The White Ravens
Gargoyles and Weather Vanes
Release Date--July 6, 2010
Bio
Winners of Best International/USA/Out of Province band for the 2010 Toronto Independent Music Awards, The White Ravens have simultaneously created and set out to explore the genre of indie-pop-geek-cabaret rock. Their songs are currently under consideration for inclusion in a Hollywood movie being filmed in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
A description of their fresh, new sound is best left to the reviewers of their new album, Gargoyles and Weather Vanes:
As Doug Coombe of Detroit Metro Times put it, “The latest gem to crawl out of Jim Diamond’s Ghetto Recorders is Saline (Michigan) brother and sister duo, the White Ravens. Their songs come on like Ben Folds and Billy Joel taking turns sitting in with They Might Be Giants, and that’s not irony!”
To quote Wildy Haskell of Wildy’s World blogspot, “The sonic love children of They Might Be Giants and Gwen Stefani craft incredibly catchy and quirky tunes that add a new pastiche to geek rock. Add in the stabilizing influence of Billy Joel drummer Liberty DeVitto and you have a sound that is downright virulent. The White Ravens fill up more sonic space than most bands would dream of. . . Will Bennett plays keyboards with a tenacity that Ben Folds would be proud . . .Amy Bennett's voice is tuneful with an acerbic edge that will hold your attention, but it’s the instrumental interplay that makes Gargoyles And Weather Vanes such a trip. . .the mix here is so distinctive and fresh you'll forget that rock n roll is supposed to be dead. . . The White Ravens will continually surprise you with tempo breaks and changes throughout the album, taking the musical wherever they want even if it flies in the face of convention. . . The White Ravens will confound and astound you. . .It's been awhile since rock n roll sounded this fresh or this good.”
The White Ravens were born on a cold Christmas Day in 2003 when bassist and vocalist Amy Bennett asked her keyboard playing brother, Will, if he wanted to start a rock band. Many of the Bennett's inspirations start with the letter "B": Beatles, Bob Dylan, Bach, and Bertold Brecht. Non-B influences include: Monty Python, Gilbert and Sullivan, Neil Gaiman, They Might Be Giants, honky tonk, gypsy, and all kinds of alternative music.
In May 2010, they played live across Canada on Toronto's Breakfast Televsion. In 2009, a song collaboration with UK artist, Andy Johnson, received airplay on the BBC radio across the UK.
The White Ravens’ self-titled first CD was released in 2007, featuring veteran Ann Arbor drummer, Muruga Booker, who played the original Woodstock in Tim Hardin's band.
Contact
Janelle Rogers
Office: 248.336.9696
jrogers [at] greenlightgopublicity.com
