Tapes 'n Tapes

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Tapes 'n Tapes
Tapes 'n Tapes performing at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in 2007
Background information
Origin	Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Genre(s)	Indie rock, Neo-Psychedelia, Experimental Rock, College Rock
Years active	2003–present
Label(s)	Ibid Records, XL Recordings
Website	http://www.tapesntapes.com/
Members
Josh Grier (Tapes 1) Jeremy Hanson (Tapes 2) Matt Kretzman ('n) Erik Appelwick ('n)
Former members
Shawn Neary (bass, 2003–2006) Karl Schweitz (drums, 2003-2005)

Tapes 'n Tapes is an indie rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota.

1 Career
2 Discography
3 Band members
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Career

Formed in the winter of 2003 at Carleton College, the band has released three albums. First came the self-released Tapes 'n Tapes EP in 2004, followed by the full-length release, The Loon, on Ibid Records in 2005. The band signed to XL Recordings on April 26th, 2006, and the label re-released The Loon on July 25, 2006.^[1] On the 25th of October 2007, the band announced that they had finished recording their second album, which is titled Walk It Off. Walk It Off was recorded professionally by producer David Fridmann in his Tarbox Road Studio in Cassadaga, New York. ^[2] The album was released April 8, 2008.

Tapes rec Josh Grier says their first album was recorded "...in the winter time at a cabin in the Wisconsin woods with no running water. It was a lot fun to do it on our own and get a little crazy, but it was also frustrating since we didn't really know entirely what we were doing"

Tapes 'n Tapes gained popularity very rapidly after a series of write-ups on music blogs, first on EAR FARM and then on sites such as Music For Robots and Gorilla vs. Bear, leading many to cite them as one of the most recognizable examples of the "blog band" phenomenon. However, it wasn't until The Loon received a favorable review from Pitchfork Media, including a "best new music" commendation, that the band truly started to find success. Tapes 'n Tapes have received favorable reviews from other critics, and have been compared to such alternative bands as Pixies and Pavement, or the recent alt-pop phenomenon Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. After release of their self-titled EP, the band played with more well-known acts such as The Futureheads, The Streets, Metric, Calvin Johnson, and I Am the World Trade Center. The band made its American television debut on The Late Show with David Letterman on July 25th, 2006, performing the song "Insistor." Tapes 'n Tapes performed at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2007, along with bands such as Rage Against the Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Björk.

Tapes 'n Tapes' musical style varies in tempo and in influence, ranging from fast-paced polka renditions to the slower, more blues-influenced songs. The publication Music Week described the band's song "Insistor" as "Part country, part rock...possess[ing] an emotional urgency that rivals Arcade Fire. This is promising stuff."^[3]

Performing at the Siren Music Festival in 2006

Josh Grier has written a lot of untitled songs for the band's next album, which was originally to be recorded in June 2007 and released in the fall of 2007, Grier told Billboard.com. During their set at the 2007 Lollapalooza festival, the band played six songs titled, according to the setlist posted on the festival's website, "Demon Apple", "Blunt", "Icedbergs", "Headshock", "Le Ruse" and "Hang Them All".^[4]

Tapes 'n Tapes was featured on the MTV show Human Giant. Aziz Ansari's character Clell Tickle: Indie Marketing Guru pushes bloggers to put Mp3s of Tapes 'n Tapes on their blogs. At one point he says, "I've decided that if you don't post that Tapes 'n Tapes mp3, I'm going to come back here tomorrow and give you a Colombian necktie."

[edit] Discography

[edit] Studio Albums

The Loon - (2005) Ibid Records (US) / (2006) XL Recordings (UK)
Walk It Off - (2008) XL Recordings

[edit] EPs

Tapes 'n Tapes - (2004) Ibid Records

[edit] Singles

"Insistor" - (2005) - 7" Sold at gigs only, different b-side from later release
"Insistor" - (2006) XL Recordings (UK) Catalogue Number: XLS231
"Cowbell" - (2006) XL Recordings (UK) Catalogue Number: XLS240
"Hang Them All" - (2008) XL Recordings (UK) Catalogue Number: XLS348

[edit] Band members

The band has four members, each of whom is named after a word in the band's name; two members of the band share the same word for their name. The band members are:

Josh Grier (Tapes 1) - guitar, vocals
Jeremy Hanson (Tapes 2) - drums
Matt Kretzman ('n) - keyboards, multi-instruments
Erik Appelwick ('n) - bass guitar

In April 2006, producer Erik Appelwick replaced previous bassist Shawn Neary. Drummer Jeremy Hanson replaced original Tapes drummer Karl Schweitz in 2005 while still a senior in high school.