Chavez (band)
Encyclopedia
Chavez is an alternative rock
/math rock
band from New York
, formed in 1993. After a period of inactivity, the band reformed in 2006. They released two independent non-charting albums in the mid-1990s. Guitarist Matt Sweeney
has confirmed that the band is working on its first new recordings since 1996.
Chavez was formed from the ashes of Wider
, and was inspired by the sonic approach of math rock
pioneers Slint
and the post-punk
outfit Mission of Burma
. Chavez utilizes angular, asymmetrical riffs and dramatic dynamic shifts. The band is fronted by guitarist Matt Sweeney, who was previously a member of Skunk and Wider, and played with Guided by Voices
. Drummer James Lo also came from Wider; the band is rounded out by guitarist Clay Tarver
(Bullet Lavolta
) and bassist Scott Marshall
.
The band quickly gained a following in the New York underground scene following the release of their first single "Repeat the Ending". Their debut album Gone Glimmering was released in 1995 and was followed by the EP Pentagram Ring. The music video for the song "Break Up Your Band" aired in an episode of MTV
's Beavis and Butt-head
, and the band toured with Guided by Voices
and Bardo Pond
. Chavez's second full-length album Ride the Fader was released in 1996, and was praised by Entertainment Weekly
as "a fine specimen of spare, brainy post-metal hard rock".
Chavez never officially broke up, but they released no new material and played few shows between 1999 and 2006. In 2006, Matador Records
released Better Days Will Haunt You, a compilation of virtually all of Chavez's studio material up to that point, with the addition of new vocals for the song "White Jeans". The band played a few shows in support of the compilation, and later played with other bands such as Pavement
and Sonic Youth
.
In 2001, during Chavez's period of inactivity, guitarist Matt Sweeney went on to join Smashing Pumpkins frontman/guitarist Billy Corgan
and Slint guitarist David Pajo
to form Zwan
. Most recently, Sweeney teamed up with Will Oldham
(under the moniker Bonnie 'Prince' Billy) for the 2005 album Superwolf
, as well producing and playing on Early Man
's debut record for Matador, Closing In. Clay Tarver has kept himself busy directing various television commercials as well as writing the script for the movie Joy Ride. Matt Sweeney played guitar on Johnny Cash
's American VI
released posthumously in 2010. The band have been chosen to perform at the ATP I'll Be Your Mirror
festival organized by ATP & Portishead in September 2011 in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
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...
/math rock
Math rock
Math rock is a rhythmically complex guitar-based style of experimental rock that emerged in the 1980s and that was very influenced by progressive rock like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Henry Cow - and 20th century composers such as Steve Reich and John Cage...
band from New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, formed in 1993. After a period of inactivity, the band reformed in 2006. They released two independent non-charting albums in the mid-1990s. Guitarist Matt Sweeney
Matt Sweeney
Matt Sweeney is a guitarist, vocalist, and producer who has worked with various musicians and groups.-Biography:Sweeney's high school band Skunk released two albums on Twin/Tone records...
has confirmed that the band is working on its first new recordings since 1996.
Chavez was formed from the ashes of Wider
WIDER
The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research ' is part of the United Nations University...
, and was inspired by the sonic approach of math rock
Math rock
Math rock is a rhythmically complex guitar-based style of experimental rock that emerged in the 1980s and that was very influenced by progressive rock like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Henry Cow - and 20th century composers such as Steve Reich and John Cage...
pioneers Slint
Slint
Slint was an American rock band consisting of Brian McMahan , David Pajo , Britt Walford , Todd Brashear and Ethan Buckler...
and the post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
outfit Mission of Burma
Mission of Burma
Mission of Burma is an American post-punk band formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1979. The band was formed by Roger Miller , Clint Conley , Peter Prescott and Martin Swope...
. Chavez utilizes angular, asymmetrical riffs and dramatic dynamic shifts. The band is fronted by guitarist Matt Sweeney, who was previously a member of Skunk and Wider, and played with Guided by Voices
Guided by Voices
Guided by Voices is an American indie rock band originating from Dayton, Ohio. Beginning with the band's formation in 1983, it made frequent personnel changes but always maintained the presence of principal songwriter Robert Pollard...
. Drummer James Lo also came from Wider; the band is rounded out by guitarist Clay Tarver
Clay Tarver
Clay Tarver is an American guitarist and writer.-Music career:He first came to prominence as the co-founder and lead guitarist of the Boston hard rock/punk band, Bullet LaVolta in the late 1980s. They recorded a few records for Taang! RCA and Matador records before disbanding in 1991...
(Bullet Lavolta
Bullet lavolta
Bullet LaVolta was a post-punk band from Boston, Massachusetts that was originally formed in January 1987 by four college disk jockeys: Clay Tarver , Bill Whelan , Corey "Loog" Brennan and Chris "Cruster" Guttmacher . The band later added singer Yukkie Gipe after he responded to an advertisement...
) and bassist Scott Marshall
Scott Marshall (director)
Scott Marshall is an American film director.Marshall was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Barbara Wells, a nurse, and director/producer Garry Marshall; he is also the nephew of Penny Marshall. His two sisters, Lori and Kathleen, are also in entertainment...
.
The band quickly gained a following in the New York underground scene following the release of their first single "Repeat the Ending". Their debut album Gone Glimmering was released in 1995 and was followed by the EP Pentagram Ring. The music video for the song "Break Up Your Band" aired in an episode of MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's Beavis and Butt-head
Beavis and Butt-Head
Beavis and Butt-head is an American animated television series created by Mike Judge. The series originated from Frog Baseball, a 1992 short film by Judge. After seeing the short, MTV signed Judge to develop the concept. Beavis and Butt-head originally aired from March 8, 1993 to November 28, 1997...
, and the band toured with Guided by Voices
Guided by Voices
Guided by Voices is an American indie rock band originating from Dayton, Ohio. Beginning with the band's formation in 1983, it made frequent personnel changes but always maintained the presence of principal songwriter Robert Pollard...
and Bardo Pond
Bardo Pond
Bardo Pond are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1991, and who are currently signed to London based label Fire Records. The current members are Michael Gibbons , John Gibbons , Isobel Sollenberger , Clint Takeda , Jason Kourkonis , and Aaron Igler...
. Chavez's second full-length album Ride the Fader was released in 1996, and was praised by Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
as "a fine specimen of spare, brainy post-metal hard rock".
Chavez never officially broke up, but they released no new material and played few shows between 1999 and 2006. In 2006, Matador Records
Matador Records
Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of indie rock artists and bands.-History:Matador was started by Chris Lombardi in 1989 in his New York City apartment. The following year, Lombardi was joined by former Homestead Records manager Gerard Cosloy, and the two of them have...
released Better Days Will Haunt You, a compilation of virtually all of Chavez's studio material up to that point, with the addition of new vocals for the song "White Jeans". The band played a few shows in support of the compilation, and later played with other bands such as Pavement
Pavement (band)
Pavement is an American alternative rock band that formed in Stockton, California in 1989. In their career, they achieved a significant cult following, and they were called the best band of the 1990s by prominent music critics Robert Christgau and Stephen Thomas Erlewine...
and Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
.
In 2001, during Chavez's period of inactivity, guitarist Matt Sweeney went on to join Smashing Pumpkins frontman/guitarist Billy Corgan
Billy Corgan
William Patrick "Billy" Corgan, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional poet best known as the frontman and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins. Formed by Corgan and guitarist James Iha in Chicago, Illinois in 1987, the band quickly gained steam with the...
and Slint guitarist David Pajo
David Pajo
David Pajo is an American alternative rock musician. He has played a wide variety of music, loosely fitting into several other genres: hardcore, math-rock, post-rock, electronica, folk and indie-pop...
to form Zwan
Zwan
Zwan was an American alternative rock band that was formed by members of The Smashing Pumpkins, Slint, Tortoise, Chavez, and A Perfect Circle. Zwan was started in late 2001 by Billy Corgan, lead singer and guitarist of The Smashing Pumpkins, after the Pumpkins disbanded in December 2000. The band...
. Most recently, Sweeney teamed up with Will Oldham
Will Oldham
Will Oldham , better known by the stage name Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, is an American singer-songwriter and actor. From 1993 to 1997, he performed and recorded under variations of the Palace name, including the Palace Brothers, Palace Songs, and Palace Music...
(under the moniker Bonnie 'Prince' Billy) for the 2005 album Superwolf
Superwolf
Superwolf is the name of an album by Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and Matt Sweeney. It was released in 2005 on Drag City. Peter Townsend plays drums...
, as well producing and playing on Early Man
Early Man (band)
Early Man is a heavy metal band from Brooklyn, New York, now based in Los Angeles, California. Guitarist and vocalist Mike Conte began performing under the name "Early Man" in the early 2000s, and when drummer Adam Bennati moved to New York in 2003, the two formed the nucleus for the current line-up...
's debut record for Matador, Closing In. Clay Tarver has kept himself busy directing various television commercials as well as writing the script for the movie Joy Ride. Matt Sweeney played guitar on Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
's American VI
American VI: Ain't No Grave
Upon its release, the album received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 78, based on 19 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews"...
released posthumously in 2010. The band have been chosen to perform at the ATP I'll Be Your Mirror
All Tomorrow's Parties (music festival)
All Tomorrow's Parties is a music festival which takes place at Camber Sands holiday camp in East Sussex and Butlin's holiday camp in Minehead, Somerset, England....
festival organized by ATP & Portishead in September 2011 in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
Albums
- Gone Glimmering (1995)
- Ride the Fader (1996)
- Better Days Will Haunt You (compilation released in 2006)
Other
- Pentagram Ring (EP) (1995)
- Their cover of the song "Little Twelvetoes" was included at track 10 on Schoolhouse Rock! RocksSchoolhouse Rock! RocksSchoolhouse Rock! Rocks is a tribute album based on the Emmy Award-winning animated TV series, Schoolhouse Rock!. It was released by Atlantic/Hollywood Records in 1996 and contains 15 tracks, the original "Schoolhouse Rocky" theme and covers of 14 songs from the series performed by popular music...
(1996)