HOME:Tucson, New Orleans; HOBBIES: thinking, sleeping; CD BABY SAYS: mellow Americana pop

15 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Americana, POP: Piano



Details:
Early write-ups of Staircase Wit, the new CD from Tucson's The New Drakes:

The Arizona Daily Star 11.09.2006
By Sarah Mauet
THE NEW DRAKES: "Staircase Wit"
Band: The Drakes, who had a loyal local following in the mid-'90s thanks to two rocking albums and an energetic live show, are back after a long hiatus. Just for fun, the trio began recording new songs on an eight-track digital recorder at guitarist Gene Ruley's apartment about three years ago. The New Drakes were born.
Album: These veterans of the local music scene have come back stronger than ever with a killer horn section and a heartbreaking violin to accentuate their bright pop-rock melodies. The quieter tunes highlight singer Tom Stauffer's earnest poetic lyrics. The polished production makes it hard to believe this was self-recorded, but with the luxury of time the band was able to produce its most mature album yet .. complex and interesting, not mellow or boring.
Show: The band will play music off the new album, as well as tracks from its first two .. a self-titled album and "Serve It Up." The live show will be a veritable who's who of local music, with Nathan Sabatino on bass, Vicki Brown on violin, Jeff Grubic on sax, Tony Rosano on trombone and sousaphone, Noah Thomas on trumpet.

Tucson Weekly 11.16.2006
By STEPHEN SEIGEL
Club Congress, Saturday, Nov. 11

The three core members of the reunited and renamed New Drakes--singer-pianist-guitarist Tom Stauffer, guitarist and pianist Gene Ruley, and drummer-singer Chris Martin--rounded out the live lineup with bassist Nathan Sabatino (who mixed and mastered the band's new CD, Staircase Wit) and violinist Vicki Brown, and later on with a three-piece horn section. Perhaps in a bid to assure the audience--which was mostly old enough to have seen the band when they were still called The Drakes--that they'd be performing songs both old and new, they launched directly into the crowd-pleasing, boisterous rocker "I Did That," from their 1995 debut album. Despite a crackling speaker in the club, it was clear they meant business. Hell, when your guitarist has to fly in from New Orleans in order to play a gig, you'd better make every song count--which might explain the extended set length, too.

They split the performance about 50-50 between songs from their first two albums and the new one, which sounds distinctly like the Drakes of old, but builds on their sound, fleshing it out with added background vocals, piano, horns and such. They've also become masters of The Build, and there was no better evidence of that than on the new anti-Bush song "Cannonball": At its beginning, with a few guitar strums and Stauffer's sotto voce vocals, it was barely-there spare; other instruments subtly crept in until three-quarters of the way in, when it became full-fledged Bacharach-meets-New Orleans exuberance, confirming that The New Drakes are old masters.

Tucson Citizen 11.09.2006
THE NEW DRAKES CD RELEASE: Log on to myspace.com/thenewdrakes and, in addition to new songs, you'll see an overwhelming amount of friends who are Tucson bands. That says three things: These guys have knocked around town for a while (true), have played in many local groups (also true) and are generally great guys (true that). Formerly The Drakes, The New Drakes decided to shift time and release a brand new record of expertly played rock. Join them at the release party, which sees guitarist Gene Ruley back from New Orleans, joining singer Tom Stauffer and drummer Chris Martin for the occasion. Steve Poltz and Loveland open. When: doors open 9 p.m. Where: Club Congress, 311 E. Congress St. Price: $5 Info: 622-8848