belhome

Over the course of six months vocalist/guitarist, John Spae, traveled the western U.S. for the hell of it. Strumming a $20 acoustic guitar along the way, he created the first chords and lyrics that would become Belhome. Upon returning home to Austin, he sat down with Andrea Couch who then wove her enchanting violin melodies and shimmering vocal harmonies through the song’s foundations. Eventually, drummer Eddie Sykes and bassist Jeremy Ballard joined, blending energetic, undulating rhythms with thick, spiraling basslines. The songs began to take form and come to life. Soon after, multi-instrumentalist Mark Rodriguez of The Chapters signed on to round out the atmosphere with keyboards, mandolin and additional guitar. The result is a truly original Austin band whose powerful songs and arrangements find a clearing somewhere between driving, hook-laden Indie-Pop and earthy, balladesque Americana. There, in that lush clearing, Belhome creates a warm, infectious music all their own. Since Belhome’s formation in 2004 they have built a loyal following of fans and friends based on their hypnotic live performances, and in support of A View of the Woods, continue to play venues all over Austin. They plan to tour regionally in 2006.

Belhome
512-466-1162 • info@belhome.net

Belhome has played shows at the following venues:
• Emo’s
• Stubb’s
• Hole in the Wall
• Trophy’s
• One World Theatre - headlined benefit show for
The Lilith Fund
• Victory Grill
• Flamingo Cantina
• Room 710
• End of an Ear Records
• Featured on www.adidas.com/us/soccer (averaging over
1 million unique visits per month)

A View of the Woods is available at the following retail outlets:
• End of an Ear Records
• Waterloo Records
• CD Baby
• Napster
• iTunes

A little bit about the players:

Andrea Couch (violin/vocals) studied Journalism at UT Austin and has played her instrument for 15 years. Before, she played drums in the band Blush. She also works as a graphic designer and is a maker of fine purses.

Eddie Sykes (drums) studied art and rocks in Colorado before moving to California to work for MTV’s “Road Rules” as a Music Coordinator. He later returned to Austin to co-produce the indie feature film "Sexless". Eddie now works in real estate and is pursuing his MBA. He also plays bass in another group and recently took up saxophone.

Jeremy Ballard (bass/vocals) studied Visual Art at UT Austin where he won awards for his creations. He released two records of experimental electronic music under the project name Inkblot for Portland-based label Audio Dregs and Cologne, Germany-based label Tomlab, going on to tour the northern U.S. in 2001. When not with the band, he’s busy finding ways to turn his poems into paintings and petting his gigantic gray dog.

John Spae (guitar/vocals) studied Philosophy at UT Austin and Commercial Music Management at ACC, and has been playing music around town for the past five years. He currently teaches private drum and guitar lessons. He’s also a seasoned producer/engineer, having recorded Austin's The Chapters latest release “Bleeding All Over This Town” and The Swells (with whom he played drums) latest full length “The Waymarked Ways”. The single “Through & Through” from that record won AMN’s 2003 Video Of The Year.