Rich & The Obits play soul, girl-group, and rhythm & blues-infused power pop. The eight-piece show band features several lead singers, soloists, and a crack set of original material, along with some choice cover songs ranging from Motown to Tom Waits. Slaves neither to fashion nor artificial categories, Rich & The Obits cast a wide net.
madhouse! news
We're in This Thing Together
Due Out in February!
Finally, our baby has a name! We're All in This Thing Together, the new full-length record by Rich Restaino & The Obits, will be out in mid February.
Our record release party is set for Momo's in Austin, Feb. 18. See the above flyer for details. The record, produced by bassist Alex Sefchick and Rich, is a 13-track juggernaut of power-pop soul.
The songs, written by Rich and with contributions by Hunt Wellborn and Sara Shansky, are upbeat, full of aural flourishes, and designed to make you shake your ass and bang your head (or pogo, if the mood strikes).
Guest musicians include Austin horn giants Ed McNames on trumpet (Tribal Nation, the Ginerbread Men, etc.),, and Mark Wilson on saxophones and flute (Burning Spear, Killer Bees, Alejandro Escovedo, etc.). Rich and Alex helmed the recording, with Alex recording and mixing. It's being mastered by Randy Avenell at The Brain Machine Studio, who also mixed and mastered the band's debut, The C'est La Vie EP.
To sample an early mix of one of the tracks, check out "Susie" on the media player at the top of the page. More samples and info to come!
NEW ZIM & KNUX RECORD NOW AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH CD BABY!
Why or how The Late Fees earned fans around the world (according to our CD Baby sales) is anybody's guess. The band was never intended to do anything more than entertain principle songwriters, Zimmy T. & Fingers McKnuckles (AKA Neil Kaiser & Rich Restaino). The duo's new record was written, recorded, and mixed in about three weeks this July.
A departure from the raunchy doo-wop punk of the eponymous debut, the upcoming disc is sort of a concept album about a soul duo who goes through many genre changes over the years (R&B, Motown, gospel, psychadelic funk, etc.). Guest performances include Hunt Wellborn, Ezlie Sweetcheeks, Lefty Grooves, Mark Ivey, and Heather Pharr. The record will is available exclusively through downloads at CD Baby, but limited edition hardcopies may follow. Check out a preview track:
"Culprit in the Pulpit" is a little gospel number featuring Hunt Wellborn as the fallen preacher. Let us know what you think!