Frogtoon Music

The Stage Names (Album) by Okkervil River

Artist Biography For Okkervil River

Okkervil River Is An Indie/folk Rock Band From Austin Texas USA. Formed In 1998 The Band Takes Its Name From A Short Story By Russian Author Tatyana Tolstaya. The Band Currently Consists Of Will Sheff Vocals Guitar Will Graefe Guitar Sarah K. Pedinotti Keyboards Benjamin Lazar Davis Bass And Cully Symington Drums . The Band Self-Released Their First Album Stars Too Small To Use Which Led Them To The South By Southwest Music Festival. After Recording Their First Album In A Garage They Signed With Jagjaguwar. Okkervil River Continued By Releasing Four More Albums Including Critically Lauded Concept Album Black Sheep Boy. After A Period Of Touring For Black Sheep Boy Okkervil River Followed Up With The Stage Names. The Album Sold 10 000 In Its Opening Week In The United States. The Group Released A Free Covers Album Golden Opportunities Mixtape From Their Live Performances. The Band Has Garnered Positive Critical Reception. Especially Noted Are Each Song's Lyrics Intricate Instrumentation And Thematic Albums. In Addition They Were Featured On The Talk Show Late Night With Conan O'Brien And Have Performed With High Profile Bands Such As The Decemberists The New Pornographers The National And Lou Reed. Okkervil River Released Their Most Recent Album The Silver Gymnasium On September 3 2013. Discography * 1998 Bedroom EP – Jound * 1999 Stars Too Small To Use - Jound * 2002 Don't Fall In Love With Everyone You See - Jagjaguwar * 2003 Down The River Of Golden Dreams - Jagjaguwar * 2003 Julie Doiron/Okkervil River A Split CD With Julie Dorion - Acuarela * 2004 Sleep And Wake-Up Songs EP - Jagjaguwar * 2004 Sham Wedding/Hoax Funeral A Split CD With Shearwater - Jagjaguwar * 2005 Black Sheep Boy - Jagjaguwar * 2005 Black Sheep Boy Appendix EP - Jagjaguwar * 2006 Overboard And Down EP – Inertia Australia-Only Tour EP * 2007 The Stage Names - Jagjaguwar * 2008 The Stand-Ins - Jagjaguwar * 2011 I Am Very Far - Jagjaguwar * 2013 The Silver Gymnasium - ATO Records * 2016 Away - ATO Records * 2018 In The Rainbow Rain - ATO Records Current Band Members * Will Sheff - Acoustic Guitar Vocals Harmonica Keyboard Occasionally * Travis Nelsen - Drums Misc. Percussion * Scott Brackett - Trumpet Coronet Keyboards Organ Tape Player Misc. Percussion * Patrick Pestorius - Bass Piano Woodblocks * Justin Sherburn - Keys Guitar * Lauren Gurgiolo - Electric Guitar Pedal Steel Mandolin Past Band Members * Seth Warren - Guitar * Zachary Thomas - Vocals Bass * Jonathan Meiburg - Vocals Banjo Guitar Accordion Piano Organ * Mark Pedini - Drums * Brian Cassidy - Electric Guitar Pedal Steel Mandolin Melodica Keyboard And Accordion When On Tour Without Jonathan

HOME OKKERVIL RIVER
POPULAR TRACKS MIXES ALBUMS
Video 1 : 50

Frogtoon Music -

Frogtoon Music Album Info: The Stage Names

The Stage Names Is The Fourth Full-Length Studio Album By American Alt-Country Band Okkervil River Released On August 7 2007. The Album Was Recorded In Austin Texas With Longtime Okkervil Producer Brian Beattie And With Mixing From Spoon Drummer And Producer Jim Eno. Like Other Okkervil River Albums The Accompanying Artwork Is The Work Of Artist William Schaff. The Cover Refers To A Line From Unless It's Kicks. The Record Was Also Released As A Limited-Edition 2-CD Set That Included A Second Disc Of Solo Acoustic Demos. A Newly Recorded Version Of Love To A Monster Which Appeared In Rough Demo Form On The Band's Tour EP Overboard And Down Was Originally Intended To Appear On The Album But Didn't Make It On And Appears As A Bonus Track When The Album Is Purchased Through EMusic. Shannon Wilsey On The Starry Stairs Described By Lead Singer And Songwriter Will Sheff As "kind Of A Sequel To Savannah Smiles And Kind Of A Sister Song To John Allyn Smith Sails" Is Included As A Bonus Track When The Album Is Purchased Through ITunes. The Stage Names Was Originally Conceived As A Double Album. Sheff Said About The Inspiration For The Album "There's This Idea Of Living In A World Of Pop Culture History High Art History And Low Art History Full Of Images That Are Extremely Common And Meaningful To People But Are Essentially Empty And Disembodied. I Wanted The Record To Exist In A Universe Of Reference Of Signals Signs And Bullshit." An Official Music Video Was Created For Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe Directed By Margaret Brown. A Hand To Take Hold Of The Scene Contains A Verse That Describes "a Boy Being Buried Alive By A Criminal With A Sensitive Soul". This Is A Reference To A 2006 Cold Case Television Episode "One Night" In Which The Show Featured An Okkervil River Song "Black Sheep Boy #4" . Savannah Smiles Is A Song That Deals With The Life And Death Of Shannon Wilsey A Pornographic Actress Known By Her Stage Name Savannah Which Was Taken From The 1982 Film Savannah Smiles. The Bonus Track Shannon Wilsey On The Starry Stairs Is Intended To Be A Sequel To Savannah Smiles. Plus Ones References Several Other Songs With Numerical Titles Including 96 Tears 99 Luftballons 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover Eight Miles High And Others Except With One Number Added Hence The Title "Plus Ones" . The Term Is Also Used In Reference To Guest-Lists At Rock Concerts. You Can't Hold The Hand Of A Rock And Roll Man Makes A Passing Reference To The Bride Stripped Bare By Her Bachelors Even By Marcel Duchamp. The Title Itself Is Taken From A Line In The Joni Mitchell Song Blonde In The Bleachers. The Song Name Title Track Is An Openly Self-Reflexive Gesture. John Allyn Smith Sails Concerns The Life And Suicide Of Confessional Poet John Berryman Originally John Allyn Smith . The Song Ends By Reworking The Traditional Folk Song Sloop John B Made Famous By The Beach Boys Likening Death To A Journey Back Home. In Addition To These Specific Allusions Several Songs On The Album Have Subjects Like Television Film And The Experience Of Being In A Rock Band. Will Sheff Has Stated That He Originally Intended The Album To Be A Double-Album And That He Wrote Twice As Many Songs For It Then Were Used Many Of Which Were Completed Or Nearly Completed. He Has Also Stated That The Band Intends To Release A EP Of The Unused Material Similar To Black Sheep Boy's Companion Album Black Sheep Boy Appendix. Reception Reviews Have Been Largely Positive With Pitchfork Labeling The Stage Names "Okkervil River's Most Emotionally Devastating Record Yet And Without Doubt One Of The Year's Best." The Stage Names Has A Metacritic Rating Of 82. The Album Debuted At Number 62 On The Billboard 200 With 10 000 Copies Sold. Harp Magazine Listed The CD As The Best Of 2007. Our Life Is Not A Movie Or Maybe Was #81 On Rolling Stone's List Of The 100 Best Songs Of 2007.