitzer Prize-winning alternative weekly, and South by...
, Kevin announced that Viva Voce would be working on their new album and would continue touring in 2008.
For the 2009 album Rose City, two more band members were hired for touring, Evan Railton and Corrina Repp
Corrina Repp
Corrina Repp is a vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and maker of quiet music based in Portland, Oregon. Her albums I Take On Your Days and It's Only the Future were released on Hush Records, while The Absent and the Distant was released on Mark Kozelek's personal label Caldo Verde...
.
Viva Voce's sixth studio album, "The Future Will Destroy You" was released on June 21, 2011 on Vanguard Records. The Future Will Destroy You has received positive reviews from numerous music outlets. Paste Magazine gave the album a 7.2 out of 10.
Albums
- Hooray For Now – (1998, Cadence, Review: HM Magazine)
- Lovers, Lead the Way! – (2003, Asthmatic Kitty)
- The Heat Can Melt Your BrainThe Heat Can Melt Your BrainThe Heat Can Melt Your Brain is an album by Viva Voce, released September 14, 2004, on Minty Fresh.- Track listing :# "Alive With Pleasure"# "Lesson No. 1"# "Business Casual"# "The Lucky Ones"# "High Highs"# "Daylight"# "The Center of the Universe"...
– (2004, Minty Fresh) - Get Yr Blood Sucked OutGet Yr Blood Sucked OutGet Yr Blood Sucked Out is an album by Viva Voce, released September 12, 2006, on Barsuk Records.- Track listing :# "Believer"# "When Planets Collide"# "From the Devil Himself"# "Drown Them Out"# "Bill Bixby"# "So Many Miles"...
– (2006, Barsuk Records) - Rose CityRose City (album)Rose City is an album by Viva Voce, released May 26, 2009, on Barsuk Records.- Track listing :# "Devotion" 4:04 # "Die A Little" 2:02 # "Octavio" 4:31 # "Midnight Sun" 4:14 # "Red Letter Day" 3:50# "Good As Gold" 3:19 # "Rose City" 2:54...
– (2009, Barsuk Records) - The Future Will Destroy You – (2011, Vanguard Records)
Singles and EPs
- Weightless (CD) – 2000
- Scissors and Blue Series, Vol. 3 (split w/ Soul-JunkSoul-JunkSoul-Junk is an experimental genre-hopping Christian rock / hip hop group from San Diego, California.-Background:The roots of Soul-Junk began in 1993 when Glen Galloway began experimenting while touring in Europe with his rock band Trumans Water...
) (CD) – Velvet Blue Music 2002 - Live at KEXP (CD) – Amore!Phonics, 2004
- Alive With Pleasure (double 7" & 7" vinyl) – Full Time Hobby, 2005
- Center of the Universe (double 7") – Full Time Hobby, 2005
- Wrecking Ball (7" vinyl) - Full Time Hobby, 2005
- From the Devil Himself (7" vinyl) - Full Time Hobby, 2006
- Faster than a Dead Horse (7" vinyl) - Full Time Hobby, 2006
- Viva Voce Loves You EP - Full Time Hobby, 2007
External links
- Barsuk webpage
- Interview with Chicago Innervision
- http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/23025/Viva_Voce_The_Heat_Can_Melt_Your_BrainPitchfork MediaPitchfork MediaPitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
review of The Heat Can Melt Your BrainThe Heat Can Melt Your BrainThe Heat Can Melt Your Brain is an album by Viva Voce, released September 14, 2004, on Minty Fresh.- Track listing :# "Alive With Pleasure"# "Lesson No. 1"# "Business Casual"# "The Lucky Ones"# "High Highs"# "Daylight"# "The Center of the Universe"...
] - Music Video for "From The Devil Himself" + interview with director Moh Azima