Thao with the Get Down Stay Down
Encyclopedia
Thao with The Get Down Stay Down is a San Francisco, California
-based (formerly Falls Church, Virginia
) alternative
folk rock
music group. It consists of Thao Nguyen (vocals
, guitar
), Adam Thompson (bass guitar
), and Lisa Schonberg (drums
). Frank Stewart (lead guitar, production
) and Willis Thompson (drums
) are former members of the band.
with her single mother, she often practiced her songs while working at her mother's laundromat. She often cites Lilith Fair
as an inspiration for her desire to become a singer/songwriter. After recording an EP
that differed from her initial style, she began performing as a soloist with her acoustic guitar.
Nguyen met drummer Willis Thompson while studying for her degrees in Sociology and Women’s Studies at The College of William and Mary. Willis Thompson was a member of Camp Tigerclaw, Acousticore, and Murphy's Kids. He is also a contributing member to the band The Light Footwork. Thao Nguyen and Willis Thompson met Adam Thompson (no relation) during a show at the Harrison Street Coffee Shop in Richmond, Virginia
. At the time, Adam Thompson was performing as a solo jazz-influenced act under the moniker The OK Bird. Frank Stewart, member of the bands Durian and Verbal, would produce the first full-length album Like the Linen in 2005 and join the band as a lead guitarist. Although only Willis and Nguyen initially performed live on tour, the four members began touring as a group during the Kill Rock Stars
' Sound the Hare Heard tour during the summer of 2006. The name of the band was originally suggested by a former bassist of the band. Nguyen would expand the initial suggestion of "The Get Down" to "The Get Down Stay Down." Thao Nguyen still occasionally performs as a soloist, including a European tour with Laura Veirs
and the Tortured Souls in August 2006.
, former president of the Kill Rock Stars
label.
After sending "Like the Linen" to Laura Veirs, Thao was able to get connected to Tucker Martine
, Veirs' drummer and producer for The Decemberists
and Sufjan Stevens
. In August 2006, the group began recording with Martine in Seattle and released the album "We Brave Bee Stings And All" in January 2008. Thao Nguyen has since moved to San Francisco, California
. The band toured in 2008 with Xiu Xiu
, and separately with Rilo Kiley
before heading out on their first headlining tour that summer.
In 2009, Thao appeared solo on the nationwide Hotel Cafe Tour
. She collaborated with another Kill Rock Stars band, the Portland Cello Project, on their first album, "The Thao and Justin Power Sessions," released on June 9, 2009. Thao and the Get Down Stay Down released their second full-length album "Know Better Learn Faster" on October 13, 2009. Thao was joined by Andrew Bird
on the title track "Know Better Learn Faster." The band toured the US with the Portland Cello Project and David Shultz and the Skyline in late 2009, and spent time touring the US and Europe in Winter/Spring 2010.
In early 2010, Thao performed with Mirah
at the Noise Pop festival in San Francisco. The two later announced a 2010 North American tour, billed under the name Thao and Mirah With The Most of All. The two shared the stage to perform a collaborative set made up of each artist's respective songs. Thao provided backup vocals, guitar, banjo
, and bongo drum
percussion on Mirah's songs.
In May 2010, a video for the song "Body", directed by Dianna Agron
, debuted on the website of humanitarian organization Oxfam America. The video features a prelude of Thao and Dianna talking about their friendship, the making of the video, and their work on behalf of Oxfam.
The band's track "When We Swam" is the opening theme for Australian prime-time TV series Offspring
(which premiered in Australia in August 2010).
The band also composed and performed the soundtrack for the 2011 film, American Teacher.
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
-based (formerly Falls Church, Virginia
Falls Church, Virginia
The City of Falls Church is an independent city in Virginia, United States, in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The city population was 12,332 in 2010, up from 10,377 in 2000. Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Anglican parish, Falls Church gained township status within...
) alternative
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...
folk rock
Folk rock
Folk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
music group. It consists of Thao Nguyen (vocals
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
), Adam Thompson (bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
), and Lisa Schonberg (drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
). Frank Stewart (lead guitar, production
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...
) and Willis Thompson (drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
) are former members of the band.
History
Thao began playing guitar at age 12. She began performing and recording as an indie-folk duo with a high school friend, Brenna Clerkin. Raised in Falls Church, VirginiaFalls Church, Virginia
The City of Falls Church is an independent city in Virginia, United States, in the Washington Metropolitan Area. The city population was 12,332 in 2010, up from 10,377 in 2000. Taking its name from The Falls Church, an 18th-century Anglican parish, Falls Church gained township status within...
with her single mother, she often practiced her songs while working at her mother's laundromat. She often cites Lilith Fair
Lilith Fair
Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during the summers of 1997 to 1999, and was revived in the summer of 2010. It...
as an inspiration for her desire to become a singer/songwriter. After recording an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
that differed from her initial style, she began performing as a soloist with her acoustic guitar.
Nguyen met drummer Willis Thompson while studying for her degrees in Sociology and Women’s Studies at The College of William and Mary. Willis Thompson was a member of Camp Tigerclaw, Acousticore, and Murphy's Kids. He is also a contributing member to the band The Light Footwork. Thao Nguyen and Willis Thompson met Adam Thompson (no relation) during a show at the Harrison Street Coffee Shop in Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
. At the time, Adam Thompson was performing as a solo jazz-influenced act under the moniker The OK Bird. Frank Stewart, member of the bands Durian and Verbal, would produce the first full-length album Like the Linen in 2005 and join the band as a lead guitarist. Although only Willis and Nguyen initially performed live on tour, the four members began touring as a group during the Kill Rock Stars
Kill Rock Stars
Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and based in both Olympia, Washington and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, making it difficult to pigeonhole as having any one artistic mission...
' Sound the Hare Heard tour during the summer of 2006. The name of the band was originally suggested by a former bassist of the band. Nguyen would expand the initial suggestion of "The Get Down" to "The Get Down Stay Down." Thao Nguyen still occasionally performs as a soloist, including a European tour with Laura Veirs
Laura Veirs
Laura Pauline Veirs is an American singer-songwriter.Veirs was raised in Colorado, studied geology and Mandarin Chinese at Carleton College, worked as a translator for a geological expedition in China, and now lives in Portland, Oregon.While growing up, she heard folk-country, classical, and pop...
and the Tortured Souls in August 2006.
Current
The band is managed by Slim MoonSlim Moon
Slim Moon is the founder of the independent music label, Kill Rock Stars. He also started its sister label, 5 Rue Christine...
, former president of the Kill Rock Stars
Kill Rock Stars
Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and based in both Olympia, Washington and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, making it difficult to pigeonhole as having any one artistic mission...
label.
After sending "Like the Linen" to Laura Veirs, Thao was able to get connected to Tucker Martine
Tucker Martine
Tucker Martine is an American, Grammy nominated record producer, musician and composer who has worked with artists such as My Morning Jacket, Mudhoney, Bill Frisell, The Decemberists, Sufjan Stevens, R.E.M., Laura Veirs, Spoon, and Tift Merritt...
, Veirs' drummer and producer for The Decemberists
The Decemberists
The Decemberists are an indie folk rock band from Portland, Oregon, United States, fronted by singer/songwriter Colin Meloy. The other members of the band are Chris Funk , Jenny Conlee , Nate Query , and John Moen .The band's...
and Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens is an American singer-songwriter and musician born in Detroit, Michigan. Stevens first began releasing his music on Asthmatic Kitty, a label co-founded with his stepfather, beginning with the 1999 release, A Sun Came...
. In August 2006, the group began recording with Martine in Seattle and released the album "We Brave Bee Stings And All" in January 2008. Thao Nguyen has since moved to San Francisco, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. The band toured in 2008 with Xiu Xiu
Xiu Xiu
Xiu Xiu is an American avant-garde group originally from San Jose, California. The band is the brainchild of singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart, who has been its only constant member since its inception in 2002. His current bandmate is Angela Seo...
, and separately with Rilo Kiley
Rilo Kiley
Rilo Kiley was an American indie rock band based in Los Angeles. Formed in 1998, the band consisted of Jenny Lewis, Blake Sennett, Pierre de Reeder, and Jason Boesel....
before heading out on their first headlining tour that summer.
In 2009, Thao appeared solo on the nationwide Hotel Cafe Tour
Hotel Cafe Tour
The Hotel Cafe Tour is the brainchild of Cary Brothers , a North American singer-songwriter,who has been a regular performer at the Hotel Café venue in Hollywood.Having played in the Hotel Cafe for many years, and enjoyed its...
. She collaborated with another Kill Rock Stars band, the Portland Cello Project, on their first album, "The Thao and Justin Power Sessions," released on June 9, 2009. Thao and the Get Down Stay Down released their second full-length album "Know Better Learn Faster" on October 13, 2009. Thao was joined by Andrew Bird
Andrew Bird
Andrew Bird is an American musician, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist.- Early life and the Bowl of Fire :...
on the title track "Know Better Learn Faster." The band toured the US with the Portland Cello Project and David Shultz and the Skyline in late 2009, and spent time touring the US and Europe in Winter/Spring 2010.
In early 2010, Thao performed with Mirah
Mirah
Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn , is an American musician based in San Francisco California. She has released five albums under the K Records label.- Background :...
at the Noise Pop festival in San Francisco. The two later announced a 2010 North American tour, billed under the name Thao and Mirah With The Most of All. The two shared the stage to perform a collaborative set made up of each artist's respective songs. Thao provided backup vocals, guitar, banjo
Banjo
In the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, and bongo drum
Bongo drum
Bongo or bongos are a Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of single-headed, open-ended drums attached to each other. The drums are of different size: the larger drum is called in Spanish the hembra and the smaller the macho...
percussion on Mirah's songs.
In May 2010, a video for the song "Body", directed by Dianna Agron
Dianna Agron
Dianna Agron is an American actress, best known for her portrayal of Quinn Fabray on the television series Glee.-Early life:Dianna Agron was born in Savannah, Georgia, and raised in San Antonio, Texas and San Francisco, California. She is the daughter of Mary and Ronald S. Agron, a general...
, debuted on the website of humanitarian organization Oxfam America. The video features a prelude of Thao and Dianna talking about their friendship, the making of the video, and their work on behalf of Oxfam.
The band's track "When We Swam" is the opening theme for Australian prime-time TV series Offspring
Offspring (TV series)
Offspring is an Australian television comedy-drama series which premiered on Network Ten in Australia on 15 August 2010. Offspring is centred around 30-something obstetrician Nina Proudman and her family, as they navigate the chaos of modern life...
(which premiered in Australia in August 2010).
The band also composed and performed the soundtrack for the 2011 film, American Teacher.
Albums
- Like the Linen (2005)
- Daytrotter Sessions (2006)
- We Brave Bee Stings and AllWe Brave Bee Stings and AllWe Brave Bee Stings and All is an album by alternative folk band Thao with the Get Down Stay Down. It was released in January 2008. The album was #10 on emusic.com's list of the best albums of 2008, where it was described as "a friendly and catchy pop record" and "an astonishing mash of...
(2008) - Know Better Learn Faster (2009)
Singles
- "Bag of Hammers" from We Brave Bee Stings and AllWe Brave Bee Stings and AllWe Brave Bee Stings and All is an album by alternative folk band Thao with the Get Down Stay Down. It was released in January 2008. The album was #10 on emusic.com's list of the best albums of 2008, where it was described as "a friendly and catchy pop record" and "an astonishing mash of...
- "Know Better Learn Faster" from Know Better Learn Faster
- "Tallymarks"
Compilation contributions
- "Feet Asleep" – The Sound the Hare HeardThe Sound the Hare HeardThe Sound the Hare Heard is a 2006 compilation of mostly acoustic arrangements by a number of singer-songwriters, both well-known and relatively obscure...
(2006, Kill Rock StarsKill Rock StarsKill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and based in both Olympia, Washington and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, making it difficult to pigeonhole as having any one artistic mission...
compilation disc) - "Young Man" – Kill Rock Stars Winter Holiday Album (2006, Kill Rock StarsKill Rock StarsKill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and based in both Olympia, Washington and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, making it difficult to pigeonhole as having any one artistic mission...
compilation, digital release only)
Collaborations
- Thao/The Thermals Record Store Day Split 7" (2009) EP split with the Thermals, released for Record Store Day – April 18, 2009
- The Thao and Justin Power Sessions (2009) with the Portland Cello Project
- Thao + Mirah (2011) LP with MirahMirahMirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn , is an American musician based in San Francisco California. She has released five albums under the K Records label.- Background :...
External links
- Official Website
- Interview with RadioUTD
- MySpace profile
- The Day Trotter Sessions with Free Songs
- 2009 Thao Nguyen Interview at Bandega.com
- Thao blogging for Oxfam America about climate change
- OnTap Review
- Kill Rock Stars Podcast With Bag of Hammers Video
- SEEN: Download Thao & the Get Down, Stay Down
- Know Better Learn Faster reviews at Metacritic.com