(EMAILWIRE.COM, January 20, 2010 ) NEW YORK, NY – White trash isn’t a phrase many would use to describe a musical style, but white trash is exactly what Indie Acoustic Singer/Songwriters My Brothers Banned call their upcoming release, “Banned Wagon”, dropping in March. This will be the third full-length album for the motley group of talented musicians who released their second album, “Everyone’s Banned”, only two months ago.
Evolving from a Thursday night community music gathering, My Brothers Banned is focused on one goal: make great music without conforming to the pressures and ideals of society. society. Born in historic Mohegan Colony, local musicians there met on an open-air stage weekly to make music. The regulars often ended up playing old time, folk, blue grass and rock favorites acoustically. When the weather became cold, the hard-core few continued the weekly meetings, but in a warmer living room. The process eventually evolved to writing material and honing a sound thatÂ’s a blend of many styles. The Banned takes influences from R.E.M, the Jayhawks, Teenage Fanclub, Gram Parsons, Uncle Tupelo, Whiskeytown, Ramones and the Meat Puppets, finding a balanced blend of acoustic and electric instruments as well as random found objects and raw energy.
In the beginning, Banned members had roots in punk rock, but later they felt the gravitational pull towards American roots traditional music. As “Off White Trash Studios” developed, new bands came to record and many offered to be part of the Banned. Current recording efforts reflect a growing pool of diverse talents.
“…building our ‘sonic stone soup’” is a group effort, says Lyle Puente, founder of the Brothers Banned.
Puente began as an artist living in Brooklyn. His clients included the Wall Street Journal, American Express and many other NY publications. Although he was engulfed in metropolitan life, he still found himself embracing a certain looseness in his living style. He was drawn to a communal aspect of playing with other musicians, concerned less about perfection and more about feeling. Additionally, Puente is of mixed ancestry and considers himself “off white.” Puente closed his studio when his son was born and his music evolved from singing to his son and later, his daughter. As they grew older, he started a weekly community music gathering that spawned My Brothers Banned. Shortly thereafter Puente founded "Off White Trash Studios" where he records all his friends, free of any charge.
My Brother Banned line up includes Lyle Puente, Hillie Levitt, Eric Puente, Koji Mabuchi, Larry Ohlmann, Quinn Murphy, Daphna Elroy, Georgy Kronfeld and a revolving cast of millions. In fact, they are always on the look out for new brothers and sisters.
The self-proclaimed “white trash harmonies” of My Brothers Banned can be found on www.mybrothersbanned.com or www.myspace.com/mybrothersbanned .
