Yawning Man

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Cover of 2005 release Rock Formations
Cover of 2005 release Rock Formations

Yawning man is a stoner rock band from the Palm Desert, California area in the United States, formed in 1986. They have been noted to be one of the first influential bands in the desert rock scene.

Contents

[edit] Biography

Yawning Man was born in 1986, originally founded by 5-stringer Gary Arce and drummer Alfredo Hernández. A few months later, the two guys were joined by the Lalli cousins, Mario on fretless bass, and Larry on additional guitar. At this time, the band started to play marathon jams from the garage to the desert. The word spread of these 'generator parties', and all kinds of people would show up. Their music heavily influenced the likes of John Garcia, Josh Homme, and Brant Bjork to name only a few; who would later from the legendary stoner rock band Kyuss.

“ Yawning Man was the sickest desert band of all time. You’d just be up there in the desert, everybody’d just be hanging, partying. And they’d show up in their van and just, mellow, drag out their shit and set up right about the time the sun was goin’ down, set up the generators, sometimes they’d just go up there and drink beers and barbecue. Sometimes it would be a scene; sometimes it would be very intimate. It was very casual and loose and everybody would like, while they’re playing, everyone would just lounge around. They were kinda like a house band. It wasn’t militant like Black Flag. It was very drugged, very stone-y, it was very mystical. Everyone’s just tripping, and they’re just playing away, for hours. Oh, they’re the GREATEST band I’ve ever seen.- Brant Bjork (2002) [1] ”

During this time, 30-40 songs were recorded on 2 different demos but no official Yawning Man material was ever released until 2005. Kyuss covered the song "Catamaran" which came from their first demo tape 'Parable Circus'. Yawning Man's music began mutate into really strange loops with an almost dark / freeform jazz punk sound, and the name of the band just didn't fit the music anymore. The band changed to The Sort of Quartet.

In 2005, the first LP 'Rock Formations' was released on the Spanish label Alone Records. Rock Formations is a collection of 10 tracks recorded in late 2004 and described as "a melancholic mix of acoustic space rock with elements of surf music, as well as middle eastern guitar style". Months later,'Pot Head', a 4 track EP, slightly darker, with a heavier tone would be released. In 2006, Rock Formations was re-released with a limited edition bonus DVD recorded at W2 club in Den Bosch (NL), on June 17th, 2005, during their European tour.

In 2006, Yawning Man will be releasing a collection of past material on a double CD: The Birth of Sol Music. It will be a collection of 30 older songs from the late 80’s with an extensive booklet including many information about the band and the whole Palm Desert connection.

This year will also feature the dawn of guitarist Gary Arce's next project Echo Friendly Approach. As of mid-2006, Yawning Man have unofficially gone their separate ways. Drummer Alfredo Hernández is focusing primarily on his other band he plays in, Brant Bjork & The Bros. Echo Friendly Approach is to be the next incarnation of Yawning Man from the point of view of texture and sound. Due in part to Gary continuing duties as guitar player and Bill Cordell resuming on bass, they are joined this time by Chuck Dukowski Sextet drummer Bill Stinson, additional guitarist from Saccharine Trust Joe Baiza, and Meditropic percussionist Erik Davies. Contributions will be made by Australian master didjeridoo player Simon7 (Didjworks) with potentially some other surprise musicians- friends of Gary's from SST Records. Drums and percussion improv sessions have been ongoing for months as they prepare to record their first studio LP. This will likely be April 2007 in Palm Springs, California. The album should be released by late 2007.

[edit] Band Members

  • Gary Arce - guitar (Sort of Quartet, Yawning Man)
  • Billy Cordell - bass (Yawning Man)
  • Bill Stinson - drums (Chuck Dukowski Sextet)
  • Erik Davies - percussion (Meditropic)

[edit] Former Members

[edit] Discography

[edit] Studio Recordings

Rock Formations LP - 2005

  1. "Rock Formations" (5:21)
  2. "Perpetual Oyster" (5:22)
  3. "Stoney Lonesome" (6:02)
  4. "Split Tooth Thunder" (2:58)
  5. "Sonny Bono Memorial Freeway" (3:52)
  6. "Airport Boulevard" (5:22)
  7. "Advanced Darkness" (2:33)
  8. "She Scares Me" (4:09)
  9. "Crater Lake" (3:37)
  10. "Buffalo Chips" (4:27)

Pot Head EP - 2005

  1. "Manolete" (6:47)
  2. "Digital Smoke Signal" (7:09)
  3. "Encounters with an Angry God" (5:01)
  4. "Samba de Primavera" (5:03)

[edit] DVD Recordings

Live at W2 Den Bosch. Netherlands. DVD + rock formations. (CD + DVD release)

[edit] Related Bands

[edit] References

  1. ^ Babcock, Jay. "Larger Than Life: Fatso Jetson Finds a Place", LA Weekly. Retrieved on June 12, 2002.

[edit] External links

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