Mercury Lounge

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Please note: All events are 21+ unless otherwise noted.

Oh No! Oh My! 10:00

Royal Bangs 9:00
Antenna Shoes 8:00
Oneside 7:00

Sun 8/17

$10

Oh No! Oh My!

http://www.myspace.com/ohnoohmyband
http://ohnoohmy.com
The kids in Oh No! Oh My! started playing music when they were just fourteen years old, and all of them play at least three different instruments. Daniel (Guitars, Banjos, Accordions, Keys, Wurlitzers, Tambourines, Hand Claps, Percussion, Sampling, Programming) and Joel Calvin (Drums, Keys, Hand Claps, Sampler, Tambourines, Bells, Shakers) were best friends growing up; Greg Barkley (Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Banjos, Accordions, Rhodes, Wurlitzers, Keys, Hand Claps, Percussion) joined the boys after Daniel and Joel “stole Greg from his previous band”, and most recent addition, Tim Regan (Keys, Locks, Bolts, Wurlitzers, Rhodes, Syths, Guitars, Vocals), rounds out the band’s bubbly-folk-meets-indie-pop sound.

The Between the Devil and the Sea EP is a collection of previously unreleased songs. Although some are already live favorites, they are slight departures from how many know Oh No! Oh My!. On Between the Devil and the Sea, Oh No! Oh My!’s often described tongue-in-cheekiness isn’t as much apparent as in popular demos like “Walk in the Park” and “Jane is Fat”. Here, we find the band at its most earnest: bright and not so much hopeful, as open to future events. Daniel described the “unintentional themes” of these decidedly fun, yet earnest recordings: “With this EP, we had an youthful openness about what the future might bring. Not dreaming, but considering all of what could be… watching things unfold as they will, and being fine with it. "

ROYAL BANGS

http://www.myspace.com/royalbangs
http://royalbangs.com
Our first discovery of Bonnaroo '08, Royal Bangs hit my radar as a "why not?" late night suggestion, and now -- though only one day in -- rates as the best show I've yet to see. Led by the bearded force that is Ryan Schaefer, the quintet churned out their multi-tasking, multi-faceted blitz-pop tunes to a crowd predominantly seated in the grass in the Troo Music Lounge. But at the request of Schaefer, concertgoers rose to their feet and it was then the show hit full throttle.
Featuring two pounding drums, many tunes off the outfit's debut full-length We Breed Champions, including the driving "Handcuff Killa," took on a snap-crackle-pop rhythmic feel as key blips rode slashing, sharp guitars courtesy of axeman Sam Stratton. Schaefer leapt atop amps and bounced about in the audience before returning to his keyboard for "Broke Calculator," which grooved at a slower pace, a bevy of Moog notes segueing into sliding guitars and a catchy, lackadaisical vocal ramble. It's discoveries like Royal Bangs that make a late night (well after 2:45 A.M.) worthwhile." - William Goodman, Spin.com, http://www.spin.com/articles/bonnaroo-reviewed-royal-bangs

Antenna Shoes

http://www.myspace.com/antennashoes
http://antennashoes.com
Tim Regan is a busy, busy guy. Along with his tenure in two different bands in two different cities -- he's the keyboardist and co-lead singer in the Memphis-based neo-psychedelic outfit Snowglobe and a member of Austin's chipper twee popsters Oh No! Oh My! -- the Memphis, TN-based multi-instrumentalist has his own full-time project, a semi-electronic chamber pop band called Antenna Shoes. Regan started Antenna Shoes in 2005 while on a temporary hiatus from Snowglobe, during which time he also played keyboards on Sparklehorse's Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain. The first Antenna Shoes album, The Generous Gambler, was recorded with Regan handling the majority of instruments, alongside contributions (including strings and brass) from various friends. In order to tour behind the album, Regan put together a stable version of Antenna Shoes featuring himself on vocals and a variety of keyboard instruments, guitarist Luke White, guitarist and second keyboardist Steve Selvidge, trumpeter and flute player Nahshon Benford, bassist Brandon Robertson, and drummer Paul Taylor. ~ Stewart Mason, All Music Guide

ONESIDE

http://www.myspace.com/oneside
http://onesidemusic.com
Few “neo-traditionalists” have dared to stray too far from the “traditionalist” part of that equation. Fans of the genre tend to be fervently purist. Boston-based band Oneside, however, isn’t afraid to risk biting the hand that feeds it. Oneside’s debut album, “First, To Last”, is full of structures, lyrics, and licks that are unabashedly plucked from the traditional American canon. Songs like “Lisa” and “Got To Go” would sound perfectly at home on a Nickel Creek or Alison Krauss album. But right from “First, To Last’s” foot-stomping, bluesy opening track “The Letter,” which combines elements of bluegrass, rock, jazz, and even reggae, it is apparent that Oneside isn’t afraid to make departures from traditional styles. Other songs would fit right in on a Sufjan Stevens or even a Radiohead album. Yet all of the songs are deftly written and produced to create a coherent, if unique and slightly irreverent, sound. Other bands may play strictly in a conventional roots style but what sets Oneside apart is their willingness to take these traditional fundamentals and place them firmly in a modern context.

Ned DeBary, lead singer and guitarist, is joined by Grafton Pease on bass, Jake Brooks on drums and Chris Hersch on banjo. The four-some met in 2002, and have since toured the country regularly. They’ve opened for such musical luminaries as Bobby Bare, Jr., Railroad Earth, The Damnwells, and Grace Potter. They’ve spent the last three springs stopping by the renowned South by Southwest Festival and were asked by Paste Magazine to make an appearance at 2007’s Austin City Limits. The band has also played at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and even beloved Fenway Park in Boston. This summer, Oneside will be gracing the stages of California’s High Sierra Music Festival as well as Virginia’s Floydfest 2008.

“First, to Last” was recorded mainly between the hours of 10 P.M. and 7 A.M. Like a troubadour howling at the moon after a night on the town, the late nights and early mornings can be heard in the grooves, with lead singer Ned DeBary’s earnest and soulful voice effectively bridging the gap between Americana and indie rock. If My Morning Jacket decided to cover Bill Monroe, chances are that it would come out sounding an awful lot like Oneside. And for music fans, that’s a good thing.