Cymbals Eat Guitars were 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 from

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

, New York,CD Reviews , Cymbals Eat Guitars
Jerseybeat.com. Retrieved August 5, 2011. founded by high school friends Joseph D'Agostino and Matthew Miller. The band's name comes from a

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

quote describing the sound of

The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground were an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1964. Its classic lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and percussionis ...

.Lawrenson, James
Cymbals Eat Guitars – Why There Are Mountain
. Drowned in Sound. October 28, 2009. Retrieved August 5, 2011.

History

Cymbals Eat Guitars was founded in 2007 by guitarist Joseph D’Agostino and drummer Matthew Miller, who both graduated from Southern Regional High School in Manahawkin in 2006.RockFeedback – Artist – Cymbals Eat Guitars
Rockfeedback. Retrieved August 5, 2011. Neil Berenholz, guitarist Matt Cohen, and keyboardist Daniel Baer joined the band after responding to an ad D'Agostino posted on Craigslist.May, E.N
Interview: Joseph Ferocious (of Cymbals Eat Guitars)

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. History ''Consequence of Sound'' was founded in Septem ...

. September 8, 2009. Retrieved August 5, 2011. 90's alternative bands such as Pavement heavily influenced the band's sound.Lello, Michael
Crash and Jangle: An Interview with Joseph D'Agostino of Cymbals Eat Guitars

Popmatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

. 7 January 2010. Retrieved August 5, 2011. An early version of the song "Share" was released on the ''Indiecater Vol. 1'' compilation in June 2008. The band first gained buzz in 2009 when their self-released debut album '' Why There Are Mountains'' was included in

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music magazine founded in 1996 by Ryan Schreiber in Minneapolis. It originally covered Alternative rock, alternative and independent music, and expanded to cover genres includin ...

's "Best New Music", earning 8.3/10 in the website's review. Later that year, Cymbals Eat Guitars went on tour with The Pains of Being Pure at Heart and opened a couple of shows for

The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, vocals), Derek Brown ...

. In addition, the band played at the 2009 College Music Journal festival and the

Pitchfork Music Festival Pitchfork Music Festival was an annual music festival in Union Park (Chicago), Union Park in Chicago, Illinois, organized by the online magazine ''Pitchfork (website), Pitchfork.'' Starting in 2011, the festival announced a branch staged in Paris ...

.Deusner, Stephen
CMJ: Friday Cymbals Eat Guitars, Bear in Heaven
. October 24, 2009. Retrieved August 5, 2011.Pitchfork Staff
2009 Pitchfork Music Festival Two-Day Passes Sold Out!

. June 12, 2009. Retrieved August 5, 2011. In late 2009, the band was chosen as of one '' Beyond Race Magazines "50 Emerging Artists," resulting in a spot in the publication's No. 11 issue (with Bodega Girls and J. Cole on the cover), as well as an exclusive Q&A for the magazine's site.Stevens, Naqeeb
Cymbals Eat Guitars
Beyond Race Magazine. Retrieved August 5, 2011. 2009 also saw a change in Cymbals Eat Guitar's lineup. Dan Baer, the band's original keyboardist, left the band due to an illness, while the band's original bassist, Neil Berenholz, left due to his dislike of touring.Breihan, Tom
Cymbals Eat Guitars Get New Bassist

. October 27, 2009. Retrieved August 6, 2011. Baer and Berenholz were replaced by Brian Hamilton and Matthew Whipple respectively. In March 2011, Cymbals Eat Guitars signed with

Barsuk Records Barsuk Records ( ) is an independent record label based in Seattle, Washington which was founded in 1998 by Christopher Possanza and Josh Rosenfeld, the members of the band This Busy Monster, to release their band's material. Its logo is a draw ...

to produce a follow-up to ''Why There Are Mountains.''Studarus, Laura
Cymbals Eat Guitars Sign to Barsuk New Album This Fall
Under the Radar. March 7, 2011. Retrieved August 6, 2011. The band released their second album '' Lenses Alien'' on August 30, 2011.Cymbals Eat Guitars: lenses alien

. Retrieved August 4, 2011. In May 2014, the band announced that their third studio album '' LOSE'' will be released on August 26, 2014. The band opened for Brand New in 2014, and D'Agostino credited the Brand New tour for exposing them to a larger fanbase that would not have occurred on their own. In October 2015, the band released the song "Aerobed", produced by Brand New lead singer Jesse Lacey, in Kevin Devine’s Devinyl Split series. SPIN gave the song a favorable review, noting its juxtaposition of a quiet acoustic melody and vigorous guitar lines. The band released their fourth studio album '' Pretty Years'' on September 16, 2016. The band quietly disbanded in late 2017. D'Agostino would form a solo project called Empty Country following the band's breakup.

Band members

;Final lineupCymbals Eat Guitars

Myspace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

. Retrieved August 5, 2011. * Joseph D'Agostino –

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of the ...

(2007–2017) * Brian Hamilton – keyboards,

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

(2009–2017) * Matt Whipple –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

(2009–2017) * Anne Dole –

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

(2013–2017) ;Former * Matthew Cohen –

(2007–2008) * Daniel Baer – keyboards (2007–2009) * Matthew Miller –

(2007–2013) * Neil Berenholz –

(2008–2009) * Jon Levine –

(2007–2008)

Timeline

Discography

;Albums * '' Why There Are Mountains'' (2009) * '' Lenses Alien'' (2011) * '' LOSE'' (2014) * '' Pretty Years'' (2016) ;Singles

References

External links

Official Website
{{Authority control Indie rock musical groups from New York (state) Musical groups established in 2007 Musical groups from Staten Island Musical quartets from New York (state) Barsuk Records artists Memphis Industries artists