Chariots of Tuna
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Chariots of Tuna

Band Alternative Pop

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"Chariots of Tuna - my new favourite band"

The beautiful songs of Chariots of Tuna are the works of Ben Morss, who actually started using the bandname almost ten years ago on various indiepop compilations. At the close of 2008, he started the project again, after having played with bands like Cake, Wheatus and the Pilgrims, made two children's musicals and played piano in Ed Burns' feature film Sidewalks of New York.

Chariots of Tuna make super-melodic pop songs with 60s influenced falsetto harmonies and very clever arrangements. The music is full of sweet lightness, but there is nothing made easy here. Ben Morss' songs are full of interesting arrangement-details and it is easy to hear that these songs are made with care and planning, and with a heart that probably beats for music both from our time and from some decades back. Ben makes the songs, but he is not alone in Chariots of Tuna. He is joined by Dan Davine, Shawn Setaro and Rus Wimbish.

I have heard three of their new songs (all available on myspace) and I want more! Can't get enough of this music!
- eardrumsmusic.com


""Just a delight""

From Brooklyn, the creatively named Chariots of Tuna play a lovely baroque alternative pop. The light falsetto vocal harmonies and matching jangle guitars on "War Hero" are just a delight. The Shins flavored "Save Me Maryann" and Beach Boys styled composition "Air" are a nice teaser to this three song EP (so far) which is still in the working stages. The driving force here is Ben Morss (Cake, Wheatus) who blends influences of new and old pretty well. Similarities to Brooklyn-mates The Creaky Boards aside, they are still working on a distribution deal, hopefully we'll get more tracks soon! - powerpopaholic.com


""Lighter than cotton candy sounds""

The lighter than cotton candy sounds of Brooklyn's Chariots of Tuna were quite pleasant to my ears this morning, so I thought I'd share a song and a few words. It's an incredibly easy listen in the vein of The Clientele or Belle and Sebastian.

About a decade ago, Ben Morss was residing in Sacramento and started penning songs under the name "Chariots of Tuna" for compilations like I Made It out of Clay (Little Shirley Beans Records) and Candycore! (Asaurus Records). He moved to New York and got involved in various projects (like playing keyboards on albums by Cake and Wheatus) before being convinced to form a band in which he could share those songs. in 2008, Chariots of Tuna was reborn. The line consists of Ben, Rus Wimbish (Scurvy) on bass, Shawn Setaro (Martin Bisi, Dresden Dolls) on guitar, and Dan Davine (Avenue Q) on drums. - Rock Sellout


""If they don't come to the UK soon, I'll duff them up.""

I know a good falsetto when I hear one, and Chariots of Tuna's singer Ben Morss does it better than most. Have a listen to indiepop epic War Hero on the band's myspace page, and tell me that this sort of summer-y pop isn't just what you need a Monday that seems to have dragged on forever.

That name, of course, is a problem, but then there's plenty of daft-named bands around these days, isn't there? Yes, there is. So, let's accentuate the positive, and say that Chariots of Tuna fill that space left by fifty per cent of Beulah, and Belle and Sebastian before they turned into the Barron Knights.

If they don't come to the UK soon, I'll duff them up. - A layer of chips


""A new favourite""

Today's featured artists have embraced a band name that might not roll off the tongue without thoughts of movie satire or maybe even a distant constellation waiting to be named. However, the music found us with a new favourite we must recommend for listening. Chariots Of Tuna was originally the solo music project of Ben Morss during the late 1990s in Sacramento, California. Fast forward to 2008 and Ben (keyboards, guitar, vocals) had relocated to New York City, performing with a collective known as The Infinite Orchestra along with musicians Dan Davine (drums, guitar), Shawn Setaro (lead guitar) and Rus Wimbish (bass). Together, these seasoned musicians have given new life to the music of Mr. Morss with a new EP titled Fondness Makes The Heart Grow Distant. Think of a sound that exists somewhere between a polished Beach Boys single and an old dusty album from classic label Homestead Records and you will most likely understand why we are so taken with this music.

It's no small wonder that Slumberland Records is front and center on the Chariots Of Tuna MySpace page. We can't imagine it being too distant of a relationship... for long, anyway.
- Milk Milk Lemonade


Discography

"fondness makes the heart grow distant" -- self-released, spring 2009

but "War Hero" will be on a compilation put out by Tweefort in august

and it is being played on radio stations and web radio from brazil to greece

and we will also be on a compilation put out by eardrumsmusic in norway.

we also placed tracks on:
"I Made It out of Clay" -- Little Shirley Beans Records
"Candycore!" -- Asaurus Records)

Photos

Bio

What is this new group which has so quickly earned such glowing reviews on blogs around the world, which is suddenly being played on radio stations and web stations in countries as diverse as Greece and Brazil?

In fact, Chariots of Tuna is not entirely new. In 1999, in Sacramento, Ben Morss began recording songs under the name “Chariots of Tuna” for indie-pop compilations such as I Made It out of Clay (Little Shirley Beans Records) and Candycore! (Asaurus Records). Then, looking for a change of pace, he moved to New York City. And the band was no more.

Then, in 2008, Ben, Dan Davine, Shawn Setaro, and Rus Wimbish were all playing together in the theatrical classical-pop hybrid group, the Infinite Orchestra. But the urge to create beautiful, intricate pop cannot long be suppressed. And in their small practice space in Brooklyn, these skilled musicians hatched a plan to restart Chariots of Tuna. They recorded three songs in that same practice space. Ben sang layers of vocals and overdubbed keyboards late at night while holding his sleeping baby son. And Dan engineered and produced the result. And thus Chariots of Tuna returned to life.

It may be worth noting that Ben has also played keyboard on albums by bands like Cake and Wheatus, that he played with California acid-jazz kings 11:11 at festivals like SXSW and NXNW, that his poppy punk band, The Pilgrims, made the charts of college radio stations nationwide, and that his two children’s musicals have been published by Samuel French. Or that the band features Rus Wimbish (Scurvy) on bass, Shawn Setaro (Martin Bisi, Dresden Dolls) on guitar, and Dan Davine (Avenue Q) on drums.

Ben’s carefully constructed tunes, delicate falsetto harmonies, loungey vibe, and groovy beats recall pop from Of Montreal to Belle and Sebastian, the Shins, and the Decembrists. Songs tell of the ache of long-distance love affairs, the faith and confusion of a woman waiting for her husband to return from World War II, and the simple self-pity of an unloved songwriter.

Chariots of Tuna are on a mission to bring great music to the world. Won’t you join them?

Please visit at http://myspace.com/chariotsoftuna .