Tune-Yards

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Tune-Yards
Tune Yards-8.jpg
Garbus performing at Café de la Danse in Paris, France on June 2, 2011
Background information
Origin Connecticut, United States
Genres Lo-fi, R&B, experimental, wonky pop, Afro-beat, noise
Years active 2006–present
Labels 4AD, Marriage
Associated acts Sister Suvi, Beep
Website tune-yards.com
Members Merrill Garbus (vocals, ukulele, percussion)
Nate Brenner (bass)
Touring members: Matt Nelson and Noah Bernstein on saxophone

Tune-Yards (stylized as tUnE-yArDs)[1] is the music project of New England native Merrill Garbus. When performing live, Garbus creates drum loops on the spot, and layers these with ukulele, voice, and electric bass played by Nate Brenner.[2] The Whokill (stylized as w h o k i l l) tour has added a saxophone section, consisting of Matt Nelson and Noah Bernstein.[3]

Contents

History and work[edit]

Garbus was born in 1979 and was raised in New York and in New Canaan, Connecticut.[4][5] She attended Smith College. She was a puppeteer for the Sandglass Theater in Vermont[6] and lived in Montreal where she played ukulele in the band Sister Suvi with guitarist Patrick Gregoire and drummer Nico Dann.[7][8] After releasing her first Tune-Yards album in 2009, she moved to Oakland, California, where her partner in Tune-Yards, Nate Brenner, also lives.[5][6]

The first Tune-Yards album, Bird-Brains (stylized as BiRd-BrAiNs) was originally self-released by Garbus on recycled cassette tape. It was recorded using only a handheld voice recorder.[9] A limited edition vinyl was released in June 2009, via the Portland-based imprint Marriage Records.[10] In July 2009, it was announced that Tune-Yards had signed to 4AD, and a limited edition pressing of Bird-Brains was released on August 17, 2009.[11] A full worldwide release followed on November 16, 2009 (and November 17 in North America). The autumn 2009 pressing was remastered at Abbey Road Studios by Christian Wright, and includes two new bonus tracks: "Want Me To" and "Real Live Flesh."

A second album, Whokill (stylized as w h o k i l l), was released on April 19, 2011.[12] A single from it, "Bizness", came out in February 2011. It was produced by Garbus and engineered by Eli Crews at New, Improved Studios in Oakland, California. Applying the live approach to Garbus' studio work for the first time, Garbus works with bass player Nate Brenner, who co-wrote some of the album's songs. Comparing the act to Sonic Youth, Frontier Psychiatrist said, "if Bird-Brains was Garbus' Evol, a record bursting with musical ideas that attempted to subvert the notion of song, who kill is Garbus' Sister, a record that embraces the traditional pop song as a vehicle to convey those ideas."[13][14] The album as well as singles "Bizness" and "Gangsta" received mention on many top 2011 album and song lists, including Time Magazine,[15][16] Rolling Stone,[17][18] Spin Magazine,[19] and the New York Times.[20] In early 2012, the Village Voice's annual "Pazz and Jop" poll of critics named Whokill the No. 1 album of 2011.[21]

The song "Fiya" is featured on a 2010 commercial for the Blackberry Torch, while the song "Gangsta" has been used in the television shows Weeds and The Good Wife.

Discography[edit]

Studio albums[edit]

Year Album details Peak chart positions
BE (Vl)
[22]		 UK
[22]		 US
[23]		 US Alt.
[23]
2009 Bird-Brains - - - -
2011 Whokill
  • Released: April 19, 2011
  • Label: 4AD
 49 135 148 19

Singles and EPs[edit]

  • "Sunlight"
    • August 2009 – 4AD (promo-only CD-R)
    1. "Sunlight" (Edit) – 3:17
  • "Hatari"
    • November 2, 2009 – 4AD, AD2934 (7" vinyl and download)
    1. "Hatari" – 5:43
    2. "Hap-B" – 3:22
    3. "Hatari" (The Small Is Beautiful Remix) – 4:20
  • Bird-Droppings
    • November 3, 2009 – 4AD, EAD2938 (U.S.-only download EP)
    1. "Want Me To" – 4:24
    2. "Real Live Flesh" – 3:33
    3. "Hap-B" – 3:22
    4. "Hatari" (The Small Is Beautiful Remix) – 4:20
  • "Real Live Flesh"
    • February 8, 2010 – 4AD, AD3X11 (7" vinyl and download)
    1. "Real Live Flesh" – 3:33
    2. "Youth" – 4:45
  • "Bizness"
    • February 11, 2011 - 4AD
    1. "Bizness"

Compilations[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "World of Wonder: How Merrill Garbus left the theatre and took the stage.". The New Yorker. May 2, 2011. 
  2. ^ "New York Times Music Review: Putting it Together". nytimes.com. Retrieved October 7, 2009. 
  3. ^ "tune-yards Basic Info on Facebook". Retrieved 29 June 2012. 
  4. ^ Hazel Sheffield, "Interview: tUnE-yArDs. The decidedly non-bird-brained tUnE-yArDs is searching for freedom in her own back garden." The Stool Pigeon, May 9, 2011.
  5. ^ a b Mark Richardson, "Interviews: tUnE-yArDs", Pitchfork, April 25, 2011.
  6. ^ a b Byard Duncan, "Merrill Garbus' Road to Fame", The Bay Citizen, April 20, 2012.
  7. ^ Chris Dahlen, "Sister Suvi: Now I Am Champion" (review), Pitchfork, July 7, 2009.
  8. ^ Charlotte Richardson Andrews, "Tune-Yards' Merrill Garbus on life after lo-fi", The Guardian, April 7, 2011.
  9. ^ "Ink19 Tune-Yards: Master of Puppets". ink19.com. Retrieved May 1, 2009. 
  10. ^ "Tune-Yards - Bird-Brains (LP) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
  11. ^ "Tune-Yards - Bird-Brains (CD, Album, Lim) at Discogs". Discogs.com. August 9, 2009. Retrieved February 2, 2010. 
  12. ^ "tUnE-yArDs official website". Retrieved April 17, 2011. 
  13. ^ "What’s A Girl To Do?: A Review of tUnE-yArDs’ w h o k i l l". Frontier Psychiatrist. April 11, 2011. Retrieved April 11, 2011. 
  14. ^ "On tUnE-YarDs, Chuck Klosterman and the End of the High Fidelity Era of Music Criticism". The L Magazine. Retrieved 17 June 2013. 
  15. ^ "Time Magazine Top 10 albums of 2011 (#6)". 
  16. ^ "Time Magazine Top 10 Songs of 2011 (#6)". 
  17. ^ "Rolling Stone Magazine 50 Best Albums of 2011 (#13)". 
  18. ^ "Rolling Stone Magazine 50 Best Singles of 2011 (#32)". 
  19. ^ "Spin Magazine Top 50 Albums of 2011 (#30)". 
  20. ^ "New York Times Top 10 Pop Albums of 2011 (#7)". 
  21. ^ "Village Voice Pazz + Jop 2011 Albums". 
  22. ^ a b "Chart Stats - TUnE-yArDs". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2011-10-04. 
  23. ^ a b "Chart Places tUnE-yArDs". Lescharts.com. Retrieved 2011-10-04. 

External links[edit]

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