The phrase “criminally overlooked” is one of those clichés
that nearly every music writer has used,
As you all know, cliché’s are clichés because most often,
they’re true. We can’t keep every cool band from being “criminally overlooked,”
but we can, by cracky, give props to a band whose good music is being missing
out on by the masses.
This week’s criminally overlooked band is the Anderson
Council, and if you aren’t hearing their soaring brand of power pop, you’re
missing out.
This humble little blog may be called “GARAGEROCKtopia,” but
a waltz through our past features proves we dig Power Pop every bit as much.
That’s because of bands like the Anderson Council, who not only exemplify
everything we like about power pop, but also happen to be super cool dudes.
Peter Horvath, the band’s leader, was gracious enough to let us
take up some of his time, telling us about the band, whose melodies are so
exquisite that Marlee Matlin would have to be moved by them. The other sitting
members of the Council are David Whitehead on guitars and vocals, Chris Ryan on drums
and Christopher Rousseau on bass.
As we’ve explained many times before, often the line between
Garage Rock and Power Pop is often one you need an electron microscope to see.
A quick explanation: both of the subgenres are pretty much
children of the Beatles, and like any parent, you love the daylights out of
both. But Garage Rock would be the scruffy one that doesn’t get its haircuts on
time, skips a bath now and then and might not be as close to its toothbrush as
it should. Power Pop, on the other hand, would be the brother whose clothes
always match, washes behind the ears, and carries toothpaste and dental floss
in his bag.
The Anderson Council most definitely falls into the latter.
Formed in 1999, the band’s iridescent melodies balance perfectly with some
no-nonsense guitar-driven rock. Horvath, talking to us via email, told us that
the band is probably not a strong candidate to write raging political anthems
or thinly-veiled suicide purges. The Anderson Council is all about the happy.
“Our songs are about girls, driving, and tea. How can they
not be happy?” commented Horvath. “Seriously though, I've been in sad and angry
bands, and not to say that music doesn't have a place. It does, but that's just
not what we're about.”
What the band is about is short, upbeat songs designed to
leave you feeling a little better after you heard them than you did before. And
that sensibility also makes for good live shows, which is precisely what
Horvath promises the band carries onstage. An Anderson Council show is all
about unapologetic fun, and not a dirge or mopefest.
“I also like the fact that we don't just stand there. We're
excited to play for you, whoever and wherever we are. We also all get along
with each other, which helps tremendously with the exuberance,” Horvath said.
You can also add a sense of humor to the band’s quiver. For
starters, serious music geeks will note the wit of the band’s name. The combo
borrows its name from two legendary country bluesmen, Pink Anderson and Floyd
Council. Now, if those names seem a little familiar, it might be because
another rock band, from across the puddle and in business a tad bit longer than the Anderson Council, also
named itself after those particular blues singers.
“Yessir, we figured Pink Floyd was already taken,” Horvath
confesses, “so The Anderson Council is what we had to be.”
Cleverness aside, Horvath says he and the rest of the AC are
also aficionados of the storied British group, particularly in the era of Syd
Barrett, whose, uhm, psychological difficulties forced him to leave the
band and ushered in the more familiar Roger Waters years of gloomy genius.
“I'm a big fan of Syd-era Floyd,” explained Horvath, “and
all of those similar bands that made one really amazing single, whether it was
about their pet budgie or a really strong cup of tea, before they imploded. So
many of those bands pretty much blew all their creativity on that one single,
which is unfortunate.”
“The bands that could keep that momentum going, like The
Move, for instance, were able to record both catchy singles and deep album
cuts... That's what I'd like us to do,” said Horvath, though it should
be noted that the Anderson Council has been together longer than many of
those bands and probably cranked out more good songs..
Anderson Council songs are born the good ol’ fashioned way
-- Horvath has a knack for coming up with shimmering melodies, and the band has
no problem filling in the blanks with their own touches.
“I suppose that I do hear a lot of the harmonies and
instrumentation in my head when I'm writing the songs,” Horvath explained, “and
if we don't demo the song as a band, I do try to approximate the other guys'
parts, although they never really think that what I came up with sounds like
they do, particularly.”
“Various new tidbits
and ear candy parts always happen in the studio, and I'm really not concerned
if we can recreate the entire recorded soundscape live; I see them as two
different things entirely. We're not one of those bands that carries a laptop
around with us to supplement the live show. I have nothing against people that
do that sort of thing, but it's not our scene... I'm more concerned about being
a ferocious live band, when possible. Luckily, we can still pull most of the
vocals off live.”
As we’ve mentioned in many features, technology has wiped
away some opportunities for bands to get heard yet also proven advantageous to
others. Because of the segmented audience who now see music as an on-demand
phenomenon, there likely will never be a unifying musical force like the
Beatles, or Elvis, or really even Michael Jackson or the Bee Gees.
Yet, doors have opened for the Anderson Council to gain a
wide audience, who have in part have built up some of their audience the old
fashioned way – terrestrial radio.
“Little Steven’s Underground Garage has been a BIG
help in getting our music out there,” said Horvath. “So has Mike Marrone at
(Sirius’) The Loft. Satellite radio is great. That said, we would be nowhere
without the constant support of our local college radio stations, WRSU, WPRB,
and WFMU, the coolest station ever. Also, we have been very lucky to get
airplay on various internet radio stations from Florida to Sweden. We support
them in return by recording special sessions and doing station ID's and the
like.”
In 2016, the band signed a deal with Jem Records, freeing
them up from the burden of having to do everything themselves. Reviews of the
first Jem album, Assorted Colours --
a mix of older material and new songs -- have been great and everything looks
good for the band. “Magical,” a newer song, was recently chosen as a “Coolest
Song in the World” on LSUG.
“Our association with Marty Scott and JEM Records have been
great thus far,” Horvath reports. “Marty knows everyone, and has interesting
ideas about song production and marketing that I would never think of. It's
been mutually beneficial, and I can't wait to finish the
record we're working
on so we can get it out into the world.”
With it’s polished and confident sound, the Anderson Council
certainly sounds like a band that is able to devote its energies just to making
music. Not so. Like so many other bands we’ve profiled here, and like your
humble blogger, the members have to balance making that awesome music with that
same everyday grind the rest if us in America and the in the world live in.
Sadly, touring is one of those things that doesn’t happen as much as we’d all
like.
“Touring is tough,” Horvath admits. “We all work full time,
some of us are married with kids, and so we can't go on tour for 3 months. We
do what we can, and try to play the "right" shows for us, whether
that means a bar gig, an opening slot for a bigger band, or playing at
somebody's house. We play as much as possible, that's for sure. We've played in
LA and Chicago, but it's been a while.”
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