NO
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NO

Los Angeles, California, United States | SELF

Los Angeles, California, United States | SELF
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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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"NO: Local Band We Love"

I must admit at the beginning of this article, that I was never a big fan of Bradley Hana Carter’s first band, Steriogram. Their Green Day-ish pop punk sound never resonated with me. When I was at Indie 103.1 we played their hit “Walkie Talkie Man” in regular rotation. It burned on me pretty quick, but it was nice to see a band from New Zealand raising some eyebrows here in the states.

Today, I am a huge fan of Carter’s music thanks to his new band NO. Carter settled in LA in 2007 and recently began recording with bassist Sean Daniel Stentz. Now a five piece, NO have been playing lots of shows around town.

The un-Googleable group released their first EP “Don’t Worry You’ll Be Here Forever” for free on their website a couple of months ago and it’s an excellent start. The gorgeous baritone Carter summons is impressive, reminding me of soulful crooner Richard Hawley and Matt Berninger from The National at times. Check out “Stay With Me” and download it via Soundcloud.

Stay With Me by NO.

They’ve received huge interweb coverage the past couple of months, and one listen to the EP reveals why. The songs are excellent and the production is moody and beautiful.

While recently chosen by NME as one of the top 100 bands to watch in 2012, I’d give them a little more credit by putting them in my top 10 of bands to watch in 2012. They’re actually playing with another of my top ten to watch in 2012, Electric Flower, tonight at the Echoplex.

If you see a tall dorky guy giggling like a school girl at the show tonight, it’s probably me. Say hi and try not to laugh.

Best,
Chuck P.

NO on twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/nomusicforme - KCRW


"Five Local Bands Who Will Be Huge In 2012"

2. NO
While his band Steriogram is on hiatus, Bradley Hanan Carter needed to get some things off his chest. Sean Daniel Stentz, Joseph Sumner, Reese Richardson, Mike Walker, and he have dropped a dark, brooding, exceptionally romantic first EP. Be sure and pop this in the car next time you're out for a late night drive, watching the glittering lights fly by and wondering why things just didn't work out. - LA Weekly


"100 New Bands For 2012"

Top 25 new bands from outside the UK.

NO
Based: Los Angeles
For Fans Of: The National
NME Says: Hollywood's latest working-class hero, Bradley Hanan Carter makes perfect closing time soundtracks
Key Track: Stay With Me - NME


"BTW (Bands to Watch), 2012: 33 Los Angeles bands who figure to make our new year happy"

(Amended to include NO at #34)

So as rich as 2011 proved to be for local music, 2012 promises even more. Following is Buzz Bands LA’s list of “Bands to Watch” for 2012 — 33 newbies who have not yet released a full-length album and are on our radar to do so in the coming year. Whom did I miss? Leave a comment.

Update: So make this 35 bands, because I somehow omitted NO and the Lonely Wild, each of whom released great EPs this year and have a bright 2012 ahead. Thanks for all the comments — already discovered one newbie thanks to them.

Pictured above: Hands.

After the jump, the list, alphabetically:
Black Flamingo — Full-length in the works, and if anything on it sounds like “Golden Girl” or “Proud Head,” I’m liable to melt.
Chasing Kings — The quartet’s album, “Nice Guys,” figures to come out in the spring, and it’s doesn’t figure to finish last. Compositionally brilliant, thematically sophisticated and emotionally powerful, it’s an album that’ll move you from head to toe.
Cillie Barnes — Founding member of Family of the Year Vanessa Long is off on her own, and if the full-length album sounds anything like the two songs she’s teased with (and I’m told it does), we have a new songstress to swoon over.
Dead Sara — Not quite sure why the quartet’s full-length didn’t come out in 2011 as planned, but maybe a label is interested. One ought to be. No unsigned band in L.A. right now is doing hard rock better.
Robert DeLong — Electro whiz kid already looks ready for a Coachella tent.
Electric Flower — The first EP from the Imaad Wasif/Josh Garza collaboration melted faces. It’s only going to get hotter.
Electric Guest (above) — Deal with Downtown in place, Danger Mouse-produced album is en route.
FIDLAR — Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, but could I get one of those 12-track, 27-minute punk albums that I’ll just play over and over again?
Flora & Fauna — Wesleyan boys come home to L.A. to make noise.
The Ruby Friedman Orchestra — Rock diva embarks on making a proper album, and after you hear it you won’t want to listen to many other people sing.
Haim — One of our favorite sister acts focuses on its material now that Danielle gets a break from her work as an in-demand touring musician.
Hands — It’s been a slow grind, but every time I caught the indie quartet in 2011 (five, maybe six times?) their complex web of synths, vocals, guitars and samples has gotten more mind-blowing. Like a lot of longtime followers, I’d do a somersault on Sunset Boulevard for an EP that had a finished version of “Magic Fingers.” Just sayin’.
Harriet — Alex Casnoff (Dawes, Papa) is doing his own thing, and early returns are promising.
Hot As Sun — It’s about time for another EP (at least) from this deliriously fun, slightly warped art-pop duo.
A House for Lions (pictured at Tarfest) — Purveyors of gorgeous anthemic rock should have a release ready later this year.
IO Echo — In demand as a touring act for years, the mystical shoegazers finally have a label deal (stay tuned for details) and an album on the way.
Jenny O. — Jonathan Wilson-produced full-length slated for early ’12, and she already has a deluge of supporters.
Lady Danville — If you liked the UCLA-bred trio’s harmonies when you saw them live in 2011, you’re going to squeal over the recordings. Pristine pop, endearingly executed.
LA Font — Get on the quartet’s Kickstarter bandwagon, will ya? Indie-rock this sharp deserves to get out there.
Tyler Lyle — Folk singer-songwriter and relative newbie to L.A. Just playing a hunch here.
Milo Greene — Release coming on Chop Shop Records. Boy/girl harmonies, boy/boy/girl harmonies, boy/boy/boy/girl harmonies — they’re all beautiful and exuberant. It’d be a perfect album for springtime.
Miracle Days — Springing from the ashes of Dusty Rhodes & the River Band, this duo could be your new favorite boy/girl band crush. It’s gonna be mine.
Monte Mar — Pop sophisticates with jazz backgrounds, this quintet immediately made noise with its debut EP. Local Natives fans should give it a listen.
Pageants — Everything Rebecca Coleman has done has screamed “next indie-pop darling.” Here’s hoping an album, or at least an EP, lands in my lap(top) soon.
PAPA — Darren Weiss and gang certainly looked (and sounded) like the next big indie-rock sensations last week at the Echo, even beyond their undeniable single “I Am the Lion King.”
Races (above) — A spring release for the sextet’s debut on Frenchkiss Records? That’d be nice. In the meantime, catch one of their feel-good live shows.
Soft Swells — Album coming soon from the new alliance between Tim Williams and Matt Welsh.
Superhumanoids — I flirt with hyperbole here, but the all-new material they played last week in Echo Park sounded like it’s from an album that will be in BBLA’s Top 5 of 2012. It just sparkled.
Useless Keys — Impressive new material sounds less angular, more post-punk/shoegaze-inspired, and the quartet’s wall of sound is as ferocious as ever.
Evan Voytas — Falsetto-wielding electro-soul has linked up with newly hip Dovecote Records. Look for a full-length on the heels of Voytas’ January EP release.
Nick Waterhouse — The Innovative Leisure imprint’s rising star embraces the spirit, sound and style of the ’50s, and before.
White Arrows (above) — The L.A. quintet has shed its “electro Strokes” label and cultivated a psychedelic electro sound that’s all their own. Continue dancing to their singles until that full-length lands.
Youngblood Hawke — Party-rockers you’d actually want to have a conversation with (maybe even check out their lyrics). Word of an impending label deal (stay tuned) and work on a full-length are signs these guys will be taking their party on the road.

Name-checking: Y LUV, the Ross Sea Party, Francisco the Man, Irontom, Bleached, Kiev, Bethpage Black, Deap Vally, Il Albanico, Burroughs. - Buzzbands


"Five Local Bands Who Will Be Huge In 2012 (of which we're #2)"

2. NO
While his band Steriogram is on hiatus, Bradley Hanan Carter needed to get some things off his chest. Sean Daniel Stentz, Joseph Sumner, Reese Richardson, Mike Walker, and he have dropped a dark, brooding, exceptionally romantic first EP. Be sure and pop this in the car next time you're out for a late night drive, watching the glittering lights fly by and wondering why things just didn't work out. - LA Weekly


"Should you see NO tonight? Yes"

Anyone passing by the Satellite on Wednesday night probably wondered what the fuss was about around 8:45 or so. A line around the block at that early hour probably means some secret Foo Fighters showcase or something, but in this instance it was a band's very first set. The group is the defiantly un-Googleable No, a new five-piece fronted by Bradley Hanan Carter, formerly of the New Zealand combo Steriogram and a recent L.A. transplant.

No is going to get a ton of the National comparisons, and for good reasons — Carter has a similar droll baritone and the band (which features Orgami Vinyl's Sean Stentz on bass) loves melancholy single-string guitar figures on its debut EP, "Don't Worry, You'll be Forever." But live, the No members season it with some gang choruses and upfront keyboards that keep singles like "Stay With Me" their own.

But to judge from the close-to-capacity crowd for a dinner-time slot on a Wednesday night, Origami might want to start looking for additional staff because we suspect some serious touring is in the band's future. For now, catch its second show tonight at a house party in Echo Park that, for the sake of the neighbors, we probably shouldn't give the address to, but should turn up pretty quickly if you head to No's Web page. - LA Times - Pop & Hiss


"TRACK PREMIERE: NO – ANOTHER LIFE"

Those who visit CitR on a regular basis may remember the sultry, remorseful vibes of Echo Park’s NO and their debut track Stay With Me. Grasping the listener with massacre stained palms and pleading for forgiveness, swift comparisons were drawn to The National’s Matt Berninger, in both vocal delivery and lyrical prowess, however NO brought the sound into a warmer, slightly more relatable environment. With the group unveiling themselves as a five piece, featuring the talents of Sean, Joseph, Reese and Mike and the previously mentioned Bradley Hanan Carter, it’s with great pleasure that I present to you their newest track in the form of Another Life.

With this cut set to open their fantastic upcoming debut EP Don’t Worry, You’ll Be Here Forever, it’s a fitting introduction to a rather special release. The almost effortlessly slick guitars are vaguely reminiscent of Interpol, whilst Carter’s vocals are once again impeccable, conjuring up haunting similarities to Berninger. It’s one of those tracks that comes across as undeniably cool, whilst retaining a respectable level of emotional introspect, with Carter bemoaning “I’ll see you in another life, you don’t walk this way anymore, I’ll see you in another life, I’ll pretend that I don’t think of you“. NO’s debut EP is out on 11/11/11 and will be available for free from their official site; and let me tell you now, it’s well worth a download.

Check out Another Life below, as well as the previously released Stay With Me. - Crack In The Road


"NO - Stay With Me"

There is a certain level of connection you get with this romantic band that hails from Echo Park. One that resonates in your joints and tingles the marrow in your bones. This sense of saying something powerful over and over louder until having the courage to yell it at the top of your lungs.

Fans of the National will fall in love instantly, luckily they’re self-releasing an EP on 11/11/11 [make a wish!] but for now you can download this song at the place where Bands camp. - Head Underwater


"MPFREE: NO - Stay With Me"

Hiding behind a web of mystery and ambiguity is a strategy being adopted by more and more bands looking to grab the short attention span of potential listeners. Whilst the official NO soundcloud has almost fifty tracks, and attributes them to a certain Bradley Hanan Carter, it appears that it’s only in the past month or so that Carter has really begun to instill a driving force behind NO. New single Stay With Me is a baritone led ballad, proving remorseful and drowned in unrequited longing, with Carter yearning ‘stay with me, isn’t there a place for me inside your heart?’. Comparisons are easily drawn to The National, in both the sound and songwriting structure, and although NO may not quite be up on the same level as the Ohio five piece, Stay With Me is a promising step forward. - Crack In The Road


"Track Of The Day: NO "Stay With Me""

We’re not going to CMJ kids, for the fourth consecutive year that we’ve been aware of it’s existence. Gutted. Bank said “you’ve sunk X amount into releasing VINYLS for some kinda band, and now you want us to float an all-expenses trip to New York so you can listen to music all day, drink beer and enjoy LIFE?? You, my pedigree chum, can jog on and do the proverbial one”. Well, they didn’t, but that’s what we imagine they would say if we could ever entertain the possibility of having a normal conversation with our bank manager (who is called Chris, by the way, and is also, rather unexpectedly upon our first face-to-face encounter, a middle-aged cockney woman. It is debatable as to whether this makes us sexist, but please believe we really don’t mean to be). Still, seeing as we’re used to not going by this point, all is not lost. We still have the internet as our conduit to the big wide world of music and it is indeed limitless. Except for China, mind. This makes us think whether the same majestic bewilderment we experience when coming across a band such as Los Angeles’ NO is the same as the candle-lit magic – yeah, we’re talking about that bit in Almost Famous – that a kid feels when they listened to a Who record (all records were made on vinyl back in the day, thus they just called them all “records”) for the first time back in 1970-something. Stay With Me could well be the new take-off to The National‘s leave-off with High Violet. A vocal song structure that instantly makes a similar impact to that of Ash‘s Shining Light, combined with a modernistic take on Americana a la Owen Holmes‘ Gospel Music, some classic rock progression in the songwriting style of Dire Straits‘ Mark Knopfler and a lyrical content that rivals that of the most recent and prolific of heartstring-tuggers Keaton Henson in terms of a yearning desire to be understood by one’s closest companion quite clearly gives the impression that there is a hell of a lot going on here. It’s certainly captivated our imagination and, personally, has revalidated our opinion that this has been one of the greatest years of harvesting new music that actually means something in quite some time. - Killing Moon Limited


"SOUNDS"

A band/musician named NO released “Stay With Me” via bandcamp. Pretty damn good stuff. Download via the bandcamp link. It’s apparently part of an upcoming EP - Don’t Worry, You’ll Be Here Forever that is due out on 11/11. - Sirens Of Decay


"SOUNDS"

A band/musician named NO released “Stay With Me” via bandcamp. Pretty damn good stuff. Download via the bandcamp link. It’s apparently part of an upcoming EP - Don’t Worry, You’ll Be Here Forever that is due out on 11/11. - Sirens Of Decay


"NO - Stay With Me"

I'm into it. - Nova Musica


"Stay With Me"

A brilliant track from a band called NO that you can download it free from here! A big thanks to John for sending this one over! Soooooo addictive! Enjoy - The Curious Brain


"Ears Wide Open: NO"

Bradley Hanan Carter sings with the weight of a guy who’s wrestled some demons, or at the very least covered a lot of miles. The latter, in Carter’s case, is inarguable — he’s the former guitarist/backup singer in the New Zealand rock quintet Steriogram, largely idle (except for a digital album in 2010) since 2007, when he settled in L.A. Since then, he masterminded the intercontinental rock band Pistol Youth, worked on solo material and, he says, “went through quite a rough season personally from mid-2008 till quite recently.” A year ago, ensconced in Echo Park, Carter began working on new music with bassist Sean Daniel Stentz, and NO was born, eventually including Joseph Sumner, Reese Richardson and Mike Walker. No attempt to thumb its nose at Google, the band’s moniker instead is conceptual — “a response to the limiting idea behind the word … an effort to reclaim it, and reinterpret it as more than just an antithesis to possibility.” So it’s is a case of no not meaning no? Maybe. But judging from the gravitas in NO’s first single “Stay With Me” — off the fivesome’s forthcoming EP “Don’t Worry, You’ll Be Forever” (due Nov. 11) — redemption is but a life-affirming anthem away. - Buzz Bands


"NO"

NO is the Echo Park, CA band fronted by Bradley Hanan Carter and “Stay With Me” (below) comes form their EP “Don’t Worry, You’ll Be Here Forever“, out on November 11. Inspired by the likes of Bill Callahan, The National, and Arcade Fire, this EP features “epic, atmospheric drums that pulsate, buttered bass tones, melodic choruses”. - Indie Music Filter


"No – Stay With Me"

A few friends have sent me this track recently so I figured it’s about time I finally shared. No is a project of Bradley Hanan Carter. The native of New Zeland is now based right in my backyard – Echo Park. His deep baritone vocals and strong prescence has drawm comparison to the likes of Matt Berninger from The National. No will release a debut EP Don’t Worry You’ll Be Hear Forever on November 11th. I have a strong feeling you’ll be hearing much more about it. A track this good doesn’t come around very often. - Rock Insider


"NO - Stay With Me"

The immediately warm character of NO’s ‘Stay With Me’ might be firmly grounded in the level-headed rock music movement of the early 2000s (The National, The Walkmen), but through a seemingly effortless, elusive grandeur, it somehow transcends the limits it sets itself. A rough and weathered baritone binds on to a wealth of post-punk melodies, encasing a storyline coloured by personal interaction, with a man placed irrevocably at the centre. The song begins ‘I’m only human, I’m full of mistakes’, but from the turbulence which engulfs the latter half, a final chorus emerges with a mutinous defiance of human spirit and a dynamic rush of instrumentation. Their debut EP, Don’t Worry You’ll Be Here Forever, is to drop 11/11/11 just here. - This Music Wins


"NO. - Stay With Me"

Bradley Hanan Carter’s vocals seem to fill the bowels of Echo Park, Los Angeles. The deep timbre announces the romantic vision of yearning with conviction in the same fashion of baritone voiced Matt Berninger of The National. You’re going to feel it, too. - yvynyl


"New LA Band: NO"

Really excited to share with you some music from my friends in LA. The romanticism and desolation of that city breeds a restlessness in it’s people. It’s a brooding temperament best captured by Echo Park’s NO- a band that feels it in their bones, with the kind of fevered anticipation for something more. Frontman Bradley Hanan Carter’s baritone vocals speak to the tension between the wanting and waiting, waiting for love or for some kind of order or sense to how it all works. Their track, “Stay With Me” is a ballad of calculated pleas. Of slow, delicate movements. It’s being in love with someone, and hoping for some kind of stillness in the unpredictability of love. He asks, “wasn’t there a place for me/inside your heart?” It’s all the words you’d ever want your lover to say, the fantastic notion of running away, the return to youth, when everything was uncomplicated and wonderful.

It’s not about naivety, it’s about not being calloused by a city of strangeness and strangers. Something the band knows quite well. The band itself is composed of near-veterans, all claiming a vast history with various bands, solo efforts, defunct projects, cities-travelled, loves made and lost– with Joseph Sumner and Reese Richardson rounding out the band with guitars, Sean Daniel Stentz on Bass and Mike Walker on Drums. NO began as a response to the limiting idea behind the word. In an effort to reclaim it, and reinterpret it as more than just an antithesis to possibility. These are sing-along songs, hymnal and anthema-tic; born out of a desire to connect with the greater collective of young people seeking their truth, adventure, love. There are remnants of odes to Bill Callahan, The National, and Arcade Fire — epic, atmospheric drums that pulsate, buttered bass tones, melodic choruses.

NO marvels at the growing pains of a vibrant city, in all of it’s aching limbs and veins that run down dead ends. They’d rather listen to the children laughing at Logan Street Elementary School down their quiet streets, or kiss their girlfriends with all the hope that things will always feel this way. The interplay between hope and despair weaves itself throughout the collection of six songs in their debut EP “Don’t Worry, You’ll Be Here Forever” a sentiment that suggests that wherever “here” might be, it’s a good place to start.

Don’t Worry, You’ll Be Here Forever EP
Release Date: 11/11/11
1. There’s A Glow
2. See You In Another Life
3. Easier To Walk
4. Coming Down
5. The Long Haul
6. Stay With Me - Friends With Both Arms


Discography

Don't Worry, You'll Be Here Forever. (released 11/11/11)
Stay With Me 7" (released 4/9/11)

Photos

Bio

The romanticism and desolation of Los Angeles breeds a restlessness in it's people. It's a brooding temperament best captured by Echo Park's NO- a band that feels it in their bones, with the kind of fevered anticipation for something more. Frontman Bradley Hanan Carter's baritone vocals speak to the tension between the wanting and waiting, waiting for love or for some kind of order or sense to how it all works. Their track, "Stay With Me" is a ballad of calculated pleas. Of slow, delicate movements. It's being in love with someone, and hoping for some kind of stillness in the unpredictability of love. He asks, "wasn't there a place for me/inside your heart?" It's all the words you'd ever want your lover to say, the fantastic notion of running away, the return to youth, when everything was uncomplicated and wonderful.

It's not about naivety, it's about not being calloused by a city of strangeness and strangers. Something the band knows quite well. The band itself is composed of near-veterans, all claiming a vast history with various bands, solo efforts, defunct projects, cities-travelled, loves made and lost-- with Joseph Sumner and Reese Richardson rounding out the band with guitars, Sean Daniel Stentz on Bass and Mike Walker on Drums. NO began as a response to the limiting idea behind the word. In an effort to reclaim it, and reinterpret it as more than just an antithesis to possibility. These are sing-along songs, hymnal and anthema-tic; born out of a desire to connect with the greater collective of young people seeking their truth, adventure, love. There are remnants of odes to Bill Callahan, The National, and Arcade Fire -- epic, atmospheric drums that pulsate, buttered bass tones, melodic choruses.

NO marvels at the growing pains of a vibrant city, in all of it's aching limbs and veins that run down dead ends. They'd rather listen to the children laughing at Logan Street Elementary School down their quiet streets, or kiss their girlfriends with all the hope that things will always feel this way. The interplay between hope and despair weaves itself throughout the collection of six songs in their debut EP "Don't Worry, You'll Be Here Forever" a sentiment that suggests that wherever "here" might be, it's a good place to start.