Music
Press
Honestly, one of the best musical experiences I've ever had...Check 'em out, here. I especially like their track Bricktown Betty.
Adam's Castle: one of the many fine members under the Triple Down Records label, serving up the real deal in indie/experimental rock. - boomboomchik.com
The greatest band to walk the earth!!! Seriously this band of 3 is one of our new favorite bands. We listen to their most recent release Deathless like 40 times a day!
Make sure you check them out www.myspace.com/adamscastle08 - http://yumemusic.blogspot.com/2008/12/adams-castle.html
"Zach's bubbly and precise rhythms, Eric's throbbing bass tones, and ebb and flow of Sami's piano drive the progressive tendencies of the illustrious Adam's Castle. Watching these three old friends voicelessly glide through their strikingly composed pieces can just as easily invoke a dropped jaw as it can the hoisting of a pint. A band that finds inspiration in the development of good times can always be counted of for providing some of their own, and the Castle is surely that kind of band." - Real Detroit Weekly
The frontman or singer is most often the focal point of a band. So there's something to be said aboput a band in which all the members are equally noticed and important. It's a rare distinction, but when notes from the piano, bass and drums are the only sounds eminating, all are integral to the overall sound. Although the piano may tend to carry most of the melodies, Adam's Castle create a perpetually flowing course of layered instrumental sounds. More of a pop/rock group than jazz, Sami Jano (piano), Eric Adams (bass) and Zach Eichenhorn are an anomloy in the Detroit scene.
The band's new disc, One Year - named for the length of time it took to release it - was recorded in 5 long days at Greene Street Studios in New York where the band were able to snatch up high-profile engineer Rod Hui. "He's worked with everyone from James Brown to Philip Glass to A Tribe Called Quest," Eichenhorn said. " It was a year and ahlf ago that we recorded that album so we've been playing those songs for nearly three years now. We were still in college at the time but we drove to NYC a week before final exams in April." LAter mixed at Detroit's White Room, One Year is more than ready to be heard. "We owe a lot to everyone at Greene Street. rod was a mentor for all of us. Among other things, he showed us how to go on a non-carbohydrate diet and still be productive human beings."
While there are no lyrics to their songs, Adam's Castle are able to convey as much - if not more - emotion through their music. Think about how a movie score can make break a scene, how it really sets the feeling an tone. Adam's Castle do the same with every single note. " I think all of our music is based on emotion. No matter what we're playing we always elicit some kind of response out of the listener. That response, regardless [of] if it's happy, sad or pissed off, is an emotional reaction," Eichenhorn said. When moving melodies or changing loops or progressions after they have found a unique sound, they then figure out what mood they want to express. "It's not always a conscious decision to write something that goes from an expression of anger to one of elation in a matter of seconds. I think the sound that comes from our instruments is enough to express a given message without needing a singer to verbalize it," he stated. With a scattered drumbeat or a cavernous piano jump, several ideas are reflected. "There are times when we manipulate tempo and use odd time signatures to express the notion of confusion or disillusionment. But the listeners' feelings can be completely different. For instance, if we create a slow, swirling soundscape it can be interpreted as total comfort or total helplessness, or something else. the beauty of instrumental music is that each listenercan interpret the sound in his or her own way." - Metrotimes
If someone's ever said a band needs vocals to make it decent, they've never heard Adam's Castle.
The band held a CD release show Friday for its new album "One Year" at Temple Club, 500 E. Grand River Ave. in Lansing.
The Somber atmosphere of Temple was flooded by the radiance of soft blue lights as numerous candles illuminated the tables and pews spread throughout the venue.
Once the band emerged, people rushed to the stage as pianist Sami Jano, bassist Eric Adams and drummer Zach Eichenhorn unified rhythmic pulses into living and breathing music.
To appreciate the feel and fabric of Adam's Castle's bouncy music, it should be witnessed evolving before a live audience.
The trio tackles each instrument with such panache and poise, words just become irrelevant. the mexmerizing sounds of Jano's hands dancing with the keys, the thick pulsating strikes of Adams' bass and Eichenhorn's unbelievable tempo and cadence are mingled with perfection.
"As an instrumental band, our aim is to create a listening experience that is wholly different from anything else that's out there," Eichenhorn said. "We want to instill a sense of satisfaction in our listeners while getting the point across that music doesn't have to have vocals to be considered worthwhile."
Adam's Castle played an hour and half set that enthralled listeners, taking them on a satisfying journey of emotion and desire.
"Instrumental bands are phenomenal. It's perfect music for talking, driving - it's like a soundtrack for life," said Western Michigan University student Mike Devillers. "This is the fourth time I've seen Adam's Castle. They are very talented and put on a great show." - The State News
Thoughtful, rockin, and intelligently composed are some of the words that come to mind after listening to Adam's Castle debut release. Sami Jano (piano), Eric Adams (bass), and Zach Eichenhorn (drums) make up this instrumental threesome from Detroit. their blend of rock, groove, and melody provides for a unique sound that will move you. the catchy hooks of Adams' bass lines and the melodic and entrancing piano of Sami Jano will suck you in. Eichenhorn's powerful and driving drumming pulls it all together to bring it the force needed to rock you. this trio can portray and array of sensations from the airiness of "cloudspeak" to the darkness of "hemlock". The memorable bass riff of "Daygrego" will unwittingly, but pleasantly saty with you for days. This album can very easily be the soundtrack for life. Adam's Castle has shown us a great taste of what's to come, and have quickly become a Michigan favorite. Look forward to their first full-length release in April, which should be a tour de force. - Detroit News
It's a good time to be Adam's Castle. After all but conquering the East Lansing bar scene and releasing a successful EP, the band readies for the relase of it's debut album on Data Feedback Recordings out of Royal Oak. More than that the trip, who all graduated fomr MSU, is in the process of breaking into its hometown (Detroit) bar scene just as it did here just more than two years ago, all without the helpof a guitarist or singer.
The instrumental piano, bass and drum group formed as aMSU students back in 1999 and despite the unconventional lineup it was only a matter of months before the group was headlining East Lansing bars ona regular basis. Bassist Eric Adams commented, "We started making a name for ourselves pretty quickly. It was surprising." Looking back, it may have been that unorthodox mix that made them so successful in the bar scene usually dominated byb standard guitar and vocal bands. "We can play with a death metal band, and the next night a bluegrass band, and the night after that we can play with a hippie jam band or and indie rock band. It all works out for us." the band says they have only a few requirements for an audience: "Able to breath, stand up, and ears that work. Other than that, just have an open mind", says Adams.
It's easy to see the reason Adam's Castle and another piano-fronted trio are often lumped together, but members of Adam's Castle try to shy away from the Ben Folds comparisons. Saying that Ben Folds Five concentrates on pop while they are "kind of a salad that's got some tang to it. What we try to do with music is make it move and invoke a certain mood. We want to take you somewhere."
You too can be moved by Adam's Castle a few times in the upcoming month. First, this Friday at the City Pulse "David vs. Goliath" fund-raiser at Club Paradise or at the Adam's Castle's CD release party slated for Oct. 11 at The Temple Club, with guests Hot Toe Mitty and Kaki King. When asked for a tagline to encourage people to come out to the upcoming shows, the Castle boys preferred to keep it very simple, saying only, "Come drink beer with Adam's Castle, and if you don't like beer come watch Adam's Castle drink beer." That's one hell of an invitation. - Lansing State Journal
Discography
- Self-Titled EP
- One-Year LP
- Home Recordings Vol. 1 compilation from Suburban Sprawl Records (3 exclusive songs), including Santa Maria.
- Deathless LP (soon)
Photos
Bio
In 1999 Sami Jano and Zach Eichenhorn tended the landscape of a place called Adam's Castle in Metro-Detroit. While meticulously crafting gardens and re-routing streams in the backyard of the castle, they began to joke about starting a "heavy metal piano" band named after the gorgeous structure. As it turns out, after a couple of rehearsals, the music was actually kinda good.
Needing some low end, they found a bassist named Eric Adams. Thats right; Adams. They knew that it was meant to be.
Soon after that they were playing shows, recording albums, going on tours, and developing a loving, yet rabid cult following. In 2004 the band was put on hiatus as Sami moved to New York to compose music for films and television. By September 2008 Eric and Zach had moved to New York to reconvene with Sami and continue what was started. After two killer shows the band was quickly picked up by Brooklyn label, Triple Down Records.
The sound? Well...
The songs are often complex and hard-hitting, yet palatable to listeners of varied genres. Adams' bass consistently creates the head-nodding groove, perfectly complementing Jano's dissonant piano that drives the primary structure and melody of the songs. Eichenhorn’s drumming acts as a third lead instrument, effortlessly accenting the myriad of notes, yet still allowing the bass and piano to sit out front when the songs need room to breathe. Recently the band has added a Fender Rhodes and a slew of haunting samples to their sound, bringing the musical assault to an all-time, bone-crushing high.
There is music that requires a particular mood of its listener, and there is music that presents itself as a pure expression with no intent upon the listener. Adam's Castle falls into the latter category, with the only intent being to present a mood that the listener can accept in his or her own way. Herein lies the beauty of the Castle. The same song can be listened to and made to enhance any occasion; whether it be the impetus for a dance party, the background of a rainy Sunday afternoon, or music to listen to while killing your lover. It's your landscape. Listen carefully.
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