Posture Coach

The eclectic trio that is Posture Coach – Kris Mills, Erich Booth and Dennis Thomas – had caught one another’s eye as hallway gazers in high school and their initial meeting stemmed from a mutual crush between Mills and the guys. Mills, who was the “new girl” at the time, had played guitar and Booth and Thomas both played guitar and drums. Though a few jam sessions later ensued, no musical romance was immediately born from it.

Booth and Thomas, who banded initially under the name Boxfish, opened up for the Zou’s Annual Halloween Show in 2003 as Posture Coach. At the time, Posture Coach was blues rock duo who penned and performed captivating music.

Mills was in attendance at the annual event and was impressed with the overall energy between the performers and fans. “Seeing how you can pack a bar and have people into you. I wanted to be in a band again. That’s when Erich invited me to play bass,” she says.


Fittingly so, on Valentine’s Day of 2004, Posture Coach played their first show, as a three-piece, at the regionally renowned Noveau Rock Festival. “It went amazingly well,” Mills adds.

In the beginning Mills wasn’t fully content with being a female bassist; the reason being that the average listener considers the bass a minimal ingredient in a musical recipe, therefore, assuming it a powerless and unnecessary part of the mix. “We’d play at talent shows and I’d play bass and I didn’t like to play bass,” she says. “Now, when we play live, I play different instruments. But, I do like being a bassist. It’s fun for me.”

Posture Coach is currently working on their first full length CD, Give Them Excess. The band has enough material for a double album, but they’re narrowing the list down to 12 or 13 songs. The band hopes that Excess will be released sometime after the turn of the New Year.

Posture Coach has been extending the quality and boundaries of their catalog with country-inspired rock to cast beside their unpredictable post-punk forte. Their spontaneous use of time signatures, atonal chords and three-vocal projections throw the listener’s expected continuity askew, in a good way.

Though the band is already hard to categorize, their newer influences of proto-punk are taking their music to an exhilarating level. Booth notes Iggy Pop and Velvet Underground as subconscious inspiration: “It isn’t always intentional, but it comes out that way.”

“We’ve been listening to Gang of Four and Mission of Burma, stuff like that. You can see it reflecting in our music. I think our newer songs are a lot different; lots of diversity on the record,” Mills concludes.

They’ve recently been recording in New York at the School of Audio Engineering, where Thomas graduated from and is currently an instructor at. Booth is currently attending Kent State University and Mills is a student at Youngstown State University. Due to their geographical obligations, the band no longer abides by a set practice schedule.

They often rent practice space in New York before a show or before entering the studio for recording. Lugging hefty equipment down crowded streets is a fair trade for having a place to rehearse out of town.

While that’s a luxury most bands can’t afford, Posture Coach has a “band room” in Youngstown which “has everything we need in it.” “We have a giant room dedicated to it. Dennis and Erich buy a lot of sound equipment. We pay for everything ourselves. We’re pretty lucky,” Mills admits.

When there’s business to tend to in Youngstown, Thomas usually takes a train into town to practice before shows. In between train rides, Thomas has been mixing and mastering Posture Coach songs with his free access to the SAE studios. This past summer they wrote and recorded most of their songs in Thomas’ garage. Even though many miles separate the members; their technological conveniences far outweigh their geographical inconveniences.

“It’s been hard to stay in touch and make plans. We recorded a lot of songs in the summer, and Dennis has been mixing the tracks. It’s free, that’s why we’re being patient,” says Mills.

by Joseph Rafidi II
- The Walrus

“Posture Coach proved to be an act to watch Friday night when they rocked the Nyabinghi with two other local bands.
Drummer Dennis Thomas's recent return from a brief stint in New York City has fueled powerful return performances from Posture Coach, as they recently performed in the Nouveau Rock Festival in addition to Friday's show. Posture Coach, a three-piece band, has an original sound, unlike anything else in this area.
If The Vines met the B-52's at a strip club where Bjork was dancing to a White Stripes song and Meg White could sing, so they could discuss bluegrass music, the experience might sound like Posture Coach.
Youngstown State University student Kris Mills is well on her way to becoming the next Youngstown music scene icon, with a wealth of talent and stage presence. Her powerful voice exceeds her tiny frame.
Thomas, Erich Booth and Mills all took turns on bass and vocals, while Kris also played guitar for a large part of the set. Each musician moved from piece to piece, covering different parts.
Early in the set, the song "Scream" captivated the audience with Mills' vocals, as she forged through the song, her tiny stature taking control of the march-like tune. It was easy to forget that there were only three people in Posture Coach, with unique and complex three-part harmonies.
In another song, "Give Them Excess," Mills's voice was sampled live at the Nyabinghi and mixed with a beat Dennis created [electronically] before the show. The audience closely watched the stage as the experimental song slowly began to take shape. The rest of the band joined in with their parts, including a drum part on top of the beat.
“Posture Coach takes chances with their talent, resulting in a refreshing new rock sound in the local music scene. Their original rock sound and remarkable musical chemistry is exciting and inspiring.”

By Katie Libecco
- YSU Jambar