The Go

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The Go
Origin Detroit, MI, United States
Genre(s) Rock and roll, psychedelic rock, garage punk
Years active 1998-Present
Label(s) Cass
Lizard King
Sub Pop
Associated acts The White Stripes
Guided By Voices
Website http://www.thegodetroit.com/
Members
Robert "Bobby" Harlow
John Krautner
Marc Fellis
James McConnell
Former members
Matt Smith
Matt Hatch
Steve Nawara
Marco Delicato
Dion D. Fischer
Ken Tudrick
Anthony Selph
Dave Buick
Jack White

The Go is a rock band from Detroit, Michigan, that has evolved from a garage rock sound to a blend of 60's and 70's influences, most notably The Beatles. The Go is composed primarily of Robert "Bobby" Harlow (vocals), John Krautner (guitar, bass), Marc Fellis (drums), James McConnell (lead guitar), and a rotating cast of other band members, including Jack White (later of The White Stripes and The Upholsterers), who was with the band from mid '98 to early '99.

Part of the emerging Detroit garage rock scene of the late '90s along with their more famous brethren, The White Stripes, The Go formed in 1998. Krautner and Fellis grew up together as kids. The addition of lead guitarist Jack White and bassist Dave Buick made the band complete and they began playing gigs in the Detroit area. An opening slot for fellow Detroit garage band ? and the Mysterians helped get them the attention of Sub Pop, who signed the band and issued their debut album, Whatcha Doin', in 1999.

The Go's 1999 debut disc has an aggressive, noisy garage punk sound that still manages to work in a lot of references to R&B and soul music. Their gritty, low-fi sound was continued on their never-to-be second album, Free Electricity, which was rejected by Sub Pop as being 'too noisy'.[citation needed]

In 2003, the U.K. based Lizard King Records label released the group's second official full-length release, self-titled The Go. Two cuts from their second album, namely, "Blue Eyes Woman" and "Summer's Gonna Be My Girl" are featured on the soundrack to the 2006 remake of Wes Craven's classic horror-thriller film The Hills Have Eyes. Additional tracks from their second album have been heard on the Emmy Award winning television sitcom My Name Is Earl.

Their third album, Howl On The Haunted Beat You Ride was released in the late-summer of 2007 by Ben Blackwell's Cass label to overwhelmingly positive initial reviews. The album's content marks a distinct contrast to their first two releases, adding a psychedelic vibe, lush vocal harmonies, intriguing lyrical imagery, great attention to instrumentation, and a decidedly "retro" production atmosphere; in fact, none of the individual song recordings would have been out of place on a rock album from the mid-1960's. The album was produced and recorded by the group's main singer Bobby Harlow, who continues to share songwriting duties with bassist and co-vocalist John Krautner.

The band's fourth album is currently in production and expected to be released in the spring/summer of 2008. Rumor has it that the band has approached the legendary Grammy award-winning producer Don Was to captain the project. The band has given some flashes of their new material on Don Was' and Harry Shearer's MyDamnChannel.com with the video of "It's Only In Your Mind," and in live performances in early 2008 with the songs "Puzzle People" and "Tower of Diamonds." As with their previous works, the album is expected to be an eclectic mix of individual, stand-alone tracks, rather than being centered on a general theme or conveying a contiguous story.

[edit] Discography

[edit] External links/Reviews