Marah is an American

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

band that formed in the early 1990s and is closely associated with the cities of

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. The band is known for its intense live performances,

classic rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...

production style, and association with authors

Nick Hornby Nicholas Peter John Hornby (born 17 April 1957) is an English writer. He is best known for his memoir '' Fever Pitch'' (1992) and novels ''High Fidelity'' and '' About a Boy'', all of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby's work frequen ...

and

Sarah Vowell Sarah Jane Vowell (born December 27, 1969) is an American historian, author, journalist, essayist, social commentator, and actress. She has written seven nonfiction books on American history and culture. Vowell was a contributing editor for the r ...

and musicians

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

and

Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American country, rock, and folk singer-songwriter. He began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Earle's breakthrough album was his 1986 debut album '' ...

History

Marah was formed by singer/songwriter/guitarist Dave Bielanko from

Conshohocken, Pennsylvania Conshohocken ( ; ) is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough on the Schuylkill River in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania in suburban Philadelphia. Historically a large mill town and industrial and manufacturing center, after the decline of industry in ...

, bass guitarist Danny Metz and drummer Ronnie Vance in 1993. Singer/songwriter/guitarist and

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica incl ...

player Serge Bielanko, Dave's older brother, joined the band in 1995. Several years before Marah formed, Serge and Dave Bielanko (still in high school) were in a band called the Lusty Toms with Michael Lepore, which had a far different sound that resembled the

Red Hot Chili Peppers The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...

. The Lusty Toms never got signed and distributed several cassette tapes locally. Marah saw Serge and Dave alter their sound and musical direction. Marah featured

Mummers Parade The Mummers Parade is held each New Year's Day in Philadelphia. It started in 1901, and is the longest-running continuous folk parade in the United States. Local clubs, usually called "New Years Associations" or "New Years Brigades", compete i ...

–influenced

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

s combined with standard rock instruments to create an eclectic

roots rock Roots rock is a genre of rock music that looks back to rock's origins in contemporary folk music, folk, blues, and country music. First emerging in the late 1960s, it is seen as a response to the perceived excesses of the then dominant psychedel ...

sound that drew comparisons to early

. Marah recorded two albums together: '' Let's Cut The Crap & Hook Up Later on Tonight'', released on Black Dog Records in 1998, and '' Kids in Philly'', released on

's now-defunct E-Squared Records in 2000. Both critically acclaimed records were recorded and produced by the band and recording engineer/producer Paul Smith above an auto repair garage (Frank's Auto Body) in south

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Metz and Vance left the band in 2000, and were replaced by Mick Bader on drums and Joe Hooven on bass. Augmented by Mike "Slo-Mo" Brenner on lap steel, this version of the group toured extensively to support ''Kids in Philly''. Marah performed a song from that CD, "Point Breeze", on ''Late Night with

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, actor, and producer. He is best known for having hosted Late-night talk show, late-night talk shows, beginning with ''Late Night with Conan O'B ...

'' in 2000. Bader and Hooven left Marah in 2001 and were replaced by Jon Kois (drums) and Jamie Mahon (bass) of Philadelphia

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

band

The Three 4 Tens The Three 4 Tens are an American garage rock band, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. History The Three 4 Tens formed in 1995 by bassist Jamie Mahon, guitarist Joe Tagg, guitarist Brian McNamara and drummer Jon Kois. They op ...

. The Bielankos, with Kois and Mahon, left for

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

in late 2001 to record their third CD, ''

Float Away With the Friday Night Gods ''Float Away With the Friday Night Gods'' (FAWTFNG) is an album by the band Marah, released in 2002. The Bielanko Brothers were joined by Jamie Mahon and Jon Kois of The Three 4 Tens. In 2005, the band released the demos of the FAWTFNG session ...

'', with former Oasis producer

Owen Morris Owen Morris (born in Caernarfon, Wales) is a Welsh record producer who has worked with rock bands including Oasis, the Fratellis, Ash, the View, Loso and the Verve. Biography Morris started working in the music industry as a sound engineer at ...

and featuring

on vocals and guitar on the title track. It was released on

Artemis Records Artemis Records was a New York–based independent record label, founded in June 1999 by Danny Goldberg with Daniel Glass as president, and closed in April 2006. The label was acquired by E1 Entertainment. As of 2006, Artemis Records was owned b ...

in 2002. This release spurred controversy amongst the band's early supporters due to its decidedly

Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s United Kingdom, British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. Musically, Britpop produced bright, catchy alternative rock, with significant influences from British guitar pop of the 1960s and 1970s. B ...

sound. In 2003, Marah returned to the auto garage (Frank's Auto Body, aptly renamed The Marage) and recorded their fourth record, ''

20,000 Streets Under the Sky ''20,000 Streets Under the Sky'' is a trilogy of semi-autobiographical novels by Patrick Hamilton. The three books are ''The Midnight Bell'' (1929), ''The Siege of Pleasure'' (1932) and ''The Plains of Cement'' (1934). They focus on three of ...

'', and also played a series of shows in late October/early November, much to the delight of their devoted fan base. The CD was released on Yep Roc Records in 2004. The band toured to support this album with

Jon Wurster Jonathan Patrick Wurster (born October 31, 1966) is an American drummer, percussionist, vocalist and comedy writer. As a musician, he is best known for his work with Superchunk, the Mountain Goats, and Bob Mould. He is also known for appearing on ...

(of

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 ...

stalwarts

Superchunk Superchunk is an American indie rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, consisting of singer-guitarist Mac McCaughan, guitarist Jim Wilbur, bassist Laura Ballance, and drummer Laura King. Formed in 1989, they were one of the bands that hel ...

) on drums, Mike "Slo-Mo" Brenner on

lap steel guitar The lap steel guitar, also known as a Hawaiian guitar or lap slide guitar, is a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap. Unlike the usual manner of pla ...

, and Kirk Henderson on bass and keyboards.

''If You Didn't Laugh, You'd Cry'' and ''A Christmas Kind of Town''

In 2005, the band entered The Magic Shop recording studio in New York City to record their fifth album with the help of Henderson and two new members, guitarist Adam Garbinski and drummer/guitarist Dave Peterson, formerly of the band

Squad Five-O Squad Five-O is an American punk rock band from Savannah, Georgia no longer formally touring or recording, but rather only performing occasional weekend concerts.

. The resulting disc, ''

If You Didn't Laugh, You'd Cry ''If You Didn't Laugh, You'd Cry'' is an album by Marah, released on Yep Roc Records in the United States and Munich Records in Europe on October 18, 2005. Marah, during yet another period of personnel transition (a constant theme over the car ...

'' (''IYDLYC''), met with near-universal critical acclaim.

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...

, writing in ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'', hailed ''IYDLYC'' as the best record of 2005.

''If You Didn't Laugh, You'd Cry'' is an apt enough title, when you consider that this is probably the best rock band in America that nobody knows. Am I being an elitist here, trying to one-up my audience? Nope. Marah is great in the scat, bop, and jive way Springsteen was great on The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle. One listen to songs like ''The Closer'' and ''Fat Boy'' on this amazing record and I think you'll agree. These guys are either the American U2 or close enough for government work.

The release of ''IYDLYC'' was complemented by the recording and release of a Christmas album, ''A Christmas Kind of Town''. The band, now solidified as a three-guitar

quintet A quintet is a group containing five members. It is commonly associated with musical groups, such as a string quintet, or a group of five singers, but can be applied to any situation where five similar or related objects are considered a single ...

, embarked upon a year-long tour of the US and Europe to support the two albums. Highlights of the tour included Serge Bielanko's intense renditions of "Dishwasher's Dream" from ''IYDLYC'' as well as occasional performances of "Reservation Girl," a song the group has never released on a record. In addition to the release of ''A Christmas Kind of Town'', the band, along with keyboardist and vocalist Christine Smith, wrote and recorded music for lyrics written by

This American Life ''This American Life'' is a weekly hour-long American radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. It is broadcast on numerous public radio stations in the United States and internationally, and is ...

contributor

entitled "Christmas at Valley Forge." The song, along with other selections from ''A Christmas Kind of Town'', was originally aired on This American Life's

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

special in December 2005 and was re-released on the holiday EP ''Counting the Days'' in 2007. Marah played at the

Bonnaroo Music Festival Bonnaroo (or Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival) is an American annual four-day music festival developed and founded by Superfly Presents and AC Entertainment. Bonnaroo has taken place at what is now Great Stage Park, a 700-acre (280 ha) fa ...

on June 16, 2006. Performance highlights included a rousing introduction by

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

scenester/character Beatle Bob and a cover of

The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

's "

Baba O'Riley "Baba O'Riley" is a song by the English Rock music, rock band the Who, written by guitarist and principal songwriter Pete Townshend. It is the opening track to the Who's fifth studio album, ''Who's Next'' (1971). In Europe, it was released as a ...

." Marah later played the

Austin City Limits Music Festival Austin City Limits (ACL) Music Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Zilker Park in Austin, Texas, on two consecutive three-day weekends and is inspired by the KLRU/PBS music series ''Austin City Limits''. The festival is pro ...

on September 15, 2006, delivering a spirited set in which both Dave and Serge Bielanko jumped over the crowd barriers and into the audience. The audio of this show was released on

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

on November 7, 2006. On September 21, 2006, the band released a DVD of a concert in Mataro,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

(which was originally recorded and circulated as a fan bootleg) entitled '' Sooner or Later in Spain''.

''Angels of Destruction''

Marah, with Christine Smith now a full-time member, entered

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

's 16 Ton Recording Studios in August 2006 to record songs for a new record. In April 2007, the group recorded and mixed additional songs at

's Excello Recording. In June, Marah announced that the new record, ''

Angels of Destruction! An angel is a Spirit (supernatural entity), spiritual (without a physical body), heaven, heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with Bird wing, bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the Transce ...

'', would be released on January 8, 2008, and previewed the album at a concert/listening party in Philadelphia on September 8, 2007. ''Angels of Destruction!'' was preceded by a 6-song 10" EP entitled ''Can't Take It with You'', which was released in October 2007. A Christmas EP called ''Counting the Days'' was released in November 2007. The new album was released in early January 2008 to widespread acclaim. Almost immediately afterward, however, plans for an extensive US tour were canceled following the departure of Garbinski, Peterson, and Henderson, who all went on to form Adam & Dave's Bloodline. Bassist

Johnny Pisano Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Variant ...

and drummer Joe Gorelick were hired as replacements, and in late February the band embarked on a European tour to promote the album. Serge Bielanko left the band shortly after the European tour to focus on family life. In August 2008, Dave Bielanko & Christine Smith started recording new material at 16 Ton Studios in Nashville with Pisano and Nashville-based drummer Martin Lynds, who then joined the band. Bielanko had stated his intentions of recording "a lilting beautiful folky record of acoustic guitars, tack pianos, and the stand-up bass". Bielanko & Smith toured Europe with Pisano in December 2008 as a trio before returning to 16 Ton in January 2009 to continue work on the new album. In October, the band released the first new song from the 2009 recording sessions, the internet-only single "Put 'Em In The Graveyard".

''Life is a Problem''

''Life is a Problem'' was released on June 22, 2010, through the band's own new label, Valley Farm Songs. As well as coming out on gatefold vinyl and digital download, the band took the unusual step of releasing it on cassette tape. In May, Dave Bielanko announced two new band members for their upcoming summer tour, Mark Francis Sosnoskie on bass and Bruce W. Derr on guitar. In October, 2011 Serge Bielanko returned to the band for U.S. shows at Jammin' Java in Vienna VA, and the Elk Creek Cafe in Millheim, PA, followed by a brief Spanish tour, but soon left again to focus on family life.

''Mountain Minstrelsy of Pennsylvania''

In February, 2014 Marah released '' Mountain Minstrelsy of Pennsylvania'', based on an obscure 1931 book with the same title. The book consists of a collection of song lyrics gathered in the mountains of Pennsylvania by folklorist Henry W. Shoemaker. Dave Bielanko and Christine Smith used the lyrics in Shoemaker's book as the basis for the songs on the album. Working in their studio in an old church in Millheim, Pennsylvania, the record was made on a Studer 8 track tape machine and mastered directly to a recording lathe. They also collaborated with an 8-year-old fiddle prodigy named Gus Tritsch, who plays on the album.

2015 "Reunion" Shows

In July 2015, the band announced that they would play a reunion show of sorts on October 17 at Underground Arts in Philadelphia to celebrate the 15th anniversary of their 2000 album ''Kids in Philly'' and that they would release a re-mastered edition of that album for the first time on vinyl. The re-formed lineup included Dave and Serge Bielanko, Christine Smith, Adam Garbinski, Dave Petersen, and Mark Sosnoskie plus special guests Mike "Slo-Mo" Brenner, Jeff "Coolerman" Clarke and th
Matt Cappy Horns
The band also announced two warmup gigs in advance of the Underground Arts show - one at Jammin' Java in Vienna VA on 7/23/15, and another at the Elk Creek Cafe in Milheim, PA on 10/10/15.

Discography

Albums

*1998: '' Let's Cut The Crap & Hook Up Later on Tonight'' (Black Dog - 1998 / Phidelity - released in 2004) *2000: '' Kids in Philly'' (E-Squared/Artemis) *2002: ''

'' (E-Squared/Artemis) *2004: ''

'' (US: Yep Roc/Europe: Munich) *2004: ''Kids in Amsterdam: Live on VPRO'' (Phidelity) *2005: ''

Float Away Deconstructed ''Float Away Deconstructed'' is an album released by the band Marah in 2005. It consists of demos from the band's 2002 release, ''Float Away With the Friday Night Gods ''Float Away With the Friday Night Gods'' (FAWTFNG) is an album by the ...

'' (Phidelity) *2005: ''

'' (US: Yep Roc/Europe: Munich) *2005: '' A Christmas Kind of Town'' (Yep Roc) *2008: ''

'' (US: Yep Roc/Europe: Munich) *2010: '' Life Is a Problem'' (Valley Farm Songs) *2014: '' Marah Presents Mountain Minstrelsy of Pennsylvania'' (Valley Farm Songs)

EPs

*2007: ''Can't Take It with You'' (Yep Roc) *2007: ''Counting the Days'' (Yep Roc)

DVDs

*2006: ''Sooner or Later in Spain'' (Yep Roc)

Compilations

*1997: ''Season's Greetings Philadelphia'' (Record Cellar) *1998: ''Camp Black Dog Presents: Rock & Roll Summer Camp '98'' (Black Dog) *1999: ''No Electric Guitars'' (Record Cellar) *1999: ''Put Your Tongue to the Rail: The Philly Comp for Catholic Children (Songs of the Jim Caroll Band)'' (Genus)

References

External links

Official siteMarah on FacebookMarah on Twitter
{{Authority control Musical groups from Philadelphia American alternative country groups Musical groups established in 1993 1993 establishments in the United States Yep Roc Records artists