SXSW 2005 Showcasing Artists
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The M's
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The M’s -
Joshua Chicoine, Robert Hicks, Joey King, & Steve Versaw Late summer in 2000, sweating in a dingy basement in the middle of Chicago's Ukrainian Village, surrounded by cables and homemade soundproofing, four young men set up some microphones and recorded a song. Within a week, they had completed five more. In appropriately post-modern fashion, they called themselves The M's. Not long after, the still fledgling group pushed themselves out the door of their makeshift studio and towards Cal's Liquors, deep in the Chicago Loop. Setting up on a concrete floor in the corner of the packaged liquor store-cum-concert hall, The M’s were a remarkable sight that night: Robert was playing with his arm in a sling after being hit by a car, Josh was a blur of activity alternating between guitar,keyboards and tambourine, and Joey and Steve put a firm boot into every sweaty groove. When they finished the first song, the audience was intrigued. By the time they ended their set, the crowd wanted more. The M’s sent a quarter of the tracks they’d recorded off to a manufacturer and started selling the resulting EP around town and at shows. Even at that point they were not as committed to playing live as they were to hunkering down in the basement recording more songs and honing their craft. Five months after that first show, they had tracked 15 more songs, all completely different in sound, scope and style from the first batch of tunes they wrote. After a few months of sporadic gigging, the M's earned high-profile slots alongside the Electric Six, French Kicks, Stephen Malkmus, The Walkmen, Wilco and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Along with this came glowing press in SPIN, Rolling Stone, GQ, CMJ and numerous other local and national publications. The buzz has spread fast, and all over Chicago people have been bobbing their heads to the racket the M’s first began shaping on that hot summer night three years ago. Now it’s your turn. |
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TECHNOLOGY PARTNER
