Blood Feathers
Encyclopedia
Blood Feathers are an American rock
band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
. They were formed in 2005 by Ben Dickey and Drew Mills. The current band consists of Dickey (vocals, guitar, piano) and Mills (vocals, guitar), Mickey Walker (bass guitar), Patrick Marsceill (drums), Sam Murphy (guitar), and Tracy Stanton (saxophone, percussion, keyboard).
, by 2005, both Dickey and Mills' bands (Amen Booze Rooster and Aspera
, respectively) had broken up. Dickey and Mills started performing new material, Folk (music), and Soul (music) covers together at local open mic nights under the moniker Dickey Mills.
Eventually having an album's worth of material, the two went into studio with local Philadelphia friends, Mickey Walker and Quentin Stoltzfus (both of the band Mazarin). With the assistance of Philadelphia producer Brian McTear, the group recorded what would become Blood Feathers debut, Curse and Praise. Walker and Stoltzfus performed as the band's rhythm section
on the recording and would eventually play in a revolving cast of musicians that comprised the early Blood Feathers live show.
Curse & Praise was released on August 8, 2006 on the Philadelphia based label, Box Theory Records. Magnet Magazine wrote of the album, "Drew Mill's quavering voice -- with its pinch of Donovan
, gram of Marc Bolan
and healthy dose of Lawrence Hayward
-- immediately conjures psychedelic
fields and starry skies.". Despite gaining favorable editorial reviews, the album failed to elevate the band into the national spotlight.
In 2007, after failing to garner national support for their debut, Dickey and Mills planned to take time off from their home town of Philadelphia and relocate to Prescott, Arizona
.
Upon Dickey's return from Arizona, Blood Feathers established a full band line up, consisting of Mills and Dickey with the addition of Patrick Marsceill on the drums (formerly of The A-Sides
), Tracy Stanton(formerly of Bardo Pond) on the saxophone, percussion, and keyboards, and Sam Murphy on the guitar (an old Arkansas
friend of Dickey's who also plays in the Philadelphia band Pink Skull).
On December 8, 2009, Blood Feathers second album, Goodness Gracious, was released digitally on Philebrity Label. Vinyl versions of this album are anticipated to be released in March 2010. Since the album has been available, it has gained national attention by consistent airplay on the nationally syndicated NPR program World Cafe
. The first single off Goodness Gracious, "Don't Know You At All" was also featured on an Urban Outfitters
musical compilation available from their website and on iTunes.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
. They were formed in 2005 by Ben Dickey and Drew Mills. The current band consists of Dickey (vocals, guitar, piano) and Mills (vocals, guitar), Mickey Walker (bass guitar), Patrick Marsceill (drums), Sam Murphy (guitar), and Tracy Stanton (saxophone, percussion, keyboard).
Biography
Blood Feathers started as a live performance outlet for song writers Ben Dickey and Drew Mills to showcase new material they had written. Having met through the Philadelphia music scene in the 1990s1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
, by 2005, both Dickey and Mills' bands (Amen Booze Rooster and Aspera
Aspera (band)
Aspera were an American indie rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-History:Aspera formed in 1996 under the name Aspera ad Astra in Philadelphia, and released a 7" split with Haelah before issuing their debut full-length in 1998...
, respectively) had broken up. Dickey and Mills started performing new material, Folk (music), and Soul (music) covers together at local open mic nights under the moniker Dickey Mills.
Eventually having an album's worth of material, the two went into studio with local Philadelphia friends, Mickey Walker and Quentin Stoltzfus (both of the band Mazarin). With the assistance of Philadelphia producer Brian McTear, the group recorded what would become Blood Feathers debut, Curse and Praise. Walker and Stoltzfus performed as the band's rhythm section
Rhythm section
A rhythm section is a collection of musicians who make up a section of instruments which provides the accompaniment section of the music, giving the music its rhythmic texture and pulse, also serving as a rhythmic reference for the rest of the band...
on the recording and would eventually play in a revolving cast of musicians that comprised the early Blood Feathers live show.
Curse & Praise was released on August 8, 2006 on the Philadelphia based label, Box Theory Records. Magnet Magazine wrote of the album, "Drew Mill's quavering voice -- with its pinch of Donovan
Donovan
Donovan Donovan Donovan (born Donovan Philips Leitch (born 10 May 1946) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist. Emerging from the British folk scene, he developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelia, and world music...
, gram of Marc Bolan
Marc Bolan
Marc Bolan was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist and poet. He is best known as the founder, frontman, lead singer & guitarist for T. Rex, but also a successful solo artist...
and healthy dose of Lawrence Hayward
Lawrence Hayward
Lawrence Hayward , known simply as Lawrence, his surname never used in credits or press, is best known as the singer, songwriter and guitarist of British indie band Felt.-Felt:...
-- immediately conjures psychedelic
Psychedelic
The term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ψυχή and δηλοῦν , translating to "soul-manifesting". A psychedelic experience is characterized by the striking perception of aspects of one's mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ostensibly...
fields and starry skies.". Despite gaining favorable editorial reviews, the album failed to elevate the band into the national spotlight.
In 2007, after failing to garner national support for their debut, Dickey and Mills planned to take time off from their home town of Philadelphia and relocate to Prescott, Arizona
Prescott, Arizona
Prescott is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona, USA. It was designated "Arizona's Christmas City" by Arizona Governor Rose Mofford in the late 1980s....
.
The guitarist-songwriters decided to regroup, seeking a bigger piece of the sky in Prescott, ArizonaPrescott, ArizonaPrescott is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona, USA. It was designated "Arizona's Christmas City" by Arizona Governor Rose Mofford in the late 1980s....
, where they planned to hone their songwriting alliance while working at a restaurant owned by their manager, Newt Lynn. Mills never made it due to personal reasons, but Dickey says he spent a beneficial 18 Southwestern months working in the kitchen by day and as a guitarist in a Bob WillsBob WillsJames Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with...
cover band called The Prescott Playboys by night.
"I was 30 years younger than everybody else in the band," Dickey, 32, says with a measure of pride. "The guy I replaced played in Patsy ClinePatsy ClinePatsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley in Gore, Virginia, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
's band. It was great for me as a musician."
Dickey wasn't about to give up on Blood Feathers, however. So the ArkansasArkansasArkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
native moved back to Fishtown - where he now works as a cook at indie venue/gastropub Johnny Brenda's. He got Blood Feathers back together with Mills, who's originally from Willow Grove and who had taken a job touring with songwriter Benjy FerreeBenjy FerreeBenjy Ferree is a singer/songwriter from Prince George's County, Maryland. He currently resides in Washington, DC.Following "Leaving the Nest," an EP of six songs released jointly by Box Theory and Planaria Records in October 2005,...
while Dickey was out of town.
Upon Dickey's return from Arizona, Blood Feathers established a full band line up, consisting of Mills and Dickey with the addition of Patrick Marsceill on the drums (formerly of The A-Sides
The A-Sides
The A-Sides were an American indie rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They formed in 2002 and consisted of Jon Barthmus , Charlie Cottone , Christopher Doyle , Mike "Flem" Fleming , and Patrick "Party Todd" Marsceill...
), Tracy Stanton(formerly of Bardo Pond) on the saxophone, percussion, and keyboards, and Sam Murphy on the guitar (an old Arkansas
Arkansas
Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...
friend of Dickey's who also plays in the Philadelphia band Pink Skull).
On December 8, 2009, Blood Feathers second album, Goodness Gracious, was released digitally on Philebrity Label. Vinyl versions of this album are anticipated to be released in March 2010. Since the album has been available, it has gained national attention by consistent airplay on the nationally syndicated NPR program World Cafe
World Cafe
World Cafe is a two-hour long, nationally syndicated music radio program that originates from WXPN, a non-commercial station licensed to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The program began in 1991 and was originally distributed by Public Radio...
. The first single off Goodness Gracious, "Don't Know You At All" was also featured on an Urban Outfitters
Urban Outfitters
Urban Outfitters, Inc. is a publicly traded American company that owns and operates five retail brands: Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain, and BHLDN....
musical compilation available from their website and on iTunes.
Interviews
- Philadelphia Inquirer (Jan 2010)
- Philadelphia Weekly (Jan 2010)
Discography
- Curse & Praise (20062006 in musicThis is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2006.-January:*January 10 – Eric Burdon releases his album Soul of a Man and begins touring with a new band....
) (CD, MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
) released August 2006 in the USA on Box Theory Records. - Goodness Gracious (2009) (LPAlbumAn album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, CD, MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
) released December 2009 digitally (mp3) in the USA, in March 2010 on Vinyl in the USA on Philebrity Label.