Death to Anders (''pronounced "onders"'') is an American

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 formed in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 2006. Their current lineup consists of Rob Danson (

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

, guitar), Rob Hume (bass, backing vocals), and Robert Smith (drums). Death to Anders is active in the influential

Echo Park Echo Park is a neighborhood in the east-Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles, California. Located to the northwest of Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown, it is bordered by Silver Lake, Los Angeles, Silver Lake to the west and Chinato ...

and

Silver Lake Silver Lake may refer to: Cities and towns Canada *Silver Lake, in Peterborough County, Ontario, a dispersed rural community in the municipality of Trent Lakes *Silver Lake, in Renfrew County, Ontario, a dispersed rural community in the municipalit ...

music scenes in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. They were founding members of the Central Second Collective, a group of up-and-coming rock musicians dedicated to promoting innovative, new music in Los Angeles. Often compared to Pavement, early

Modest Mouse Modest Mouse is an American rock music, rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, and currently based in Portland, Oregon. The founding members were lead singer/guitarist Isaac Brock (musician), Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green and ba ...

, and

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

, Death to Anders shifts between hypnotic melodies and raging

dissonance Dissonance has several meanings related to conflict or incongruity: *Cognitive dissonance is a state of mental conflict. * Cultural dissonance is an uncomfortable sense experienced by people in the midst of change in their cultural environment. *C ...

as they mix rock with Gothic Americana.

Formation and history

Death to Anders was first formed as a duo in 2004 under the name "Thick Liquid Sucker Punch", by Danson and original guitarist Nick Ceglio, while the two were students at the

Musician's Institute Musicians Institute (MI) is a private for-profit music school in Los Angeles, California. MI students can earn Certificates and – with transfer of coursework taken at Los Angeles City College – Associate of Arts Degrees, as well as Bachelor ...

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

. While most of their classmates were interested in heavy metal or

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

, the two bonded over their shared enthusiasm for

, the

Pixies Pixies may refer to: * Plural of Pixie * Pixies (band) The Pixies are an American alternative rock band from Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 1986 by Black Francis (vocals, rhythm guitar, songwriter), Joey Santiago (lead guitar), Kim ...

, and Pavement. Death to Anders self-produced their first album, "Punctuate the Calamities" in the Fall of 2006. After recording with British producer

David Newton David Newton may refer to: * David Newton (artist) (1953–2011), American artist * David Newton (pianist) (born 1958), Scottish jazz pianist and composer * David Newton (guitarist) David Newton is a British guitarist, songwriter and record p ...

(formerly of the

Mighty Lemon Drops The Mighty Lemon Drops were an English rock group active from 1985 to 1992. Biography Originally called the Sherbet Monsters, the quartet first formed in the spring of 1985 in Wolverhampton, in the Black Country. Paul Marsh, David Newton (gui ...

) at Rollercoaster Recording in 2007, they released two albums in 2008: a full-length album entitled "Fictitious Business" and an EP entitled "Enigmatic Market". In 2010, Danson re-formed Death to Anders as a trio featuring bassist Rob Hume and drummer Robert Smith. In 2011, the band released a new EP entitled "Don't Give Up". It was recorded at Infrasonic Sound and mixed by Ali Nikou at Blaster Master Productions in Los Angeles. The EP was released on October 25, 2011 at The Echo in Echo Park, California, where the group performed as part of LA blog Buzz Bands' three-year anniversary show alongside bands such as Everest and Hands.

Musical style and influences

The dissonant tones, dynamic melodies, and complex song structures that shape their sound reveal a broad array of influences and reflect the diversity of its members. The band integrates genres as varied as

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

, and

alternative country Alternative country (commonly abbreviated to alt-country; also known as alternative country rock, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative) is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that diffe ...

. While their work has been compared to Pavement, early

, the

, and

, it is also described as difficult to classify, "radical", and "fresh". Death to Anders is also known for its intelligent, darkly humorous, and often mysterious lyrics, which are written by Danson and Ceglio and inspired by the literary works of

Henry Miller Henry Valentine Miller (December 26, 1891 – June 7, 1980) was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist. He broke with existing literary forms and developed a new type of semi-autobiographical novel that blended character study, so ...

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, journalist, world federalist, and political activist. He was the recipient of the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the s ...

Fyodor Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist and journalist. He is regarded as one of the greatest novelists in both Russian and world literature, and many of his works are considered highly influent ...

Tom Robbins Thomas Eugene Robbins (July 22, 1932 – February 9, 2025) was an American novelist. His most notable works are "seriocomedies" (also known as "comedy dramas"). Robbins had lived in La Conner, Washington, since 1970, where he wrote nine of his ...

, and

Chuck Palahniuk Charles Michael Palahniuk (;, , born February 21, 1962) is an American novelist of Ukrainian and French ancestry who describes his work as transgressional fiction. He has published 19 novels, three nonfiction books, two graphic novels, and two ad ...

. The title of the band's debut album, "Punctuate the Calamities", is a reference to Miller's ''Tropic of Cancer''.

Discography

Albums

* ''Punctuate the Calamities'' (self-released, 2006) * ''Fictitious Business'' (self-released, produced by

, 2008)

EPs and singles

* "Punctuate the Calamities" (self-released, produced by Death to Anders, 2006) * "Fictitious Business" (self released, produced by

, 2008) * "Enigmatic Market EP" (self-released, produced by

, 2008) * "Don't Give Up" (self-released, produced by Eric Palmquist and Death to Anders, 2011)

Notes

References

* * * * * * * * * *

External links

Official Death to Anders Myspace pageDeath to Anders on YoutubeDeath to Anders on Hype Machine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Death To Anders Musical groups established in 2006 Indie rock musical groups from California Musical groups from Los Angeles