titanmoon

Moody alt-rock measuring stick: TitanMoon
For a while a couple-a years ago, this very publication couldn’t go a week without bragging on the musical prowess of a new outfit whose double-headed foundation had just arrived from — of all places — Wisconsin. Titan Moon, according to us, was on its way to becoming the proverbial stick by which all other quiet, moody alt-rock bands would be measured.
Then we kinda lost touch — either our critics just stopped going to shows or Titan Moon just stopped playing our favorite hang-outs. Whatever. The time is ripe to begin waving that TM flag again, based specifically on the fact that Tyler Casey (vocals, keyb’s, and guitar) and Nate Schneidewent (vocals and guitar) will soon be releasing a full-length of new tunes.
Produced by famed knob-twiddler Enrique Gonzalez-Diaz, the eponymous disc has been two years in the making. If "titanmoon" (the album) bears any sonic resemblance to 2002’s postcard e.p., we’re all in for a treat. The band is rounded by Joe Burton on keyb’s, Trey Ware on drums, and Zack Felton on bass. For more information, go to www.titanmoon.com. — Anthony Mariani

Sat with The Hourly Radio, Envoy, and Black Tie Dynasty at Axis, 120 S Main St, FW. $8. 817-870-AXIS. - fort worth weekly

Titan Moon, Postcard Republic
by Heather Tylock

I am a child of the Depression. I was reborn at a Son Volt concert, and later took Rhett Miller into my heart as my personal savior. I have taken communion under the alter of the Jayhawks, and was baptized by the sisters of September 67.

In a time when 'Depression Rock' has become 'Alt-Country' and our 'brightest' artists are products of an industry and a society where hope has been abandoned for profit, it is hard to find salvation of any kind. But in deed, salvation is possible, and celebration of its rebirth can be found in an album conceived on a ranch in the middle of the Mexican wilderness.

Postcard Republic is a six-song salutation to life, love, and loss. Titan Moon's Nate Schneidewent and Tyler Casey use their voices as instruments, accompanied by a flawless symphony of strings and percussion, that projects a clarifying sense of emotion. There's no whining and no screaming, only an overwhelming sense of truth.

The songs are an amalgamation of sorts. They recall the symphonic odes of the October Project, the hope of the Jayhawks, the sorrow of Jay Farrar, and the twangy quirks lovingly displayed by the Incontinentals.

The set starts off with "Postcard", a ballad of sorts, where the pilgrim searches for deliverance, not sure of its purveyor. The crescendo of the album moves through "Ryan's Song", a devotion to experience and its appreciation, into the apex of "Everytime." Here, Titan Moon violins the soul, bringing the strings of lost loves to the surface. In "She Ya," there is a combination of an almost primal drum with the sublime of the bluegrass base as a front to the nonsensicality of the lyrics. We then move into another dreamy ballad, before rounding off with "You Go Away," where we are struck with an infinite sense of change.

The entire album is a reflection of the transitory nature of life and our dependence as humans on a stability that does not in fact exist. And while it painfully reminds us of the transition, it also shows us that change itself can be seen as a stabling factor, because change is the only constant.

Fact is, these boys from Wisconsin have done something that no other recording artists have been able to do for quite sometime. Which is restore my faith in the creation of musical art. Titan Moon's Postcard Republic is well worth the listen.

{www.titanmoon.com} - erasingclouds.com

here's a little description of what some concerts i've seen are like:

the band sets up: cords, wires, mics; everyone looks busy. tyler seems to get lost into some abyss everytime, but then they find him. oh, and the oh-so-popular landon performs his electrical magic.

when tyler reappears, the onlookers aren't sure what's about to happen. he's wearing a cowboy hat and a plastic holster. plastic shots are heard. the show begins. or perhaps the audience might see the pink sunglasses, larger than life, beaming out from the black attire. the rest all dressed with impeccable taste.

inevitably tyler sees fit to loosen things up, to become engulfed in the music and to let it take him to wild on-stage (and off-stage sometimes)adventures.
everytime i've seen a show, there seems to have been some common reactions from the listeners. one group, utterly baffled...."is this guy serious?"...they might be wondering. another group, laughing...."this guy can't be serious." and another group riding the same wave..."these guys rock."

as tyler runs to the edge of the stage, balances down the banister and leaps off into the crowd, nate begins to smile. his eyes shoot to joe on the keys, to zach-steady and constant. trey keeps rockin' out in the back.

tyler and nate bull fight. tyler gets hurt; nate lets him. not a beat is missed.
the music flows like liquid. better than ever and getting better yet.

by the end, if any were confused or doubtful, most, if not all, have become believers. - the corsican

"titanmoon performs ambitious music made majestic by a layering of sounds...this band is full of talent!" - music connection magazine

"simply, if there is one band that's more ready for making the big jump, we can't think of one" - fort worth weekly

"titanmoon's postcard e.p. is a moody, intelligent and very promising collection of acoustic-based dream pop" - the rage, nashville

"fact is, these boys have done something no other recording artists have been able to do for some time...restore my faith in the creation of musical art" - erasingclouds.com