Music
Press
The People
By Nick Brandon
GO & DO Editor
» See more local bands
The The members: The People are Russell Gillespie (vocals, guitar and piano), Oliver Thompson (guitar and vocals), Joe Augugliaro (bass and vocals) and drummer/vocalist Sean Vinci. The group hails from Rochester.
The history: Formed around Thompson’s compositional talents and Vinci’s knowledge of recording and production, it only took The People a year to play some of Detroit’s most favorite music venues and it just released its debut album.
What's up with the name: The name The People is, according to the band, simple — it represents the fans that come and see its shows, normal kids with a great way to have fun and who are there for the music.
The style: The quartet plays a blend of covers and originals that span a few decades of influences — sounds range from the progress, Zappa-esque “Let’s Take the Bus” to the bluegrass favorite “Tuesday Night Special.”
Many listeners may consider The People to be a jam band, with Grateful Dead inspired tunes and guitar work sometimes leading long jams. But the band hopes all things could happen when it comes to the music of The People.
Got anything recorded? The People released its debut record Where Do I Begin last week with a release party in Ferndale. The disc is available through its official Web site at www.thepeoplemusic.net, which also features a free sample track “Princes Wings” as a download.
The group also has a MySpace page with sample audio, which can be heard at www.myspace.com/thepeople1.
Tell us your future? Though still a young band, the quartet plan to continue building a fan following one fan at a time. The People also will play regularly in the local area to promote the release of Where Do I Begin.
Website: www.thepeoplemusic.net - Go And Do Detroit/Michigan
Discography
Make A Sound (To be released in April 2007)
Where Do I Begin (2006)
RID Sessions (2004)
Oliver Thompson [Solo Release] (2004)
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
From the very beginning, The People have been focused and determined working non-stop to create a name for themselves. Relentlessly striving to avoid the branding of labels, The People don't allow any one description, be it Progressive Rock, Jam band, or Indie to define them solely. Using the dense compositional style of the classical realm, the melodic sensibility of the singer/songwriter & the improvisational quality of a jazz combo, The People create a unique listening experience like no other.
Formed in 2004, Oliver Thompson (guitar/vocals), Joe Augugliaro (bass/vocals) and Sean Vinci (drums/vocals) have already conjured a devout following. And with the aid of CD's, t-shirts, stickers, and most importantly their high energy live performances, they have achieve a great deal in a very short amount of time. From the highly anticipated release of their debut album "Where Do I Begin" to their annual benefit concerts, and of course their now infamous Halloween Tribute to Phish (in which The People perform an surprise Phish album in it's entirety), The People are on a roll and show no signs of slowing down.
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