The Section Quartet

The Section Quartet challenges ideas about the role of strings in rock, pop and alternative music, and fundamental notions about what a rock band can be. TSQ doesn’t play classical music -- they only play rock & roll: by turns one of the most in-demand crews for both recording studio collaborations and electrifying live performances alongside music’s top artists and producers, and a bona fide rock band in their own right. This Los Angeles-based rock band-disguised-as-a-string-quartet has sold out shows from Dublin to New York to LA and conquered the Main Stage at the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival…TWICE. Writing their own visionary arrangements of their favorite rock songs, ranging from classics by Led Zeppelin to Radiohead, and delivering high-powered live shows, The Section Quartet confirms that you don’t need a guitar to rock. Following their independently released 2004 and 2006 album and EP, respectively, TSQ takes it to a new level with Summer 2007’s FUZZBOX, their captivating debut album for Decca Records.

With FUZZBOX violinists Eric Gorfain and Daphne Chen, violist Leah Katz and cellist Richard Dodd have strikingly re-imagined tracks by Radiohead, the Strokes, Queens of the Stone Age, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, The Postal Service, Failure, Soundgarden, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Muse.

Helmed primarily by celebrated producer/songwriter Linda Perry (4 Non Blondes, Christina Aguilera), FUZZBOX is a shining example of why The Section Quartet has become the string ensemble of choice for progressive underground artists, chart-topping rock bands, and even pop divas: their unique approach.

“We think of ourselves as a rock band that just happens to play classical instruments. We bring the rock & roll attitude to the table,” says Gorfain.

“Any song we choose to translate from its original form to string quartet needs certain elements to withstand the transition: a good melody, a really cool bass line and a solid groove are crucial—and a great guitar riff doesn’t hurt either! That’s why, for example, Radiohead works so well for us.”

On FUZZBOX The Section Quartet’s versions of Zeppelin’s “Heartbreaker” and Queens of the Stone Age’s “No One Knows” are massive and hard-rocking, while their interpretations of Soundgarden’s “Black Hole Sun” and Bowie’s “The Man Who Sold the World” prove epic and enveloping. With Perry producing—she has worked with the quartet ever since her production of “Beautiful” for Aguilera—The Strokes’ “Juicebox” and Muse’s “Time Is Running Out” are ballsy and innovative. “Linda helped us make it dirty, ugly or pretty when it needed to be, which made TSQ’s sound bigger, better and fatter,” says Dodd. Adds Gorfain, “She is the filter of what is cool.”

Legendary producer Jon Brion, also a long-time friend of the band, was enlisted to bring his eccentric sensibility to the album, producing the track, “Phenomena” by Yeah Yeah Yeahs. “Jon is such an incredible personality that working with him is always fun and anything can happen. We took time exploring the right sounds and various effects - you should have seen the recording room floor all covered in pedals and amps! We’ve had so many informal collaborations with him over the years that it was a real treat to have him produce us.”

The Section Quartet recommends that FUZZBOX be played at an inappropriately loud volume…because rock & roll sounds better that way!

HISTORY:

The quartet was originally conceived only as a studio entity. Eric Gorfain, having toured with Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, was called upon to write string arrangements for a Led Zeppelin tribute album. He drafted Richard Dodd for the project, which was released on a small indie label in 1998. Dodd had worked with artists such as Lowen and Navarro, The Bangles and The Three O’Clock, just to name a few, and the two bonded over their mutual interest in rock music. Gorfain: “That’s when I had the idea to put together a studio string group to play recording sessions. What would make this group unlike typical session players is that the people involved would still be classically trained, but with a real enthusiasm for rock music. I called it ‘The Section’, as in the string section on a recording session.” This group went on to record Gorfain’s growing list of strings-only adaptations including the music of Tool and Radiohead’s celebrated OK Computer album in its entirety.

Daphne Chen and Leah Katz met on the Los Angeles freelance scene in 1999; Chen was a member of Latin rock band Quetzal, and Katz was already a veteran of Hollywood recording sessions. They formed a string quartet of their own, backing up artists on TV award shows such as the Grammys and American Music Awards. Ultimately, Gorfain & Dodd met Chen & Katz, and though no one remembers the details of that first encounter, there was instant chemistry. Chen: “People had been telling us we should meet Eric and Richard, and we finally ran into them backstage at an awards show