Crooks On Tape is an

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

band founded by John Schmersal ( Braniac, Enon), Rick Lee (Skeleton Key), and drummer Joey Galvan. Schmersal and Lee played together in Enon and began recording improvisational music with Galvan in 2010. Dayton, Ohio indie label

Misra Records Misra Records is an independent record label based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The label is distributed by Redeye Worldwide. Founded in 1999, Misra Records is home to landmark releases by Destroyer, Phosphorescent, Shearwater, R. Ring (featu ...

released the band's debut album "Fingerprint" in 2013. Edited into a tight 35 minutes from "hundreds of hours of material," the band's official bio likens the band's electro-punk sound to "tiny snapshots of an altered crime scene."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

gave "Fingerprint 3 1/2 stars, citing the "unexplored mileage in the skronky yet catchy sound" of Enon's debut album as a key influence in Crooks On Tape's propensity to "hunt for the weirdest sounds possible and then put them in the hookiest songs they can write."

Tiny Mix Tapes ''Tiny Mix Tapes'' (also ''TMT'' or ''tinymixtapes'') is an online music and film webzine that focuses primarily on new music and related news. In addition to its reviews, it is noted for its subversive, political, and sometimes surreal news, ...

gave the album 3 out of 5 stars, calling "Fingerprint" a "squirming mass of improvisation...chopped up and molded into a series of two- to four-minute pop songs."

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

's Matt LeMay cited album opener "Duper" as a favorite in his year-end feature My Year In Music, nodding to the "loose and off-the-cuff thing going on here that I keep coming back to." Following the release of "Fingerprint," Crooks On Tape toured the U.S. and Europe in early 2014, when Schmersal turned his attention to a new project, Vertical Scratchers. In 2014, Misra issued a cassette release of "Fingerprint" with a full 11 instrumental bonus tracks on the B-side. For

Record Store Day Record Store Day is a semi-annual event established in 2008 to "celebrate the culture of the independently owned record store". Held on one Saturday (typically the third) every April and every Black Friday in November, the day brings together f ...

2015, Schmersal collected ten of these instrumentals for a vinyl compilation, ''In The Realm Of The Ancient Minor.'' The track list for this compilation mirrored the sequence of the "Fingerprint" cassette, omitting the song "Cats Don't Care." In October 2015, Crooks On Tape resurfaced for a series of live gigs with Austin pop surrealists

The Octopus Project The Octopus Project is an American experimental music, experimental band formed in Austin, TX in 1999 by Toto Miranda, Yvonne Lambert & Josh Lambert. Their first album, ''Identification Parade'', came out in 2002, setting them off on a musical pat ...

Discography

Albums

*2013 ''Fingerprint'' CD and LP (Misra Records) *2014 ''Fingerprint'' cassette (Misra Records) (reissue with 11 bonus tracks) *2015 ''In The Realm Of The Ancient Minor'' LP (Pure Orgone) (limited release for

)

Digital-only releases

*2013 "The Trees" (remix of 1978 Rush classic) (

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

)

References

* http://www.allmusic.com/artist/crooks-on-tape-mn0003168149

External links

Crooks On Tape official site

Crooks On Tape SoundCloud page
{{Authority control American art rock groups Indie rock musical groups from California Musical groups established in 2010 Musical groups from Los Angeles Misra Records artists 2010 establishments in California