The Attic

BY DON DiMUCCIO



The Attic keep operating 'In The Red'

Today boys & girls we will delve into the debut CD release In the Red from the Rhode Island quartet The Attic. Though the band is relatively new to the scene, the music contained within the eight-song disc belies their modernity.

While perusing through the band's biography and ample press clippings, the tag "jam-band" is used time and again. Although I wouldn't necessarily argue with that moniker, I think it somehow belittles what's truly going on under the hood. Rather than just prattling on and on without direction, like so many jam-bands want to do, The Attic displays a certain discipline within their use of the varied musical styles. Funk, classic rock, and even some Latin rhythms are all present in an effort to, as their guitarist Jordon Goldson explains "paint a bigger picture."


The band is comprised of the aforementioned Goldson (guitar/vocals), Joel Kovacs (drums), Tom Pellegrino (guitar/vocals), and Phil Johnson (bass/vocals). What jumps out immediately after even the most cursory listen to The Attic is their unique use of their three lead vocalists. While the rhythm section undoubtedly creates that overall improvisational jam-band vibe, it's always the melody and harmony that actually makes a song a song. And from track one, the band demonstrates a great deal of pop sensibility in that department.


Speaking of track one, "Wearing Thin" is an example of what The Attic does best time and again throughout their songs. Just when you think you know the route these guys are following, they take a sometimes-jarring detour, which nevertheless leaves you somehow even more satisfied than when the journey first began. The song's opening accapella line immediately puts me in the mind of a Tears For Fears-type/1980s pop number: "Paint the walls in blue and green, swimming in a sea of dreams – paint the walls in black and red, daddy has been left for dead." However once the band kicks in, so does The Attic's strong rock-drenched, funk-driven backbeat. And therein lies their true potency.

Two more standout efforts "Promenade" and "Dolly, pardon" (cute pun...) both can be accurately described as funky little up-tempo tracks that contain a great sing-speak style of vocal delivery. The latter specifically relies rather heavily on a Red Hot Chili Peppers influence, replete with a funk guitar rhythm, punctuated with a persuasive use of the almighty wah-wah.
The Attic are set to perform throughout the East Coast to promote the release of In The Red. Already, the band have to their credit a history of playing venerable venues such as New Jersey's Stone Pony and Manhattan's Knitting Factory. There is little doubt that the style of music contained on this disc will lend itself quite nicely to the live stage environment. I'd personally be surprised if this "jam-band" doesn't own the stage inside of two minutes at any given performance. Don't miss the opportunity to witness The Attic jam.


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- Motif Magazine

The band’s breezy, Phish-meets-Zappa vibe goes over well with the jam crowd and they’re really beginning to turn some heads. Their new album, In the Red, is a frisky hunk of sparkling funk, extended solos, and tie-dye tendencies. - The Phoenix

South County, Rhode Island's The Attic have been playing together for two years and the depth of their mutual musical appreciation on their debut, In The Red (self-released in late November 2007) is due to their heavy touring schedule and a lot of hard work offstage, too. The four-piece has duel lead/rhythm guitarists, bass and drums, and they share vocal responsibilities between the three guitar players on the album, which gives the listener a variety of harmonies and flavors.

In The Red features a heavy portion of jam friendly, improvisational jazz, funk and blues-inspired rock & roll. In keeping with their live focus, the loud guitars and classic rock sound of The Attic is definitely a very enthusiastic debut. The strong harmonies of the three vocalists weigh in right away on "Wearing Thin," and their jam influence finds the opening track well above the traditional four-minute standard.

"Promenade," the first extended jam on the CD, takes an instrumental approach with heavy guitar licks reminiscent of early Trey Anastasio. "Eggs to Stone," perhaps the most radio friendly track, has more of a classic rock feel akin to Neil Young & Crazy Horse in 1978. Jam-minded listeners will certainly appreciate the album's variations on funk, jazz and classic rock.

"The Loneliest Monk" into "Von" is an instrumental that changes tempo and exemplifies The Attic's contagious energy. This pair primes the listener up for the final track, the heavily progressive "Barking the Dog," possibly the best cut but also the least radio friendly, "Barking the Dog" clocks in at just over sixteen minutes.

In The Red is an extremely promising debut and introduces the world to The Attic in true color with no-holds barred. It carries their abundant stage presence into the studio realm with real clarity, and hopefully primes listeners to check this band out in their natural setting.

JamBase | Rhode Island
Go See Live Music!




http://www.musicfromtheattic.com/

[Published on: 2/18/08] - www.jambase.com

Throwing Caution to the Wind with blues rock band the Attic
Blending elements of jazz, classic rock and the blues, the Attic are one of southern Rhode Island's up and coming bands. The quartet will make the trek across the bridges for their first show at the Newport Blues Cafe on Thursday, April 26.

The band started playing together in late 2004. According to singer and guitarist Tom Pellegrino, the decision to create the Attic "just kind of happened." All of the members were from the same area and had crossed paths before, he said.

Jordan Goldson, guitarist and singer, met Pellegrino at a bar, gave him a call one night to say he had been doing acoustic shows at the Wheelhouse Tavern in Narragansett. Goldson then called drummer Joel Kovacs and the band's former bassist and keyboardist, who is in the Peace Corp., and the Attic was formed.

"It just happened out of thin air," Pellegrino said. "We just clicked." The former bassist left after a few months and was replaced by Phil Johnson, who also sings.

The Attic got its start playing at the Wheelhouse, Pellegrino added. Groups of friends would show up for the shows everyweek, he said, and it snowballed from there.

While the guys love playing the local tavern, Pellegrino said his favorite show in recent memory was at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel in Providence. The band opened for the Machine and played what the guitarist called a fun show that was also a great experience. Especially great was playing for around 1000 people, he said.

Although the band has never played at the Blues Cafe, Pellegrino is looking forward to the show. "It's a cool place with a lot of history," he said. The Attic have played Newport before, but that gig was at the now closed Area Venue.

Pellegrino said that the best part about playing live shows is a cliche to him: being able to travel and meet new people. He added that just playing in general and having people enjoy the music is great in itself.

The guys will hit the road after releasing their debut, which Pellegrino said should be called "In the Red." It's named after an Attic song that won't be on the album. The tour starts in September and will take the band to the midwest, south, east coast and hopefully the west coast, according to Pellegrino. "[We'll] plan as much as we can and throw caution to the wind," he said.

By Andrew Martin

- Newport This Week

The Attic releases debut “In the Red”


Narragansett, RI – Four piece New England jam-band, The Attic, celebrated the release of their debut album In the Red with a rocking CD release party at the Wheelhouse tavern in Narragansett, Rhode Island on Saturday, November 10th, 2007. The Attic has been a staple in the Rhode Island local music community since 2006. They have also had the opportunity to play major out-of-state venues such as Manhattan’s Knitting Factory and Asbury Park, New Jersey’s The Stone Pony. In the Red is evidence that the past two years experience on the live music scene proved well for the talented group. This eight song gem of a debut shows the groups diversity in musical taste from album oriented rock, funk, blues, and classic rock and improvisational/jam-band genres.

From beginning to end, In the Red has several special moments. Track one makes listeners assume in the first twenty seconds that this is a pop driven record and they are immediately proven wrong as the bass line rumbles in for the intro of Wearing Thin. Tracks such as Promenade, The Loneliest Monk>Von and Barking the Dog are going to gain the most airplay on jam-band based radio formats. Wearing Thin and Eggs to Stone will work incredibly well on alternative-rock based formats, but as noted they will also stand out from most of the other artists featured in that format with the originality and defiance of contemporary radio’s unwritten rules. This is one band that has the ability to get through that.

The Attic currently has dates to support In the Red scheduled in cities including Providence, Rhode Island; Asbury Park, New Jersey; Brattleboro, Vermont; Manchester, Vermont and New York City spanning over a 5 week period from now until late January.


By Mike Akers - WGAO FM Organic Jam
- Mike Akers

Rhode Island band The Attic makes promising debut CD
Marian Gaviola
Issue date: 1/29/08 Section: Entertainment

1/29/08 - I have to be honest: I was seriously scared as I listened to the first 20 seconds of The Attic's album, In the Red. The Attic - not to be confused with the pop/house duo from Sweden - is a local four-piece jam-band, straight from the suburbs of this Ocean State that has been playing since 2005.

According to the band's Web site (http://musicfromtheattic.com/), they are best described as an improv rock band but the first 20 seconds of their album made me think of one thing: a wannabe boy-band from Rhode Island.

It did get much better, but the path was slow and winding. The Attic's first song, "Wearing Thin," had a boppy beat that, when combined with the clashing vocals, made them sound just a bit awful. It might be my bias against boy-bands. They just don't do anything for me(boy bands) and anything that even remotely sounds like them makes me cringe and die a little inside.

However, I have to say that, as the song progressed, at least the band didn't sound like a wannabe boy-band anymore; they were a full-fledged boy-band.

But enough jokes. After a rough introduction to their music, I couldn't help but think that this band actually is really good. The band's songs range from very short to very long and all of them include pieces of instrumental music that takes true talent to make. Listening to The Attic, I couldn't pinpoint one genre to place them in. It was like trying to put a block through a round hole. I heard a bit of jazz, pop, funk, alternative rock and even guitar melodies that were definitely a la Santana.

The group compensated for their first song with "Promenade." As one of my favorite songs from the album, I found that The Attic successfully harmonized one another's voices with the music in this song. This is also one of the longer songs. I found that this band likes to break the rules. It has very long songs in terms of music - one at 11 minutes and one at 16.

Then again, my favorite one from the CD was only a minute and a half long. "The Loneliest Monk" isn't misleading in its title. With no words accompanying the music, the instrumental piece really makes you reflect on things, as cheesy as that may sound.

I didn't particularly think of a lonely monk but the emotional melody will definitely strike a chord within you.

The Attic's music isn't something you'll bang your head to. Instead, it's music that you let yourself sway and bop to. They offer us with an original sound that Rhode Islanders can boast of. They have played in major venues such as Manhattan's Knitting Factory, The Stone Pony and our local haunt, Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel.

Catch them live in Providence on Feb. 2, when they will be playing at AS220. They have quite a few shows coming up here in Rhode Island so see them while you can. For a list of their upcoming shows, visit their Web site, http://musicfromtheattic.com. - The Good 5 Cent Cigar

LOFTY EXPECTATIONS

Local band The Attic builds a strong foundation

By Doug Norris/Arts & Living Editor



..> KINGSTON - They began playing at music parties while students at the University of Rhode Island. They've rehearsed in a basement in Charlestown, performed weekly at the Wheelhouse in Galilee, started touring around the Northeast in a beat-up van and recently released an 8-song CD, "In The Red," recorded in Kingston.

They are The Attic, a four-member rock band that is aspiring to new heights while trying to remain grounded.

"It's not hard when you tour in a '93 Dodge 350 van," said guitarist and vocalist Jordan Goldson. "The best thing I can say about it is, it gets us from Point A to Point B. But the very first time we drove it, right out of the lot, it failed us. Made it 40 minutes before breaking down. That was the beginning of the maintenance. She's not a looker, but inauspicious can be good too."

The same can be said for the band, which plays an eclectic, improvisational mix of funk-jazz fusion, bluesy jam-band rock with vocal harmony, driving rhythms and searing instrumentals. Composed of Goldson, drummer Joel Kovacs, Tom Pellegrino on guitar and vocals and bassist-vocalist Phil Johnson, the band is developing and evolving its sound while resisting labels.

"The way I see it, we're kind of a melting pot, a blend of lots of musical genres and styles," Goldson said. "Phil, for example, likes '80s metal, so he's got that idea in it. The rest of us are not really fans of that brand of music, so we water it down with other influences. Some people call us a jam band, but I just say we're a rock 'n' roll band. The original idea of rock 'n' roll was to be a mix of everything. So it leaves a lot to interpretation, which I think is great."

Goldson said that when you listen to The Attic you'll get "rock-driven songs and within that, moments of improvisation." "In The Red" showcases the band's fondness for instrumental exploration. The eight songs represent "just a snippet" of the band's catalog, said Goldson, who estimates their repertoire at between 40 and 50 originals. Among their influences, played as covers during live performances, are Eric Clapton, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Nirvana, The Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd, The Beatles and Phish.

While the band's distinctive sound seems natural, it originated from chaotic experimentation. The party scene at URI provided the genesis for The Attic.

"We used to host these music parties," Goldson said. "Revolving door style. The instruments were always around. People would pick them up, play them for a while, put them down and someone else would take a turn. That's how we all got to know one another a little bit, by finding out who played what."

In 2004, Goldson started playing acoustic guitar in a coffeehouse style during happy hour at The Wheelhouse in Galilee. One night the owner asked if he wanted to play on stage. The larger scale of the venue got him thinking about getting a band together. The first version of the band started playing in January 2005. The original lineup included Goldson, from Bridgewater, N.J.; Pellegrino, from West Islip on Long Island; Kovacs, who grew up in Milwaukee but settled in South County when he was 7; a keyboard player, Ryan Murphy, who left the band after two years to go to Peru with the Peace Corps; and Johnson from Kingston ("the truest Rhode Islander among us," Goldson said).

"Tom and Joel had played together a little bit, but for the rest of us, when we played the Wheelhouse stage for the first time, we barely knew each other," Goldson said. "It was completely improv. Afterwards, we talked about how it went, what we liked and said we'll meet here again and try this. Did that a couple of times and then it was, should we take the next step? Do we want to practice? Maybe meet up another day and rehearse? We all got along. We all had the same ideas about collaborating. It went from there."

For publicity purposes, The Wheelhouse billed the band as the Jordan Goldson Band, "but it didn't take very long for all of us not to like that."

As to naming the band The Attic, Goldson said there's no great story.

"It's just strange because at the time we were rehearsing in a basement," he said. "We just thought it was a cool name. I remember someone saying they liked the name because people find valuable things in the attic that they never knew were there or forgot they put there. It's a place where you might find something surprising, something that you're not necessarily looking for."

The Attic started filling The Wheelhouse, selling out the annual Halloween show, and began expanding its horizons, playing local venues like the Bon Vue and then touring the Northeastern states. To date the band has played such legendary clubs as The Stone Pony and The Saint in Asbury Park, N.J., The Knitting Factory in New York City and Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel in Providence. The gigs have picked up, and the band is planning a summer tour of the Midwest that may include visits to Milwaukee, Chicago, Colorado and Texas, all while juggling regular jobs. (Goldson and Johnson are tennis instructors, Kovacs works at The Mews in Wakefield and Pellegrino works at Bank of America.)

"In The Red" was recorded at Johnson's house in Kingston in April 2007 and was released in September. The title is a song written by former band member Murphy that is not included on the album.

"It was a way for us to acknowledge Ryan for being with us at the start," Goldson said.

As for the album, it's reflective of the band's collaborative philosophy, a blend of rock styles, multiple vocalists, tempo changes, mood shifts and instrumental forays that suggest artists pushing boundaries and forging new frontiers.

"We're proud of the songs," Goldson said. "We think we achieved what we wanted to achieve, to give a sense of what our sound was at the time. We're proud of the fact that we have an eclectic album. We like the idea that by the third song you don't know what the fourth song is going to be like. That element of surprise, the layers and feel of the album, and the variety of musical styles, that's what we wanted to capture. I think it's one of those albums where you listen to it, and with every new spin you pick up something different."

The Attic is also honing its live act. "Barking the Dog," the final song on "In The Red," has become somewhat of a show-stopper, one of those anticipated, call-and-response numbers that gets crowds riled up.

"There's this part of the song, well, there's a little profanity," Goldson said. "'He don't know, I don't know, we don't know $@%.' People go crazy for that."

"In The Red" is available at Looney Tunes in Wakefield or by logging on to the band's Web site, www.MusicFromTheAttic.com.

- South County Independent