Bruce Driscoll
Encyclopedia
Bruce Driscoll is a Brazil
ian/American
record producer
, songwriter
, guitarist
, and vocalist. He first gained notoriety as one half of the indie pop band Astaire (now Blondfire
). Co-writing/Producing/Self-releasing songs with his sister, Erica, the duo quickly became iTunes
darlings. Featured first as the Free Single of the Week and then having their own iTunes
Exclusive Acoustic EP (2005).
As a songwriter and producer he records material under the alias, the King of Nowhere. He is a frequent collaborator with Andy Chase
(Ivy
). Playing guitar in Chase's
band Brookville
and keyboards in Ivy
. Driscoll is also a member and lead vocalist for the alternative rock
group, the Saturday Club.
. He started playing piano at an early age then picked up the guitar when he was fifteen, inspired by the sound of Johnny Marr
and George Harrison
. Taking quickly to the instrument, he began accompanying his two sisters, Monica
and Erica, in a band called Nectar. In order to free himself to tour with the group he withdrew from traditional high school and completed an independent study program through the University of Missouri
.
The siblings embarked on a national tour and eventually landed a development deal with EMI
Publishing when Bruce was only 17. Soon after they showcased for many of the US Major Labels, including Warner Bros. Records
, Maverick
, and Capitol
. In 2002 they won Runner Up in the Pop Category for the UK songwriting Contest with the song Life Out Loud. Later that year the siblings disbanded over creative differences.
of Ivy
who loved the songs and wanted to produce the duo at his studio, Stratosphere Sound
, in New York. After working with Chase
in the studio the siblings relocated to New York and released their first EP, Don't Whisper Lies
, on their own label.
The band toured with Ivy
, Stars
, and Robbers On High Street
in 2005. That year also saw a major film placement for them in the Jennifer Lopez
comedy Monster In Law with the song L-L-Love. In the middle of the tour lawyers for the Fred Astaire
Estate threatened to sue if the duo did not change their name. Lacking the money to afford legal fees they changed their name to Blondfire
.
was bought out by Terra Firma
and went through massive internal changes. Bruce and Erica left the label in mid 2007 and self-released their debut album, My Someday
, in April 2008.
as well as Hugh Cornwell
of the Stranglers
. The Saturday Club is currently producing their debut album with Starflyer 59's
Jason Martin.
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian/American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, and vocalist. He first gained notoriety as one half of the indie pop band Astaire (now Blondfire
Blondfire
Blondfire is an indie pop band from New York City composed of the brother-and-sister duo Bruce and Erica Driscoll.- Childhood :The Driscolls were born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to an American father and a Brazilian mother. They spent many summers in northern Brazil, and are citizens of...
). Co-writing/Producing/Self-releasing songs with his sister, Erica, the duo quickly became iTunes
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
darlings. Featured first as the Free Single of the Week and then having their own iTunes
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
Exclusive Acoustic EP (2005).
As a songwriter and producer he records material under the alias, the King of Nowhere. He is a frequent collaborator with Andy Chase
Andy Chase
Andy Chase is a New York based musician/songwriter/producer. He is a member of the bands Ivy, Brookville, and Paco. He is also a co-owner of New York City recording studio Stratosphere sound with partners James Iha , and Adam Schlesinger .In 1995, Chase co-produced and engineered the title track...
(Ivy
Ivy (band)
Ivy is a New York City band composed of a trio of musicians, Adam Schlesinger, Dominique Durand, and Andy Chase.-Lately and Realistic:...
). Playing guitar in Chase's
Andy Chase
Andy Chase is a New York based musician/songwriter/producer. He is a member of the bands Ivy, Brookville, and Paco. He is also a co-owner of New York City recording studio Stratosphere sound with partners James Iha , and Adam Schlesinger .In 1995, Chase co-produced and engineered the title track...
band Brookville
Brookville (Band)
Brookville is a solo project of Andy Chase from Ivy. Brookville toured the United States in November 2006 with pop band Tahiti 80.-Bio:Ivy co-founder Andy Chase is released Brookville's second album, Life in the Shade, on June 13, 2006, on his own label, Unfiltered Records...
and keyboards in Ivy
Ivy (band)
Ivy is a New York City band composed of a trio of musicians, Adam Schlesinger, Dominique Durand, and Andy Chase.-Lately and Realistic:...
. Driscoll is also a member and lead vocalist for the alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
group, the Saturday Club.
Early Life and Career
Bruce Driscoll was born in Grand Rapids, MichiganGrand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
. He started playing piano at an early age then picked up the guitar when he was fifteen, inspired by the sound of Johnny Marr
Johnny Marr
Johnny Marr is an English musician and songwriter. Marr rose to fame in the 1980s as the guitarist in The Smiths, with whom he formed a prolific songwriting partnership with Morrissey. Marr has been a member of Electronic, The The, and Modest Mouse...
and George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
. Taking quickly to the instrument, he began accompanying his two sisters, Monica
Mônica da Silva
Mônica da Silva is a Brazilian/American singer, songwriter, musician, and producer. She is best known for her multi-lingual music compositions that span five languages - English, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and French. Mônica grew up between the U.S. and Belém, Brazil, a city on the Amazon...
and Erica, in a band called Nectar. In order to free himself to tour with the group he withdrew from traditional high school and completed an independent study program through the University of Missouri
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
.
The siblings embarked on a national tour and eventually landed a development deal with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
Publishing when Bruce was only 17. Soon after they showcased for many of the US Major Labels, including Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
, Maverick
Maverick Records
Maverick Recording Company is an American record label owned and operated by Warner Music Group, and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:...
, and Capitol
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
. In 2002 they won Runner Up in the Pop Category for the UK songwriting Contest with the song Life Out Loud. Later that year the siblings disbanded over creative differences.
Astaire
In 2003 Bruce and Erica began recording songs in their parents' basement which would turn out to be early Astaire demos. The songs took a stylistically more left of center pop sound. The demos were sent to Andy ChaseAndy Chase
Andy Chase is a New York based musician/songwriter/producer. He is a member of the bands Ivy, Brookville, and Paco. He is also a co-owner of New York City recording studio Stratosphere sound with partners James Iha , and Adam Schlesinger .In 1995, Chase co-produced and engineered the title track...
of Ivy
Ivy (band)
Ivy is a New York City band composed of a trio of musicians, Adam Schlesinger, Dominique Durand, and Andy Chase.-Lately and Realistic:...
who loved the songs and wanted to produce the duo at his studio, Stratosphere Sound
Stratosphere Sound
Stratosphere Sound is a recording studio located in New York City. Previously known as "The Place", the studio was renamed Stratosphere Sound in 1999....
, in New York. After working with Chase
Andy Chase
Andy Chase is a New York based musician/songwriter/producer. He is a member of the bands Ivy, Brookville, and Paco. He is also a co-owner of New York City recording studio Stratosphere sound with partners James Iha , and Adam Schlesinger .In 1995, Chase co-produced and engineered the title track...
in the studio the siblings relocated to New York and released their first EP, Don't Whisper Lies
Blondfire
Blondfire is an indie pop band from New York City composed of the brother-and-sister duo Bruce and Erica Driscoll.- Childhood :The Driscolls were born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to an American father and a Brazilian mother. They spent many summers in northern Brazil, and are citizens of...
, on their own label.
The band toured with Ivy
Ivy (band)
Ivy is a New York City band composed of a trio of musicians, Adam Schlesinger, Dominique Durand, and Andy Chase.-Lately and Realistic:...
, Stars
Stars (band)
Stars is an indie pop band from Canada. Originally formed in Toronto by vocalist Torquil Campbell and keyboardist Chris Seligman, the band relocated to New York City and then subsequently to Montreal, where they are currently based.-History:...
, and Robbers On High Street
Robbers on High Street
Robbers on High Street are an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York.-History:Robbers on High Street began performing publicly during the summer of 2002, but the band's roots stretch back much further. Ben Trokan and Steve "Sparky" Mercado have been friends since their preteen years growing up...
in 2005. That year also saw a major film placement for them in the Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lynn Lopez is an American actress, singer, record producer, dancer, television personality, and fashion designer. Lopez began her career as a dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color. Subsequently venturing into acting, she gained recognition in the 1995 action-thriller...
comedy Monster In Law with the song L-L-Love. In the middle of the tour lawyers for the Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire
Fred Astaire was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer and actor. His stage and subsequent film career spanned a total of 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute...
Estate threatened to sue if the duo did not change their name. Lacking the money to afford legal fees they changed their name to Blondfire
Blondfire
Blondfire is an indie pop band from New York City composed of the brother-and-sister duo Bruce and Erica Driscoll.- Childhood :The Driscolls were born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to an American father and a Brazilian mother. They spent many summers in northern Brazil, and are citizens of...
.
Blondfire
The duo continued on as Blondfire signing a Major Record Deal with EMI UK in October 2006. Shortly thereafter EMIEMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
was bought out by Terra Firma
Terra Firma Capital Partners
Terra Firma Capital Partners Ltd is a leading U.K.-based private equity firm, best known for its failed investment in British music company EMI. Financier Guy Hands founded the firm in 2002 through the spin-off of Nomura Principal Finance Group...
and went through massive internal changes. Bruce and Erica left the label in mid 2007 and self-released their debut album, My Someday
My Someday LP
My Someday is the first album by New York duo Blondfire. It was self-released on their label, Tender Tender Rush, in 2008. The album is composed of songs written between the release of their 2005 EP and their brief deal with EMI 2007. The album is primarily self-produced/mixed. The track "Pretty...
, in April 2008.
The Saturday Club
Driscoll formed the Saturday Club with bassist Aric Gillis in late 2005. Their sound is a more guitar-driven, ambient, rock sound. They have re-mixed songs for Unfiltered Records band the PostmarksThe Postmarks
The Postmarks are a pop band from Pompano Beach, Florida. Their self-titled LP was released in February 2007 and has been met with critical acclaim from Rolling Stone and Spin, as well as Pitchfork Media and a host of other music blogs. The group was discovered by Andy Chase of Ivy and...
as well as Hugh Cornwell
Hugh Cornwell
Hugh Alan Cornwell is an English musician and songwriter, best known for being the vocalist and guitarist for the punk/new wave group, The Stranglers, from 1974 to 1990.-Career:...
of the Stranglers
The Stranglers
The Stranglers are an English punk/rock music group.Scoring some 23 UK top 40 singles and 17 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are the longest-surviving and most "continuously successful" band to have originated in the UK punk scene of the mid to late 1970s...
. The Saturday Club is currently producing their debut album with Starflyer 59's
Starflyer 59
Starflyer 59 is an alternative rock band from Riverside, California that was founded in 1993 by Jason Martin, brother of Ronnie Martin of Joy Electric. While Jason Martin has written nearly all of Starflyer 59's songs, the band has included a number of different musicians over the years, including...
Jason Martin.
Discography
- 2004 - Astaire - Don't Whisper Lies EPBlondfireBlondfire is an indie pop band from New York City composed of the brother-and-sister duo Bruce and Erica Driscoll.- Childhood :The Driscolls were born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to an American father and a Brazilian mother. They spent many summers in northern Brazil, and are citizens of...
- Producer, Drums, Bass, Keyboards, Programming, Guitar, Vocals, Group Member - 2005 - Various Artists - Auralgasms: Bliss Of Life - Producer, Performer
- 2005 - BlondfireBlondfireBlondfire is an indie pop band from New York City composed of the brother-and-sister duo Bruce and Erica Driscoll.- Childhood :The Driscolls were born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to an American father and a Brazilian mother. They spent many summers in northern Brazil, and are citizens of...
- Live Session (iTunes Exclusive) EP - Guitar, Producer - 2005 - BlondfireBlondfireBlondfire is an indie pop band from New York City composed of the brother-and-sister duo Bruce and Erica Driscoll.- Childhood :The Driscolls were born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to an American father and a Brazilian mother. They spent many summers in northern Brazil, and are citizens of...
- Holiday EP - Guitar, Piano, Producer - 2005 - Monster In Law (Original Soundtrack) -Producer, Guitar
- 2006 - Brookville (band)Brookville (Band)Brookville is a solo project of Andy Chase from Ivy. Brookville toured the United States in November 2006 with pop band Tahiti 80.-Bio:Ivy co-founder Andy Chase is released Brookville's second album, Life in the Shade, on June 13, 2006, on his own label, Unfiltered Records...
- Life In The ShadeBrookville (Band)Brookville is a solo project of Andy Chase from Ivy. Brookville toured the United States in November 2006 with pop band Tahiti 80.-Bio:Ivy co-founder Andy Chase is released Brookville's second album, Life in the Shade, on June 13, 2006, on his own label, Unfiltered Records...
- Synthesizer, Bass, Guitar, Theremin, Vocals, Producer, Engineer, Drum Programming - 2006 - Mônica da SilvaMônica da SilvaMônica da Silva is a Brazilian/American singer, songwriter, musician, and producer. She is best known for her multi-lingual music compositions that span five languages - English, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and French. Mônica grew up between the U.S. and Belém, Brazil, a city on the Amazon...
- Miles From Nowhere - Guitar (Rhythm), Keyboards - 2006 - The PostmarksThe PostmarksThe Postmarks are a pop band from Pompano Beach, Florida. Their self-titled LP was released in February 2007 and has been met with critical acclaim from Rolling Stone and Spin, as well as Pitchfork Media and a host of other music blogs. The group was discovered by Andy Chase of Ivy and...
- RemixesThe PostmarksThe Postmarks are a pop band from Pompano Beach, Florida. Their self-titled LP was released in February 2007 and has been met with critical acclaim from Rolling Stone and Spin, as well as Pitchfork Media and a host of other music blogs. The group was discovered by Andy Chase of Ivy and...
- Remixer - 2007 - The Voyces - Kissing Like It's Love - Engineer
- 2008 - BlondfireBlondfireBlondfire is an indie pop band from New York City composed of the brother-and-sister duo Bruce and Erica Driscoll.- Childhood :The Driscolls were born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to an American father and a Brazilian mother. They spent many summers in northern Brazil, and are citizens of...
- My Someday LPMy Someday LPMy Someday is the first album by New York duo Blondfire. It was self-released on their label, Tender Tender Rush, in 2008. The album is composed of songs written between the release of their 2005 EP and their brief deal with EMI 2007. The album is primarily self-produced/mixed. The track "Pretty...
- Producer, Mixing, Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals