BURBANK, CA. (Top40 Charts/ Reprise Records) Currently on the road with G. Love and Special Sauce through April, The Belle Brigade have announced that they will hit the road this summer as special guests of Canadian songstress kd lang. The tour, which visits several music festivals across the U.S. and Canada, begins June 17th in Toronto and winds up July 15th in North Carolina. The band will also play a special show with Lang at the Troubadour in Los Angeles in April 11th. All upcoming tour dates are below.
Fronted by siblings Barbara and Ethan Gruska, The Belle Brigade are touring in support of their upcoming self-titled debut album, which will be released by Reprise Records on April 19th, 2011. The album is currently available for pre-order on iTunes, where two tracks, "Losers" and "Where Not To Look For Freedom," are available for purchase now. On week of release, The Belle Brigade will make their network television debut performing on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.
Inspired by Barbara and Ethan's love for Fleetwood Mac, Simon & Garfunkel, The Beatles, and Stevie Wonder, The Belle Brigade's debut album is chock-full of artfully arranged, freewheeling songs that brim with breezy, California melodies and bracing pop harmonies, fueled by the driving rhythms Barbara plays on drums. A longtime fixture on the Los Angeles music scene, Barbara is a sought-after live drummer who toured with Inara George and Jenny Lewis before she picked up a guitar and formed the band with her singer-songwriter younger brother Ethan two years ago. Raised in a musical family (their father is songwriter/composer Jay Gruska and their maternal grandfather is renowned film composer John Williams), Barbara and Ethan have a strong familial chemistry, which, along with their obvious songwriting gifts, has resulted in one of the most thrilling debut albums of the year.
Backed by their talented band (bassist Keith Karmen, keyboardist Aaron Arntz, electric guitarist Harlan Silverman, and drummer Mike Green), Barbara and Ethan were the "belle" of this year's SXSW Music Festival, performing at the KCRW, WFUV, WBR, and Chop Shop showcases. Check out what the critics have been saying:
"It says something about the stickiness of The Belle Brigade's songs that they can not only endure but prevail during the onslaught of noise at South by Southwest this weekend. ... They're naturals, basically, with songs that are supernaturally tight and catchy; though not loud, the band's performance at the Chop Shop show generated a half-dozen internal jukebox hits." - Randall Roberts, The Los Angeles Times
"The brother and sister team from LA, bring beautiful harmonies to their quirky folk rock." - SPIN
"...memorable voice and considerable charisma within songs that gleam with hooks and pour over with earnest emotion..." - Ann Powers, The Los Angeles Times
"Not quite country, not quite folk, and too complex to be described as plain as indie, The Belle Brigade are the most promising freshman act in current musical class of mostly fifth-year seniors." - NY Post/Popwrap
"The Belle Brigade's live show was energetic, uplifting and exceptionally earnest; you can't help but fall in love with them a little bit. Their entire set was a treat, but one highlight was when Barbara went back behind the kit to play drums. Take a listen to 'Sweet Louise' off their upcoming album." - Aurgasm
The Belle Brigade's upcoming tour dates are as follows:
04/07 Phoenix, AZ Marquee Theater*
04/08 San Diego, CA House of Blues*
04/09 Los Angeles, CA House of Blues*
04/10 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore*
04/11 Los Angeles, CA The Troubadour**
04/13 Sacramento, CA Harlow's*
04/14 San Luis Obispo, CA SLO Brewing Company*
04/15 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst*
04/16 Stateline, NV Harrah's Tahoe-South Shore Rm*
04/21 Bend, OR Midtown Ballroom*
04/22 Spokane, WA Knitting Factory*
04/23 Boise, ID Knitting Factory*
04/26 Fargo, ND Fargo Theatre*
04/27 Duluth, MN Clyde Iron Works*
04/28 Madison, WI The Majestic*
04/29 St. Louis, MO The Pageant*
04/30 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue*
06/17 Toronto, ON Luminato Festival**
06/18 London, ON The Grand Theatre**
06/20 New York, NY Beacon Theatre**
06/22 Carmel, IN Carmel Performing Arts Center**
06/23 Highland Park, IL Ravinia Festival**
06/25 Ottawa, ON Ottawa Int'l Jazz Festival**
06/30 Grand Rapids, MI Meijer Gardens Amphitheatre**
07/03 Highmount, NY Belleayre Music Festival**
07/06 Vienna, VA Wolf Trap Filene Center**
07/09 Cohasset, MA South Shore Music Circus**
07/10 Hyannis, MA Cape Cod Melody Tent**
07/15 Boone, NC Appalachian Summer Festival**
*denotes show with G. Love and Special Sauce
**denotes show with kd lang
For more about The Belle Brigade, visit:
https://www.thebellebrigade.com/
www.myspace.com/thebellebrigade
https://twitter.com/thebellebrigade
https://www.facebook.com/TheBelleBrigade
