The Michetons

We played them on the podcast, we’ll be interviewing them soon, but last night I had a chance to hear them in person. I’m talking about The Michetons (named after the motley gang of Frenchman who hung out with Jim Morrison’s common-law wife in Paris just before died), the young new group of five guys from Oakland, California who are quickly becoming a tight, new band.

The guys (above, from left: Chris, Matt, Evan, Brian and Dan) perform like they record — lean, tight, and off each other. When Dan taps his enormously large rack of foot pedals for a quiet picking through of notes in the chorus, Brian — who has kept one eye on him the entire song — hits a different pedal on his likewise gargantuan rack of pedals and either accompanies Dan or plays off of him. Imagine a vocalist having someone sing the harmonies on cue and you start to see how these two melodically — and sonically — fit together.

But it doesn’t stop there. Chris — the most British-looking (style-wise) of the group sits at the tubs pounding away with slightly more syncopation than Animal from the Muppets, but with equal animation. An elbows-high style of hitting the heads is unusual to see, but gives each thud a blast of energy that can be felt throughout the crowd. His girations give cues to bassist Evan and the rest of them. Whether finishing a song or entering a chorus, it’s Chris’ cues that keep this band tight. But make no mistake, he’s equally as concerned with the sound: “Do you think the tom-toms are loud enough?” he asked me during sound-check. “I don’t know, you were only playing the high-hat and snare in that song,” I said, trying to show I really was paying attention. It wasn’t a trick, though. Somehow he knew a small tweak was what they needed. And he was right. As they opened the show with “Game of Chess,” the beat was near-perfect. It was the right amount of tom-tom.

Leading that song is the youngest bandmate, Matt, once a guitarist himself who has decided to focus purely on the sound of voice. He looks, acts and sounds much older than he is (I won’t tell you his real age here), and with a silent bravado as he opened his mouth to sing (”Take those words that you say | Take them all right back”) you know this kid is the real deal. Is the leader? Nah. They all are. They share songwriting, the time on the mic and it’s for real. “I get to play music everyday with these guys,” said Chris. “With my brothers.” I haven’t seen this much unity and anit-rockstar ego since four guys crawled up to the mainstream from Athens, GA.

Humble, silent, and somewhat “boy-nextdoor-ish” (they all drank Starbucks’ tea prior to the show), they’re not interested in much else but making the music. And that’s more than alright. It’s refreshing. And it’s what will take them to the next level.

http://www.bigandsharp.com/blog/index.php?s=the+michetons - Kyle du Ford, Big & Sharp, 3/1/07

May 2007 edition

Michetons, or les michetons, were the gorgeous and flawlessly dressed young men of Paris who hung around the affluent, making their “services” available to the lovely yet lonely wives of the area. In a similar vein, the band The Michetons offer up their diverse musical services with style and ease on their self-titled EP. Matt Heath’s voice is commanding.

On all tracks, his ability to blend sharp-as-a-tack lyrics with pleading and sonorous vocals is a win-win situation. The fourth track, “Separate,” has a few fantastic solos where the guitars come in with a garage-like, old-school sound. This effect makes for a nice touch and is also a way to avoid excluding audiences with varied tastes.

The opening track, “Game of Chess,” is a relationship song that manages not to sound cheesy or unbearable. It features hard, masses-friendly rockin’ throughout, proving that these five swank gentlemen are masters of more than just one genre.

The Michetons tackle the indie crowd with their creative lyrics: “You got yours / And we forfeit / When did you think you could say it was over?” They have the ability to croon and be contemplative while voicing a bit of protest with “Radio,” a song that is delivered calmly enough to be enjoyable, but focuses on the artist’s battle with creating and selling out: “Fragments of this song spark memories / You hear songs / But they hear dollars roll in.”

The album also basks in the glory of good solid rock. All five of the tracks feature huge, room-filling guitars and bass lines that act as a beckoning finger, luring the listener in. With sounds like these, The Michetons can “offer their services“ anytime. (Bright Antenna Entertainment)

-Allison Foley

http://www.performermag.com/wcp.recordedreviews.0705.php - West Coast Performer Magazine

Monday April 23, 2007

“Retro-modern guitar rock, sophisticated yet unruly, foxy and sly. Inspired by the songwriting style of bands like The Doors and The Anniversary and the tone and rumble of groups such as Queens of the Stone Age, Smashing Pumpkins, and Led Zeppelin, the Michetons translate for new audiences the archetypal sounds of rock-n-roll.”

That’s what their web site says, but I have an “in” with these five boys from Oakland. Check out and listen to my interview with The Michetons and get answers to their whacky (yet apropos) French name, where their style comes from, who met who when, and who they’d like to open for. I even found out a little bit about the split guitar tracks (Dan on Left, Brian on Right).

Take a listen today.

http://www.bigandsharp.com/blog/?p=850 - Big and Sharp Podcast / Kyle du Ford

Our first music video is available for viewing on our website and on YouTube. Check out the links below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rsnbjb5MsM
http://www.myspace.com/themichetons
- The Michetons

Danielle MacMurchy/Tracy Press Friday, 05 January 2007

Is it a band’s trendy image that makes them good, or is it a sold-out album or a large fan base?

According to Sep V, the producer and owner of Bright Antenna Entertainment, it’s a band’s passion and raw talent that makes them genuinely good. And that’s why he’s made Tracy’s The Michetons the forefront of his Oakland-based label.

He caught up with the five-piece band, then called The Hills, two years ago at a battle of the bands.

“I fell in love with the music and saw a lot of potential,” he said. “We really liked what this band was doing and thought, ‘let’s get behind them.’”

The Michetons, made up of Matt Heath on vocals, Evan Marques on bass, Brian McNeely on guitar, Dan Quigg on guitar and Chris Giddings on drums, credit their dynamic sound and friendship to nothing other than fate. McNeely, Heath and Marques met at West High School, later picked up Giddings, a 2002 Ripon High School graduate, and then met Quigg in July 2004.

“At that point, we decided to become something that nobody else had — period,” Quigg said.

They describe their honest melodies as retro alternative rock, inspired by the music their parents spun and accompanied by a modern flare.

Tracy’s rolling backdrop inspired the group’s first name, The Hills. Before the band could copyright the name, MTV snatched it for its new drama series.

They settled on The Michetons, which Jim Morrison’s wife, Pam, first dubbed a group of friends that hung out in Paris coffee shops.

“That kind of describes us,” McNeely said. “As we grow together as friends, the tighter the music gets and the more eclectic it gets.”

Sep V, who signed the group in 2004, was drawn to The Michetons’ music partly because both guitarists, McNeely and Quigg, can play lead and rhythm guitar.

“Because these guys have been playing together for so long, they can give each other the space to let each other shine,” he said.

Since they signed with Bright Antenna last year, The Michetons have focused their energy to create a quality sound that delivers a fun live show.

“This is the kind of a band that will bring back that element of consumers wanting to go out to a venue to see a band play,” Sep V said.

In an effort to build a community of fans around the group, The Michetons invite those who want to help their promotions to contact Bright Antenna Entertainment.

The group will start a string of shows in the Bay Area and Central Valley in early February. - Tracy Press

http://www.jeffbuckley.com/

Visit Peyote Radio Theatre on www.jeffbuckley.com to see a special, 2 month spotlight on The Michetons... featuring video and audio clips, show dates, exclusive footage of The Michetons performing a cover of Jeff Buckley's 'Eternal Life' at the 10th anniversary tribute show held at Acoustic Playhouse in Hollywood, CA.

The feature is only up for a limited time, so check it out now! - www.JeffBuckley.com

15 Mins with Locals Only: Michetons
by Larry Trujillo

Local favorites, The Michetons, are embarking on a new tour, finishing their first full-length album and sporting Bay Area pride to the delight of dedicated fans and a region that has shown them nothing but support. What is about The Michetons that keeps us coming back for more?
For a relatively new band, you guys are pretty damn organized. Street team, all access passes, who is the brains behind your outfit?
We would love to say that we accomplished everything all on our own, but even with all of us trying our hardest, it's just not possible. We have many helping hands at our label, Bright Antenna, that contribute to our organization and achievements. Not to mention an extremely dedicated street team whom we are more than grateful. A lot of what they do goes beyond just flyering before a show or spreading the word, they are close friends and help us who are constantly brainstorming new promotional strategies with us and helping carry them out. So I'd have to say that the brains behind our outfit is everyone close to us who give us great ideas and our label who ultimately help us carry these ideas out.

The Michetons seem like you are on a mission. What is your goal for the rest of this year?
Ha ha…yeah, The Michetons definitely have a battle plan. I think that we can all agree that though we have many goals for this year, our main one is to put out the best first full length that we possibly can. And we're very adamant in terms of making the best decisions regarding the band and our music.

Tell us about your upcoming tour. Who are you going out with? How far out are you going?
We're very excited that this tour will be shorter than the last one, though not by much. Don't get us wrong though, all of us love being on the road. Everyone is really looking forward to the string of shows that we're doing with our good friends Cold Hot Crash through California and Nevada. Luckily this time around we're not going as far as we did with Ours, all the way to Omaha, in the sleet and freezing weather. This tour will probably be the polar opposite of our last considering the temperatures in Vegas this time of year. During this tour Cold Hot Crash and The Michetons will be switching headlining positions to give the tour a little variety so that it's not the same show every night. It helps break up the monotony a little and gives each band a chance to watch the other acts.

Your self-titled debut EP seemed to be embraced by the critics. Are you satisfied with the results? What do you have in store for the full-length?
Lately, we've been "experimenting" a lot with new material at shows; testing to see how different changes in the song effect the audience's response. I can't count the times when after a show someone comes up to one of us and asks if a certain song we played is on the EP. It almost makes us happy to say "No," because it gives us reassurance that the material we are working on is well received and anticipated. As for the full-length, we have actually been working on the material since before the EP came out. We've been really excited about some of the songs that we have been creating lately, and we think that the fans will be surprised at how broad and eclectic the songs on this upcoming album are going to be. We will be starting pre-production sometime in July and are putting no time limitations on this album since it is our first because we believe that it deserves all the time it needs.

You have a broad range of inspirations from 60s bands to current rock bands such as the Queens of the Stone Age. How do these influences play into your songwriting?
We think that the broader your palette for music, the less tethered you are to a specific genre and the less you expect yourself to sound a certain way. For example, if Radiohead had released 5 Pablo Honey albums, they wouldn't have the audience they do now. As a band, we like to open as many doors as we can and never create boundaries which would narrow our options. We've never used our influences as a crutch or depended on them for ideas, instead we've found a way to learn from them like you would from "the uncle" in the family who's done one too many drugs and made one too many mistakes. You learn from their choices, whether they are good or bad, and we have been able to apply this method to our own songwriting.
Any final words for the readers of Northern California?
Continue having open minds and supporting local music. It's so important to lean on one another and make sure that local music prevails. Comradery between fans and bands is imperative to the success of venues, bands and good music.

http://www.zeromag.com/articles/article_view.php?id=897&pi=1 - Larry Trujillo, ZERO Magazine