Mates of State are an American
indie pop
Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...
duo, active since 1997.
The group is the husband-and-wife team of Kori Gardner (born June 16, 1974) (vocals, organ,
synthesizer
A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...
,
piano
A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...
,
electric piano
An electric piano is a musical instrument that has a piano-style musical keyboard, where sound is produced by means of mechanical hammers striking metal strings or reeds or wire tines, which leads to vibrations which are then converted into ele ...
, and occasional
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 ...
and drums) and Jason Hammel (born February 1, 1976) (vocals, drums, percussion, and occasional synthesizer).
As of 2015, the duo has released four
EPs and seven full-length albums. Their most recent album, ''
Mountaintops,'' was released on September 13, 2011.
History
Gardner and Hammel first met in
Lawrence, Kansas
Lawrence is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70 in Kansas, Interstate 70, between the Kansas River ...
,
while both were involved in relationships with other people. Even though they exchanged e-mails regularly, they did not get together until three months later. They originally played together in a four-piece rock band called Vosotros, in which they both sang and played guitar. Shortly after the couple moved to
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
in 1998, Gardner began teaching, and Hammel applied to medical school.
They both opted later to devote their time to making music and touring together instead and got married in 2001. Gardner and Hammel originally lived together in
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
, and in 2004 they moved to
East Haven, Connecticut.
In February 2007, they sold their house in East Haven and relocated to
Stratford, Connecticut.
Gardner and Hammel have three daughters: Magnolia, born in 2004; June Elizabeth, born in 2008; and Phoebe Ann, born in 2017. For the band, touring became a family affair, their daughters joining them on the road. Gardner kept a 'blog, ''Band on the Diaper Run,'' that appeared on
Babble.com. In its entries, she recounted their experiences of life on the road and the unique circumstance of touring with two young children in tow.
The main instruments Mates of State used in their early recordings were
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 ...
and the
electric organ
An electric organ, also known as electronic organ, is an electronic keyboard instrument which was derived from the harmonium, pipe organ and theatre organ. Originally designed to imitate their sound, or orchestral sounds, it has since develop ...
. Both had started out playing the guitar, but they ultimately found they were experimenting more with the organ and drums in their practice space than with any other musical instruments. On later recordings, the band moved away from the organ-dominated sound and incorporated additional instrumentation, beginning with the EP ''All Day'' and continuing on ''Bring It Back,'' their fourth studio album. The organ wasn't incorporated at all on their fifth album, ''Re-Arrange Us''.
Mates of State songs are notable for their male/female vocal
harmony
In music, harmony is the concept of combining different sounds in order to create new, distinct musical ideas. Theories of harmony seek to describe or explain the effects created by distinct pitches or tones coinciding with one another; harm ...
, shifting
rhythm
Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular r ...
s, and quirky song structure – most tracks comprised distinct, almost disjointed movements. Both members tend to sing with great intensity, often in the upper ranges of their voices, and they often simultaneously sing different, complementary melodies and lyrics.
The band recorded one
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...
on Omnibus Records before moving to
Polyvinyl
In polymer chemistry, vinyl polymers are a group of polymers derived from substituted vinyl () monomers. Their backbone is an extended alkane chain . In popular usage, "vinyl" refers only to polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Examples
Vinyl polymers are ...
for their second and third full-length albums. In December 2005, the band 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 ...
and released two full-length albums and an EP of remixes on the label.
On October 11, 2004, the band held a contest for fans to create their own video for "Goods (All In Your Head)," the first track on their ''All Day'' EP. The winning entry, directed by Jonathan Yi and Sam Goetz, became the official video for the song and was aired on
MTV
MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
on June 12, 2005. It became available for download in the Media section of the band's official site.
The band's fifth album, ''Re-Arrange Us,'' was released on May 20, 2008. For their tour in support of the album, Mates of State became a quartet by adding Lewis and
Anton Patzner of
Judgement Day
The Last Judgment is a concept found across the Abrahamic religions and the ''Frashokereti'' of Zoroastrianism.
Christianity considers the Second Coming of Jesus, Jesus Christ to entail the final judgment by God in Abrahamic religions, God of a ...
as multi-instrumentalists
to complement the duo's sound on select songs.
On June 15, 2010, Mates of State released their sixth studio album, ''
Crushes (The Covers Mixtape),'' which consisted entirely of their cover versions of songs previously recorded by other musical artists,
including "Long Way Home" by
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...
and "
Son Et Lumiere" by
The Mars Volta
The Mars Volta is an American Rock music, rock band formed in 2001. The band's only constant members are Omar Rodríguez-López (guitar, producer, direction) and Cedric Bixler-Zavala (vocals, lyrics), whose partnership forms the core of the ban ...
. Music videos were shot for two of the songs:
Nick Cave
Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, writer, and actor who fronts the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Known for his baritone voice, Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety ...
's "
Love Letter
A love letter is an expression of love in written form. However delivered, the letter may be anything from a short and simple message of love to a lengthy explanation and description of feelings.
History
One of the oldest references to a l ...
" and
Daniel Johnston
Daniel Dale Johnston (January 22, 1961 – September 11, 2019) was an American singer, musician and artist regarded as a significant figure in Outsider music, outsider, Lo-fi music, lo-fi, and alternative rock, alternative music scenes. Most ...
's "True Love Will Find You in the End." The former was directed by
Daniel Garcia and the latter was produced in conjunction with
ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to:
* ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
* ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company
ABC News may a ...
for its indie rock program, "Amplified."
The band's most recent full-length album, ''
Mountaintops,'' was released on September 13, 2011. It also came out on Barsuk, the same independent label that released two of the band's previous records, ''Bring It Back'' and ''Re-Arrange Us.'' It consisted entirely of new original material.
Tours and performances
Mates of State have performed all over the globe; in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
,
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
,
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
.
In the summer of 2001, they played shows with
Superdrag and
Beulah and, later in the year, opened for
The Anniversary during the release tour for their album ''
Your Majesty.''
In 2003, Mates of State toured with
Palomar.
In 2005, Mates of State toured with
Jimmy Eat World
Jimmy Eat World is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Mesa, Arizona, in 1993. The band is composed of lead vocalist and lead guitarist Jim Adkins, rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist Tom Linton, bassist Rick Burch, and drummer Zach ...
and
Taking Back Sunday
Taking Back Sunday is an American rock band from Amityville, New York, formed by guitarist Eddie Reyes and bassist Jesse Lacey in late 1999. The band's current members are Adam Lazzara (lead vocals), John Nolan (lead guitar, keyboards, voc ...
, and performed at the
Austin City Limits Music Festival in
Austin
Austin refers to:
Common meanings
* Austin, Texas, United States, a city
* Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters
* Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters
* Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...
, Texas.
In 2006, Mates of State toured with
Spoon
A spoon (, ) is a utensil consisting of a shallow bowl (also known as a head), oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery (sometimes called flatware in the United States), especially as part of a table setting, place setting, it ...
and
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie (commonly abbreviated to DCFC or Death Cab) is an American rock music, rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. Death Cab for Cutie's music has been classified as indie rock, indie pop, and alternative rock. The ...
. Mates of State also provided support (alongside
Au Revoir Simone) for
We Are Scientists
We Are Scientists is a New York City-based rock music, rock band that formed in Berkeley, California, in 1999. It consists primarily of guitarist and vocalist Keith Murray and bass guitarist Chris Cain, with drummer Keith Carne joining the band ...
on their tour of the UK in November 2006.
During February and March 2007, Mates of State toured as the house band for
WBEZ
WBEZ (91.5 FM) – branded ''WBEZ 91.5'' – is a non-commercial educational radio station licensed to Chicago, Illinois, and primarily serving the tri-state region of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is owned by Chicago Public Media and is f ...
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
's ''
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 ...
,'' hosted by
Ira Glass. Tour locations included New York, Boston, Seattle, Chicago, and Minneapolis. Recordings of some of the band's performances during this tour were included in a 2008 episode titled "What I Learned from Television." On
Earth Day
Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. First held on April 22, 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally through earthday.org (formerly Earth Day Network) includin ...
in 2007, Mates of State headlined the Concert for a Green Earth in
Westport, Connecticut.
In 2008, the team appeared again at the
Austin City Limits Music Festival, in addition to performing at
Lollapalooza
Lollapalooza () is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991, with Chicago becoming its permanent location beginning in 2005. Music genres i ...
in Chicago, the
All Points West Music & Arts Festival in
Jersey City
Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous , and the
Pemberton Music Festival in Pemberton, BC. In 2009, they played at
Diversafest in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the
Voodoo Fest in New Orleans on
Halloween
Halloween, or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve), is a celebration geography of Halloween, observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christianity, Western Christian f ...
weekend.
In 2010, they appeared on the children's television show ''
Yo Gabba Gabba!
''Yo Gabba Gabba!'' is a Children's television series, children's Musical film, musical television series created by Christian Jacobs and Scott Schultz (producer), Scott Schultz and developed by Kay Wilson Stallings. The series is about five cos ...
'' in
Rochester, New York.
Beginning in 2010, the band toured with backing musicians Kenji Shinagawa on guitar and John Panos on trumpet, both graduates of the University of Miami.
On February 16, 2012, the band began a 9-day tour of the East Coast at Union Transfer in
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 ...
, Pennsylvania.
On June 11, 2013, they joined
The Postal Service
The Postal Service was an American indie pop group from Seattle, Seattle, Washington, consisting of singer Ben Gibbard, producer Dntel, Jimmy Tamborello (also known by his stage name, Dntel), and Jenny Lewis on background vocals.
The band relea ...
's "Give Up" ten-year reunion tour at the Air Canada Theater in Toronto. The tour had stops in Boston, at the sold out Barclay's Center in Brooklyn and shows in Minnesota and Kansas City. Mates of State opened The Postal Service's last show of the tour on August 4, 2013 at the Metro in Chicago. It was also the official Lollapalooza closing party and the last time The Postal Service would tour for a decade.
They performed two songs in conjunction with
BYUtv's
Studio C: "Dealbreaker" in October 2013 and "Kill the Whales" in May 2014.
Films
* ''
The Rumperbutts'' (2015). Lead actors, producers, and composers. Starring alongside
Josh Brener,
Arian Moayed, and
Vanessa Ray. Distributed by Mance Media.
* ''Two of Us'' (2004). Produced, directed, shot, and edited by Thadd Day. Released by Hooked on Sonics!
* The song "My Only Offer" features prominently in the last half of the trailer for the 2009 documentary ''
Best Worst Movie'' and plays over that film's closing credits.
*
Discography
Albums
EPs
* ''European Tour 2003 EP''
Fickle Fame 2003)
* ''All Day EP'' (
Polyvinyl
In polymer chemistry, vinyl polymers are a group of polymers derived from substituted vinyl () monomers. Their backbone is an extended alkane chain . In popular usage, "vinyl" refers only to polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Examples
Vinyl polymers are ...
, 2004)
* ''Daytrotter Session'' (2006)
* ''Re-Arranged: Remixes Volume 1'' (
Barsuk, 2009)
* ''You’re Going To Make It'' (Barsuk, 2015)
Singles
* "Mates of State"/"Fighter D Split" (Omnibus, 1999)
* "It's the Law"/"Invitation Inn" (Omnibus, 2000)
* "Lower" (Devil in the Woods, 2001) *Note: split single with
The Shins &
Sparklehorse
* "Beehive State/Über Legitimate" (Snow Globe, 2001)
* "These Days" (
Polyvinyl
In polymer chemistry, vinyl polymers are a group of polymers derived from substituted vinyl () monomers. Their backbone is an extended alkane chain . In popular usage, "vinyl" refers only to polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
Examples
Vinyl polymers are ...
, 2002) *Note: split single with
Dear Nora
* "Fraud in the '80s" (
Moshi Moshi, 2006)
* "Like U Crazy" (Moshi Moshi, 2006)
* "Staring Contest" (Barsuk / Fierce Panda, 2015)
Other releases
* 2002 – "Why You Little..." on the compilation CD ''Ten Years of Noise Pop'' (Amazing Grease)
* 2005 – "Invitation Inn" on the compilation ''A House Full of Friends'' (Magic Marker)
* 2006 – "California" (
Phantom Planet
Phantom Planet is an American Rock music, rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1994. The band consists of Alex Greenwald (vocals, rhythm guitar), Darren Robinson (lead guitar), Sam Farrar (bass guitar) and Jeff Conrad (drums). The band is bes ...
cover) on the compilation ''
Music from the OC: Mix 6'' (WEA)
* 2006 – "Popular Mistakes" on the compilation ''This is a Care Package'' (Exotic Fever)
* 2007 – "Jellyman Kelly" (
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor (born March 12, 1948) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A six-time Grammy Award winner, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000.
Taylor achieved his breakthrough in 1970 with the single "Fi ...
cover) on the compilation ''For The Kids III'' (RCA)
* 2008 – "
Little Boxes" (
Malvina Reynolds cover), was recorded as theme music for an episode of ''
Weeds
A weed is an unwanted plant of any species.
Weed or weeds may also refer to:
Places
* Weed, Arkansas, an unincorporated community in the United States
* Weed, California, a city in the United States
* Weed, Kentucky, an unincorporated communit ...
'' but never appeared on the program
* 2010 – "I Will Dare" (
Replacements cover) is featured on
The Onion's A.V. Club Undercover, with
comedian
A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...
Todd Barry on drums
* 2012 − "I am a Scientist" (
Guided by Voices
Guided by Voices is an American indie rock band formed in 1983 in Dayton, Ohio. It has made frequent personnel changes but always maintained the presence of principal songwriter Robert Pollard. The most well-known lineup of the band consisted o ...
cover) on the compilation "Science Fair" (Spoil the Rock)
References
External links
Mates of State interviewat
SuicideGirls
SuicideGirls is an online community website that revolves around pin-up model, pin-up photography models known as the Suicide Girls.
The website was founded in 2001 by Selena Mooney ("Missy Suicide") and Sean Suhl ("Spooky").
Most of the site ...
Mates of State interview/performanceat Minnesota Public Radio
Mates of State in concert at NPR MusicInterview with the Cornell Daily Sun
{{Authority control
American indie pop groups
Indie rock musical groups from Kansas
Musical groups established in 1997
Musicians from Lawrence, Kansas
American rock music duos
Barsuk Records artists
Fierce Panda Records artists
Polyvinyl Record Co. artists
Musical duos from Kansas
Male–female musical duos