SPRINGTIME April 14 2021, 0 Comments

You’ve perhaps noticed we’ve been teasing a bit on socials with poetic images of a fiery-headed individual singing out into the universe, TRYING to say something, yearning to be heard.

Well.

We’re getting ready for something big (in our world anyway)! We’ve got new music coming, new cool merch, AND new shows on the horizon!

So…

Get on the mailing list at www.thesuburbsband.com to be the first to get news and order the new album, and get your tix to one or all of these shows coming up this summer.

Plus - HOPEFULLY - there will be one more BIG SHOW late this fall, where we can all gather and play as many new songs as we can, plus the old faves of course! --so stay tuned.

Thanks for listening!

CHAN

April 2021

ST PAUL MN

First Avenue, Friday, May 18th, 2018 - Photos May 21 2018, 0 Comments

Limited Edition Collectors Vinyl 45 April 13 2018, 0 Comments

Limited Edition Collectors Vinyl 45

The Suburbs are releasing a limited edition collectors vinyl 45 this spring: it's a brand new recording of some very old songs, "Cows" and "Baby Heartbeat", performed by the new incarnation of The Suburbs featuring Stevie Brantseg and Jeremy Ylvisaker on guitars, Steve Price on bass, Janey Winterbauer singing supporting vocals, and Max Ray, Rochelle Becker and Stephen Kung on horns. This band has been performing together since the release of The Suburbs first 21st Century recording, "Si Sauvage", and their latest release, the critically acclaimed "Hey Muse!".

Founding members Chan and Hugo had this to say about this new release: "Yes, the original recordings of these songs from our first album, "In Combo", are classics and worthy of repeated spins still. And of course all respect and love to Bruce, Beej, and Michael. But after playing these and other great old songs live for a few years now with these amazing musicians, Hugo and I were compelled to record them again. To us, they sound new and different and fresh and exciting. And we couldn't think of a better way to present them to you than on a rich-sounding vinyl 45. We hope you agree."

This special "for-the-fans" vinyl 45 will first be available for sale at the band's May 18th appearance at First Avenue in Minneapolis. The Suburbs have played an annual blow-out at this legendary club since the early eighties. Be sure to order your tickets now as these shows are perennial sell-outs.

These new recordings of classic 'Burb tunes are only 2 of a dozen specially curated "hits" from the band's late 70's & 80's output, re-made with the new members in Hi-Fidelity Sound. Besides celebrating the new line-up, why re-record these songs now? After being approached for years by film and TV producers asking for the rights to use the band's tunes, and being thwarted by the red tape from Universal Music which holds the original master recordings, Chan and Hugo decided to simply re-record the tunes and make them now available for use. The band never signed away their song publishing rights. Already the band has been able to supply their immensely catchy music to the Super Bowl and other NFL sports broadcasts, been approached by Netflix and had a handful of advertising agencies calling, giving the music newer and wider circulation and more importantly keeping the legacy of this legendary Minneapolis band alive. The Suburbs and Mr. Poling are represented by Superior Music Publishing in Los Angeles and around the world.

Join us on Friday, May 18th at First Avenue! 
Purchase tickets HERE

Chan's Interview with 507 Magazine November 13 2017, 0 Comments

Interview with Chan Poling by John Sievers from 507 Magazine:

1. This year marks the Suburbs 40^th anniversary, and you’ve released a new album called Hey Muse!  What was the process of putting this album together like?

It all started around 2010. My wife had been ill (hence the many visits to Mayo) and she taught me, encouraged me, to live as fully as possible. She always said to me that The Suburbs was one of my greatest legacies; and why not celebrate that? I started writing rock songs again joyfully and have been doing so ever since, first with "Si Sauvage", now with "Hey Muse!".

2. Hey Muse! Includes some tracks that seem to be a bit of a departure for the ‘Burbs like the ballad “Butterfly.”  How has the band evolved with this new album?

One can't help but evolve, hopefully.

3. One of my favorite tracks from the record is the up-tempo “Our Love.”   It has some great lyrical surprises like the comparison of love to “Cheerios crushed beneath the leg of a kitchen chair.” (I hope I heard that right, if not forgive me).  What comes first for a song like this?  The music or the lyric? What’s the song-writing process like for the Burbs? How has it changed over the years?

That song came together sort of all together. When I realized the lyrics (yes, you got them right) were sort of surreal and free I was allowed to go more 'off the cuff'. Some songs (like "...Can't Take You Back") are more succinct, maybe have a little story. In general, I start with music, but oftentimes I find a title in my notebooks that triggers something. It's always been that way.

4. “Our Love” is also one of the horn-heavy songs on the album with a great bari solo and some cool section licks.  How does composition of the horn parts work?  How does it expand the band’s musical palette?

I often write the horn licks on keyboard. Lately I've been working with Stephen Kung who I trust implicitly to flesh that stuff out and make it sound more "horn-like"! And of course Max and Rochelle are soulful geniuses, who you can just let go and blow. I think The Suburbs has always had (especially since "Credit In Heaven") a jazz element.

5. What kind of a response have you gotten to the new record on your supporting summer tour?

Excellent! And radio has picked it up in a big way all around the world. Top 20 in the national Modern Rock charts, etc.

6. Can you share any funny or moving stories from your tour (maybe that stop in the “foreign lands of Des Moines”)?      

Well, it's hard to think of all that goes on, on the road. The story in Des Moines was me being recognized on the street. Admittedly I'm not a huge rock star, so that was very cool. The funniest thing is just being with a gang of 40-50 year old people roaming from town to town in vans and trucks! We don't call them "tours" anymore. We call them "trips". Maybe "excursions". That sounds more grown up.

7. You made sure to put your new record out on vinyl.  Why do you think it is important to put your music out in this form?

Vinyl is the fastest growing physical product out there now.

8. Hey Muse! and your last record Si Sauvage were both crowdfunded.  What is your attitude to crowdfunding to produce new music?

The idea of controlling your own operating capital is always intriguing to me. We don’t make music that competes with Taylor Swift. We make music for a more unique market and you need to find ways of funding that like any other business. When we realized people actually wanted to be part of these crowdfunding things, it was a relief. There’s a stigma that you’re 'asking' for money. The fact of the matter is, we’re making a product. It costs out-of-pocket cash to make a good record (with the studio time and the musicians and the manufacturing and the marketing etc). When I found out we could control our own destiny by simply offering our record for sale before it’s made, I said let’s do it. It’s more empowering, it’s about community and it’s a closer tie to the fans.

9. What was the process of making the video for “Je Suis Strange” like?

We gave Deacon Warner a call at IFP and he had some young film-makers do it for us: Thomas Solowiej and Lea Redding.

10. The final track of Hey Muse! “When We Were Young” seems a bit biographical looking back at earlier times with the Suburbs.  Is this a fair assessment? How have some of the losses you’ve experienced over the years like the passing of your guitarist Bruce Allen, or (forgive me and ignore if you find this offensive) the loss of your wife had an impact on the music you’re making now?

That's a fair assessment. Loss is hard. Hopefully you take some sort of empowerment from it to live on, and more fully.

11. Some of your music has taken on a life of its own.  For example, “Love is the Law” became a part of the campaign to legalize same-sex marriage Minnesota.  What do you think this says about your music?  What effect has this had on you?

I'm very proud of this. It's that sort of thing that keeps me going!

12. The Suburbs are often credited with helping create the “Minnesota Sound.”  What do you think you’ve contributed to this sound?

I think we contributed a sort of bridge between the "art" music of the coasts, the glam-ish 70's rock of the UK, and the Midwest ethos of humor and fun. Plus we loved James Brown and club dance music and brought that in too.

13. What achievements are you proudest of during your time with the band?

My kids & loved ones, the great collection of tunes, my friendships, learning to produce bigger shows, my connections around the world of theater and jazz and other kinds of music, making people happy!

14. What’s the biggest change in the music business you’ve observed in your years with the Suburbs?

Major labels have shrunk. Physical product (records) have disappeared. Sales have plummeted. The business side has changed immeasurably. The art keeps on! Thankfully. Honestly: The Suburbs are in an esoteric niche of the music business world, and I'm just very happy that we've established ourselves there and people are still finding us and appreciating what we do.

15. How have your other projects like the New Standards had an effect on your music in the Burbs?

I've reached more people. I've learned a lot. I'm a better piano player.

16.  Does your interest in jazz find its way into the Suburbs music? How?

Yes! You can just hear it... I think... I think a lot of songwriters have been experimenting with a larger chord palette, etc. but we also like to leave room for improvisation. It keeps the gigs fresh, and some nights you can hear things you'll never hear again!

17. What Burbs’ song is requested most frequently when you play live?  Are there any of your songs that you refuse to play?

We don't take requests. Ha. And I'll play anything!

18. What advice would you give to yourself if you could send a message back 40 years in time to when the ‘Burbs started?

Don't smoke.

Chan on the "Minneapolis Sound" 🎵 September 06 2017, 0 Comments

Video: My North - Episode 31: "Chan Poling" by MSP Magazine, September 6th, 2017. 

This video features founding member of The Suburbs, Chan Poling, and offers an exclusive look at what it means to be a musician from Minneapolis. What is "Minneapolis Sound"? According to Chan, is it the "sound of creativity." Chan, along with the rest of the Burbs members, "feel a sense of pride that we are a part of a legacy of, you know, a movement that affected a lot of people." Thank you Minneapolis, and the rest of the world, for supporting The Suburbs! 🎵

Subscribe to our email list at the bottom right corner of this page for all things Suburbs! 

9 Questions With Stephen August 30 2017, 0 Comments

1. If you could be any animal, what would you be?

River otter. Looks like so much fun!

2. What was the first band you played in?

Wain McFarlane's Collection of Random Players Assembled Hours Before the Show.

3. Do you play in any other bands?

The Honeydogs, Hookers $ Blow, Bunny Clogs, guest w/ The New Standards.

4. How many instruments do you play?

How many trumpets are there? And keys. A little violin.

5. What was your most memorable Suburbs gig?

Probably the first Bruce tribute at First Avenue.

6. You're stranded on a desert island... What three items would you bring?

A hatchet, a large water container, face paint.

7. What is your favorite Suburbs song?

Love is the Law would be too obvious. Love is the Law.

8. What famous person (dead or alive) would you most want to have dinner with?

Karl Marx or Charles Darwin.

9. What is the best advice you've ever received?

Listen to yourself.

    

     

First Avenue Show 8-04-2017 August 11 2017, 0 Comments

Thanks to everyone who came out to SOLD OUT First Avenue on August 4th for our "Hey Muse!" Record Release Show and 40th Anniversary Celebration! What a night. We were lucky to have our good friends DJ Jake Rudh and Ryan and Pony as our support acts. It was a pleasure playing new and old tracks for new and old fans. The past 40 years making Burbs tunes have been a true delight! Here are some awesome photos for you to enjoy.

BACK ON THE ROAD - A Missive From The Cowfields - From Chan August 09 2017, 0 Comments

When folks ask me: "How did you enjoy touring this summer?" I can see the sly twinkle in their eye that suggests we are all in on the idea that it (touring) is a thing not possible to be enjoyed (after the age of 35). But I must say; it was indeed a joy! There is a sort of simple appreciation that seeps in after a while that let's you soak in the sunny drives through beautiful country. And the shows! It was amazing to have people come up to me in the streets of exotic foreign lands (like Des Moines) and pour out their love for the music we've been making for so many years. It was great to realize that The Suburbs have touched hearts all over the place. We played smaller clubs, to be sure, but they were filled with real super fans that spurred us on to play some of the best music we've played in a while. They brought their old posters and albums and had us sign set-lists and told old tales of gigs from their memories of glorious debauchery and fun. But it was the 2 college girls from Madison that lit up my smile: crowded up front and jumping up and down with delight when we played "Cows", singing along with every word. They discovered, for their very own, the underground delights of non-mainstream rock, and were soaking it up.

-CHAN

9 Questions with Janey May 19 2017, 0 Comments

1. If you could be any animal, what would you be?

A liger. Because ligars are cool.

2. What was the first band you played in?

Nectar. We were a psychedelic pop band that played around town in the mid 90s. Lots of big muff, lots of farfisa. 

3. Do you play in any other bands?

The New Standards Big Band, The 9/16s. A lot of randomly thrown together 'corporate gig' bands.

4. How many instruments do you play?

I play 20 instruments as well as any 5th grader could.

5. What was your most memorable Suburbs gig?

My first gig with the Burbs was on the Main Stage back in 2013. What a great crowd!

6. You're stranded on a desert island... What three items would you bring?

Mascara, lipstick and the latest issue of Tiger Beat.

7. What is your favorite Suburbs song?

Spring Came.

8. What famous person (dead or alive) would you most want to have dinner with?

Kurt Vonnegut.

9. What is the best advice you've ever received?

Let them laugh, they'll get theirs.

A Letter To Our Cherished FunRaiser Supporters May 11 2017, 0 Comments

Dear Cherished Hey Muse! FunRaiser Supporters,

Here's an UPDATE on all the stuff you have coming to you.

Golf. Most important. I'm talking with the guys who want to go golfing, and... WE ARE GOING GOLFING! Soon. Can't wait.

CDs and Vinyl - Both are in production now, thanks to your generous support! CDs should be done in a week or so, and then we will get the mailings out. Vinyl is a different story. Turns out vinyl is a rare and hot commodity that takes a much longer turnaround, due to its rare-ness and hot-ness. Expect that to be mailed to you closer to the release date, and we are sorry for that. But it is rare. And hot. So...

Other Stuff - Some of your orders came with Teeshirts, Posters, stickers and "Swag Bags" and the like. You will receive all of these delightful ancillary items in the same box that contains your audio. For people who cashed in their "Backstage Pass" benefits already, we will get on the ball and make sure you get your "other stuff" mailed to you with the rest. For people who ordered an All Access Pass, we will be sending your swag in the mail and please send us an email and let us know what show you would like to use your pass at thesuburbsrock@gmail.com

We are endeavoring to get these packages to you as soon as possible. We hope to deliver this month (except the vinyl. Hot and Rare, remember.) so thank you for your patience and your support! Seriously. We couldn't do it with out you.

Love,

Chan, Hugo, all the Steves, Jerome, Janey, Max & Rochelle, and all the Suburbs Family!!

The "Hey Muse!" Tour: Turf Club May 03 2017, 0 Comments

We had an absolute blast kicking things off for Hey Muse! at the Turf Club last Thursday, April 27th and hope you had as much fun as we did. We wanted to share with you some incredible photos from the show, taken by Chad Werner, City Pages. Thank you fans for your support and excitement about our new album, Hey Muse! coming to you all on June 23, 2017.

PHOTOS: 2017 Chad Werner

Counting My Blessings May 02 2017, 0 Comments

This is a thank-you note. But "thank-yous" can come across sometimes a bit blithe. So I wanted to dig a bit deeper and see if I could explain sincerely how I feel.

I've seen some things. I've lived through some very trying events; painful things that got me deeply seeking meaning in my Life. Actually, it's not really 'meaning' that I'm after. I just want to be open to Joy. Because I think Joy is out there for us all. It's a natural element. Sure, I'm realistic. I'm pissed off like everyone else that we still have to fight so hard for truth and justice in this day and age. But, I do count my blessings. Kind of like a miser counting his pennies.

I think the reason we view counting our blessings as sort of poignant and fragile is because it's hard to do. So, when I can, when I see them delivered right up to me, like they were this past month as we went out to you to seek support for the release of our new Suburbs album and you all came through like gangbusters, I want to go on record as an appreciative accountant.

Thank you, everyone.

Tally Ho!

Chan

9 Questions With Jeremy April 20 2017, 0 Comments

1. If you could be any animal, what would you be and why?

Whale. Whale culture.

2. What was the first band you played in?

The Paperclips. One gig, 6th grade talent show. Best audience sound I've ever heard. 

3. Do you play in any other bands?

I play in a few other groups, I've been focusing on some solo instrumental music lately. 

4. How many instruments do you play?

I play many things with strings, some with keys, some with buttons, some with sticks.

5. What was your most memorable Suburbs gig?

Most memorable Suburbs gig was the most recent First Ave show because I love that place.

6. You're stranded on a desert island... What three items would you bring?

Guitar, coffee maker, boat.

7. What is your favorite Suburbs song?

Music For Boys.

8. What famous person (dead or alive) would you most want to have dinner with?

Stephen Colbert.

9. What is the best advice you've ever received?

9 Questions with StevieB April 13 2017, 0 Comments

1. If you could be any animal, what would you be?

The mythical cat horse.

2. What was the first band you played in?

FAZE, with my buddy's Jon and Lance.

3. Do you play in any other bands?

Yes. Curtiss A. Jerks of Fate. Different freelance projects that come my way.

4. How many instruments do you play?

Five: bass, guitar, veena, mandolin, the triangle.

5. What was your most memorable Suburbs gig?

The next one, because we just keep getting better!

6. You're stranded on a desert island... What three items would you bring?

My Meera, my guitar and my cats.

7. What is your favorite Suburbs song?

Our new hit song Hey Muse!

8. What famous person (dead or alive) would you most want to have dinner with?

Dr. S. Balachander.

9. What is the best advice you've ever received?

Crowdfunding/FunRaising and the Music Biz at Large April 11 2017, 0 Comments

I thought I’d try to put my thoughts down on paper after watching the news coverage last night of our new Suburbs album release, and the crowdfunding campaign behind it.

People like to use the words ‘crowdfunding’ and ‘kickstarting’ (which, btw, is a bit like using the word 'Kleenex' when you mean 'tissue') for marketing campaigns that we and our other artistic brethren use to launch the release of new material these days. There are some questions about these practices, but really they're our best options. It works, simply, like this:

In lieu of investment from a larger corporation (major labels like Universal Music - which swallowed up all the old labels we used to be on) we now rely on going directly to our fans - the Crowd - with our own marketing via the far-reaching internet to give our record releases the financial kick in the pants they need to go toddling out into the world.

So, we developed our own crowdfunding platform, a "FunRaiser". Because if you're not having fun, then why bother? Believe me, I know it's hard to find levity these days.

The initial orders we receive by these sorts of campaigns fund the start-up costs that we would have gotten - as recoupable debt, mind you! - from the big labels: the investment into the recording, mixing and mastering of the music, the manufacturing and initial distribution of the product, the marketing and radio promo, and of course if we’re lucky, some sort of compensation for the musicians! After the short window of these "special offer" crowdfunding things, the album is available on all the normal outlets, at the normal price, and we take our fortunes as they come. But please know: downloads from iTunes net us artists pennies on the dollar, a significant percentage of your money goes to Apple, Inc. and of course streaming outlets like Spotify and Pandora, where most listeners access their music, generate fractions of pennies for the creators. We'd like to encourage people to try to forgo those avenues. Always buy the music, tickets, merchandise, whatever, from the artist's own website, if possible.

But I’m not going to complain about something I cannot control. I’m just going to knuckle down and find the most efficient and fun way to get my art to as many people in the world as possible, and try to eliminate the middle man.

After our last Suburbs release - 2013’s “Si Sauvage” - became the largest grossing Kickstarter music campaign in Minnesota, we began to understand how this thing worked. We knew there still existed a passionate fanbase, we knew they were knowledgeable about the way the music business had changed, and they loved being involved in the effort to change it back if possible to a sustainable model for artists, we knew we just needed to provide a simple button where you could pre-order the new album, and if someone somewhere wanted to pitch in more we could bundle up teeshirts and cocktail parties, back stage passes, etc. Perks that brought folks who cared closer to the action.

We could make our OWN web store that could succeed in being the little engine that could, that could generate the capital to run our OWN label, and make our own music and tour and interact with folks on our own terms.

This DIY model may not be the magic cure-all for the music industry malaise at large, but I think it's a start.

Check it out here.

Thanks for listening,

CHAN

9 Questions with Hugo! April 07 2017, 0 Comments

1. If you could be any animal, what would you be?

I would be Animal, the drummer in the Muppets, he's been a big influence.

2. What was the first band you played in?

The Suburbs!

3. Do you play in any other bands?

Never.

4. How many instruments do you play?

I play all the instruments I can.

5. What was your most memorable Suburbs gig?

Loring Park '82, any 1st Avenue gig.

6. You're stranded on a desert island... What three items would you bring?

Chan, the bassist and this monkey 🙈.

7. What is your favorite Suburbs song?

The next one we write.

8. What famous person (dead or alive) would you most want to have dinner with?

Bruce BC Allen (dead), Charlie Watts (alive).

9. What is the best advice you've ever received?

 

The 80s have roared back. But is there room for some of the actual, foremost practitioners of 80s rock? The Suburbs’ new album Hey Muse! shouts an emphatic, "YES!" April 01 2017, 0 Comments

- John Munson; Semisonic, The New Standards, The Twilight Hours

Among the Twin Cities' most influential and inventive bands, The Suburbs’ urbane romanticism remains intact, along with a keen sense for a hook and plenty of thump to keep the dance floor moving.

Hey Muse! is the second album from the revitalized group. The record is full of mod moves and tones that feel contemporary, but there is a sensibility in the songwriting that remains consistent with the group's work from the 80s. And since Chan Poling, the principal creative force and singer for the group continues to lead them, this comes as no surprise.

Poling is joined by Hugo Klaers, the original Suburbs drummer. Anyone who knows what makes rock bands tick understands that with the original drummer and singer, the personality of the group will continue intact, and so it is.

The rest of the band is comprised of Minneapolis rock and roll veterans who honor the old sound, while updating it. The newest Suburb, guitarist Jeremy Ylvisaker has played with artists like Andrew Bird, Haley Bonar and Alpha Consumer, and has toured the world. He mixes skronk and atmospherics in equal parts and plays a large role in making this new record feel more contemporary than their las t effort, Si Sauvage.

Also on guitar is the amazingly thin Steve Brantseg, a longtime friend and erstwhile Twin/Tone label mate of The Suburbs when he was a member of The Phones. Brantseg brings guitar swagger and deep empathy to the line-up. He has been there, done that and doesn't have any truck with regrets.

Steve Price, who shares production duties with Poling, rounds out the rhythm section with his melodious bass approach. He doesn't stint on driving the groove hard, however. The record also features the Suburban horn section, featuring the band’s old friend Max Ray (The Wallets, etc.) on sax, with Rochelle Becker and Stephen Kung, set back and fattening the sound, and the wicked blend of backing vocalist Janey Winterbauer.

The Suburbs were founded on the principle that music is best enjoyed when you are shaking your ass. Hey Muse! is full of tunes that should get a crowd moving. The title track opens with a "Lust for Life"-style groove and proceeds to a big sing along "whoa whoa" chorus. On the track, Poling implores his muse to "…teach me a song and make it happy because I'm sick of the sorrows of this world…" This sets the mood for much of what follows. "Bittersweet" and "romantic" are the tone of much of the record, though I doubt if the people dancing will mind much.

David Bowie and Bryan Ferry haunt the grooves on a number of songs, especially the romantic "We Could Be Lovers," complete with saxophones weaving in and out ala Roxy Music, T Rex or Bowie's mid-70s work. Hard to fault anyone for mining those rich veins though…after all, everybody's doing it, though few as skillfully as The Suburbs.

The standout closing song on the record comes closest to real nostalgia: "When we were young, we loved the boys and the songs they sung… when we were boys we fell in love with the loudest noise," is likely a sentiment any lover of rock music can understand…but Poling takes it another step, into his personal circumstance, maybe, with the bitter, "It's just so tragic, now you're gone." You can only speculate what he's referring to: his old bandmates, his wife, the heroes he plainly loves now among the departed…but the passion rings out in his voice.

Another brand new Suburbs album? March 26 2017, 1 Comment

Here’s what happens. I walk by the piano looking at it out of the side of my eye. This can go on for weeks. The piano is perfectly innocent, no blame can be laid on it. It’s entirely me and my mood. Me and my Muse, maybe... We are the fickle ones. Truth be told, the piano is a blameless, amiable and pleasant companion. A real boon to the household. But sometimes I can’t look it straight in the eye. I walk on by.

Then comes a day when I walk straight up to the piano and, with a great smile on my face, embrace it with open arms. “Where have you been, old friend?” I say, placing my coffee cup on a small table (placed there entirely for the purpose of holding my various cups). “Tell me a story!” And I’m playing again, improvising and writing, and quite content.

Why days and weeks can go by (and years) without this feeling, indeed feeling the opposite, almost shunning the poor creature (the piano), I do not know. I have had various theories.

So we eventually come to the point where my visits to my old friend (Is this becoming too precious? Let’s just call her 'Steinway') have produced enough nuggets to share with the rest of the band. We gather at various rehearsal rooms, studios, bars and restaurants and bat these nuggets like so many balls of colorful yarn around. (Sorry, mixed metaphors are accumulating...) Sometimes they come together into full blown arrangements very fast. Sometimes they take years of experimenting to reach their full potential.

For instance the song “Lost You On The Dance Floor” from this new album was an entirely different animal when we first started recording it. I didn’t really even know what it was about. Until one day I woke up with something in my head that I knew was “it”, and we went into the studio and threw an entire year or more of work into the trash. We started over. And that song is now one of my favorite on the record.

Which makes me at this point want to interrupt my self-centered tale to thank and introduce the open-minded, flexible, amazing artists that make up The Suburbs now. This process would not succeed if they all were to a man and woman any less than the generous, open, loving, curious, talented and skilled people that they are.

After Bruce Allen passed away and Michael Halliday retired from the stage, we started this new incarnation with inviting Stevie Brantseg to join us. Stevie B. was an old friend from the Twin/Tone days, one of the best guitarists in a town with (admit it) a lot of great musicians. But there was something more to Stevie. He “got” the initial vibe of the band, particularly the idiosyncratic quirk that Bruce C. Allen brought to it. And he continues to bring his own rock star panache to the new songs and the old.

Next we invited Steve Price to join us. I asked my friends in the New Standards, John Munson and Steve Roehm, who are both great bass players (ok, John is the best), who they would recommend. They both said “Steve Price” without hesitation. I think everyone who pays attention to the scene (and the album credits) also knows that Steve P. is a great recording studio engineer and producer too. He was in the trenches on this new album from Day 1.

We’ve always been blessed to have our old friend Max Ray and (his wife) Rochelle as the rock bottom of a horn section that we’ve had part of our sound since I decided to write that silly horn line from “Love Is The Law”. (Sorry, it’s not silly. It’s exciting!!) Max comes from venerable musical stock, playing with Willy Murphy and the West Bank dudes, and of course the notorious Wallets. Round that section out with one of my favorite all-around musicians, Stephen Kung on trumpet and keyboards, and... what can I say? Cool Magic.

When we lost our old friend Beej, we asked the extremely talented Jeremy Yvilsaker (nicknamed for purposes of this band Jerome) if he’d fill in the 2nd guitar slot. Now, the absence of Beej is no light matter, and Jerome made it clear that he by no means would want to be construed to have tried to “take Beej’s place”. We all know that would be impossible. But Mr. Yvilsaker said he would very much like to play guitar and bring his own thing to the group. He did, and he does. And it is amazing.

Last, but not least, we come to Janey Winterbauer. With all lead vocal duties falling to me now, I sought at long last some real harmonic firepower to bolster the vocal sound. To my delight, Janey agreed to join this nutty crew.

Have we covered everyone? Oh yeah. Hugo is on drums. And me, I play the piano and sing.

And we have a brand new Suburbs album ready for you!

Hope you enjoy it.

Love,

Chan

and THE SUBURBS!!

Words from the Big Apple March 04 2015, 0 Comments

A Beaming Bream... October 13 2014, 0 Comments

First Ave - Turn the Radio On June 02 2014, 0 Comments

Nice film job, TPT, thanks. With Johnny Rey on guest acoustic guitar!

DEAR SUBURBAN PEEPS ~ April 13 2014, 0 Comments

Back at First Ave! February 14 2014, 0 Comments

We're thrilled to announce that we will be back at historic First Avenue on Friday, March 28th. Tickets on sale Friday January 24th.

Happy New Year! January 04 2014, 0 Comments

The fans rose to the occasion and helped fund (in a big way) our new CD "Si Sauvage". The band rocked a bunch of awesome sold-out shows from Saint Paul to NYC. And to top it off "Turn The Radio On" was voted by the Twin Cities music critics #1 Song Of The Year! Yes, we couldn't have dreamed up a better outcome when first we envisioned going back in the studio. Thank you, All!

Who knows what 2014 will bring for The Suburbs? But we're having fun again, writing new songs still, and making some plans. 

We look forward to seeing you out there in the world! Rock on.

Love, 
Chan, Hugo, Beej, the Band of Steves, and the Shower of Flowers horns