Past Shows: November 15th, The Footlight, Brooklyn, NY
September 29th, 2018 The Footlight, Brooklyn, NY
July 3rd, 2018 Union Hall, Brooklyn, NY June 15th, 2018 The Gutter, Brooklyn, NY
April 16th, 2018 Alphaville, Brooklyn, NY
March 5th, 2018 Elsewhere, Brooklyn, NY
Jan 26th, 2018 Alphaville, Brooklyn, NY
Dec 22, 2017 The Gutter, Brooklyn, NY
Oct 5th, 2017 The Footlight, Brooklyn, NY
June 23rd, 2017 The Gateway, Brooklyn, NY
June 14th, 2017 Mercury Lounge, New York, NY
Bio:
Originally formed by a group of visual artists, Dead Painters has evolved into a cohesive unit that draws upon both the mundane and miraculous of the everyday. Made up of Oliver Beardsley (percussion), TC Brownell (bass, vocals, keys), Marlene Bowles (guitar), and Japeth Mennes (vocals, guitar, bass), the band treads the line between moody melancholy and triumphant bouts of self-reflection. Together, they write songs about people like them who are trying to make sense of an increasingly fickle world. Mennes notes, “I think we all share an interest in writing songs that combine aspects of portraiture (of people we may or may not know personally) along with a dose of autobiography.” By leaving room for interpretation, Dead Painters more directly connects to their audience.
Based in Brooklyn, NY, the band’s members take full advantage of that thriving scene, contributing to various other projects and supporting fellow musicians like Wild Pink, Yazan, Plates of Cake, and Nathan Xander. Having played at venues like Baby’s All Right, Alphaville, and the now-defunct Silent Barn, Dead Painters is a consistent musical presence, and actively works to seek out like-minded artists. Their ability to vacillate between quietly introspective subtleties and bursts of energetic commotion helps to define a multilayered sound that is equal parts guitar-driven pop and thoughtful experimentalism.
SINGLE - MARIGOLD
Referencing the ochre-hued blooms placed at grave sites on the Day of the Dead, ‘Marigold’ is a reflective song that sprang out of a conversation between Mennes and Brownell about getting older, sleeping less, and the feeling that the clock is slowly counting down toward the end. Their dual vocals form a conversation about the shared experience between everyone who has ever felt like they don’t have enough time to get everything done in their life. It’s hard to be alone in the crowd, but maybe we’re not.
SINGLE - SIT TIGHT
The second single from ‘Doused’, ‘Sit Tight’ is an ode to today’s constant push for fame, success, and importance. Brownell’s plaintive lyrics ask us to settle down, wait it out, and stop pushing ourselves too hard. He notes, “It’s about want to do something great, feeling frustrated that it’s not happening, and then realizing nobody but you really cares and we’re all gonna die someday.” Not a defeatist anthem, it is instead a reality check about taking time for yourself and those that matter around you.
ALBUM - DOUSED
‘Doused’ is the third full-length from Dead Painters, and expands on their previous releases while also pushing toward new ground. Thinking about psychedelic rock and its deep connections to drug culture in the 1980s, the band pushed away from the more traditional associations in favor of more alternative means of expression found in bands like Talk Talk and the Cure. Ruminating on feelings about death and growing older, the songs on this album place more stock in meditative ideas rather than psychoactive substances. Each track seems to look back at the past and at the same time look forward to finding a quiet, personal space within the hustle of the city.