Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
Some artists get inspiration while sitting on their grandmother's couch.
But Davenporte owes its name to one.
"Johnny (Huffman, bassist) came up with that one," said Adam Bryant, drummer. "His grandma always used to call her couch 'the davenport' and he thought it might be a great name for a band someday.
"He just threw it out there and we went with it."
But Davenporte, one of the 10 finalists in the 2007 Chillicothe Gazette Battle of the Bands, sponsored by Ohio University-Chillicothe, did add an "e" at the end, ostensibly to avoid any legal problems.
The family roots of the band's name is just part of the norm with the four-piece outfit from Pike County, as they've known each other since junior high.
"Dirk (Moore) and Johnny went to Waverly and me and Kyle went to Piketon and we've always known each other," said Bryant. "After another band we were in broke up, we just started playing together and things worked out."
In fact, that other band was called Assuming the Negative, and the current lineup of Davenporte spent about six months writing original material before heading out to play shows.
"We like to keep things original," said Bryant. "We've been compared to an older Incubus - and we do have metal roots - but we feel like we have an organic rock style with clean vocals."
The band heads into the BoB on an upswing.
In March, they released "Of Appalachia" - their first studio release.
"It's a reminder of where we are from," said Bryant. "We're not trying to get a big image of a big, bad rock band from somewhere. We just want to stay true to what we do."
And what they do is really going to become what they do. In July, the members will leave their jobs and college behind for a tour of Florida and the East Coast.
"We're four best friends who are doing what they love to do," said Bryant, "And we're truly committed to what we do. We feel we're at a high point right now and we're taking off for good."
But that doesn't mean they won't be back to the Scioto Valley.
"We don't want to lose the fans, friends and respect we have here," he said. "If there's a big show locally, we'll be back."
- The Chillicothe Gazette
Discography
2004-5 track Massieville demo
2005-3 track Schwab demo
---this demo contains the first recording of "Conversation," which has and can still be heard on 99.7 The Blitz in Columbus, Ohio
2007-"Of Appalachia"-Davenporte's first full length studio album; Recorded/Produced/Engineered by the whole band in their private studio in Waverly, Ohio. As of now track #2, "Hindsight," can be heard on Columbus' 99.7 The Blitz.
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
Dirk Moore, Kyle Hatcher, Adam Bryant, & John Huffman came together in June of 2004 to create Davenporte with the intent of fusing the collective strengths of its members to attain a greater good—a greater sound. With an abundance of experience in metal, though also with designs on a more organic sound, the band wrote for six months before performing their first show at the Odeon in Cleveland, Ohio. In the 18 months that followed, Davenporte would thrive, performing shows from Ohio to Orlando, Florida. In June 2006 the band began work on their first full-length album. After 9 months of intense production, "Of Appalachia" was completed. The record features their strong individual musicianship and song writing abilities while rising to another level with the synergy the band has developed over the years. Davenporte has taken their destiny in their own hands by choosing to be in charge of everything from booking, selling records independently, merchandising, and down the line. They continue to perform high-energy shows across the country with the goal of gaining the mass appeal for which they are poised and ready. For more info on Davenporte, check out www.myspace.com/davenporte and www.sonicbids.com/davenporte.
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