Rosin Coven
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Rosin Coven is a theatrical music ensemble based in San Francisco, USA.
Rosin Coven's sound is best described as part of the Dark Cabaret movement, with strong jazz, rock, and klezmer influences. Most music performed is original, with the occasional cover. They call their music "Pagan Lounge". The band has become popular with San Francisco's Burning Man crowd, performing regularly at the San Francisco Decompressing mini-festivals.
Rosin Coven initially formed as a trio in San Francisco in 1996, and has performed regularly in the San Francisco area. They have made three albums: Penumbra, Live in the Pagan Lounge, and Menagerie.
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[edit] Founding
The band formed around Carrie Davis (vocals and guitar), Beth Vandervennet (cello), and Anastasia (violin). The core trio had a vision of amplified, sweeping strings accompanying driven lyrics. The three began a search for compatible musicians, primarily a drummer and bass player.
Working through friends and free ads in the San Francisco Guardian, the three found Patrick Kaliski and Justin Katz, who met in San Diego as students at UCSD and played together in other bands. Beth's summer work in a trio in Yellowstone Park required a substitute cellist, and Brian Bulkowski was brought in, but the added richness of a second cello lead to his assimilation.
The band's early works were primarily penned by Carrie Davis, with other members contributing. Songs were often orchestrated and improved collaboratively, leading to an eclectic mixture of sounds and songs.
Justin and Patrick lived in a warehouse in the Oakland Fruitvale district, where other bands formed (notably You, a psychedelic space-rock band), and large parties were thrown on a regular basis. Rosin Coven's first gigs were at warehouse parties, although they quickly graduated to San Francisco's clubs, such as their first gig at the Hotel Utah.
[edit] Early years
Anastasia departed the band early, and the search was on for a new violinist. Andrea Walls, a veteran of San Francisco's rock and eclectic scene, joined the band, and the band gigged heavily in 1998 and 1999. Soon thereafter, a second female vocalist, Carri Abrahms, joined the band, adding operatically trained vocals and great depth to Rosin Coven's sound, as well as composing strong songs.
The band's first album, Penumbra, was recorded during this period, and the band's debut year at Burning Man was 1999.
San Francisco's live music scene was vibrant during this period, as the Dot-com bubble was in full swing. The band's mainstay club was [Cafe du Nord], and they typically performed in tuxedos and fancy dress.
The band expanded on its theatrical roots by creating and performing a live operetta, Dream of the Scarab (a beetle opera), which ran in sold-out glory for only four shows on one weekend at black-box theater space Venue 9. This exceptional experience prodded the band to greater emphasis on theatricality and costumes, in collaboration with visualist Ken.
[edit] Expansion
2000 was a watermark year for Rosin Coven, with a one-month European tour primarily in the Netherlands, Germany, and the Czech Republic. The tour was repeated in 2001 with Poland and France being added to the visited nations. Both the 2000 and 2001 tours included weekend gigging stints with the classic Czech rock band, Brutus. In 2002, financial strain of touring an eight-piece band led Rosin Coven to cut the tour to a week in New York, where they played CBGB Gallery and the Flux Factory. Other than this period, the band never toured extensively, primarily performing in the San Francisco area.
Two key forces were added - trombonist Tim Carless, and vibraphonist Tim O'Keefe. Violinist Andrea left the SF Bay area for Hawaii, and a new violinist was found in Lila Sklar, who shared many of the gypsy-inspired violin techniques, but with a heavier influence on jazz than rock.
Importantly, Carrie and Justin were married in late 2000, contributing to the stability of the band. Later, Tim Carless and Beth Vandervennet would marry as well, turning Rosin Coven into a decidedly family affair.
The album "Live in the Pagan Lounge" was compiled from live recordings around this period, primarily for sale on the short tours.
Rosin Coven's music found its way into a short film project by Yael Braha called, The Waves, which won an Eastman award. "Lion Song", from Penumbra, was heard on MTV's Big Brother, as well as in the Malcolm McDowell film, Dorian, a mediocre retelling of the Oscar Wilde novel.
The band's booking and management primarily became the responsibility of bassist Justin Katz, who co-founded Berkeley arts organization Epic Arts, and began organizing and promoting his own shows, often under the Paradox Media name. San Francisco's Edwardian Ball, celebrating both the Edwardian Period as well as writer and illustrator Edward Gorey, began in 2000 as Paradox Media productions, initially at the Cat Club.
[edit] Later
2004 saw several changes, as band members settled down. Lila Sklar had a daughter, while the two couples in the band, Carrie and Justin and Beth and Tim, had boys who were born within a week of each other. Carri Abrahms left the band during this period to pursue other projects.
Rosin Coven's music took even more theatrical turns, working with costumer and visual artist Gitty Duncan. Longer songs, such as the 20 minute song cycle "A Vague Hunger" created extended collaboration with local dance groups.
Band members Justin, Patrick, Tim and Tim formed a more jazz-inspired project called Dr Abacus during this period with saxophonist John Schroder.
The album Menagerie was recorded early in this period, showing the band with a lusher and more mature tone. Soon thereafter, family responsibilities slowed down the band's productivity, but as the children have grown, the band is back on track with new material and even larger shows.
[edit] Now
Rosin Coven continues to live and perform in the San Francisco area.
