From the monthly archives: "May 2005"

Originally linked from Chromelodeon.com as “obligatory.doc”. Archived on May 15 2005. Presented with telephone number removed.

CHROMELODEON

WHO IS THE _____?
Hailing from the Philadelphia area, they are known collectively as Chromelodeon. Comprised of 8 bizarre members, their instrumentation ranges from the standard rhythm section to violin, accordion, and synthesizers, all completed with a light show and visual effects. Described best as a cross between Godspeed You Black Emperor and Mr. Bungle in a video game music writing war, this group of shadowy figures have found their epic scores to be well received by diverse crowds. Their intense and chaotic performances transform shows into personal soundtracks for the audience, demanding mental participation, imagination, or the attention of personal emotion.

Existing for over two years, they are now represented by BLOODLINK RECORDS, SOLID PR PUBLICITY, and STICK FIGURE DISTRIBUTION. They have played several sold out Knitting Factory NYC shows, and have been on two national tours. They have played consistently with some of the most recognized video-game inspired groups existing today, along with other large ones at numerous events.

WHAT DID ____ DO?
Two national tours, 3 releases, several sold out Knitting Factory NYC shows, with appearances at national festivals such at MACROCK and CMJ.

WITH WHOM DID _____?
The Bouncing Souls, Wesley Willis, Bling Kong, Need New Body, Evolution Control Committee, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Skeleton Key, and MC Chris are some of the other groups we’ve worked with.
This summer 2005 brings a 3rd national tour, to promote the official release and distribution of two new albums….

-CHROMELODEON-

███-███-████ (Ryan)
chromelodeon@gmail.com

www.CHROMELODEON.com
www.BLOODLINK.com
www.SOLIDPR.com
www.STICKFIGUREDISTRO.com

RELEASES

In the Year 20XX: Summer 2003 release. Spread widely across the country from previous touring, with glowingly abundant print and online reviews. Perfect soundtrack for a robotic holocaust.

The Dark Sword of Chaos: Release for late 2004. An album comprised of rearranged works from the original Nintendo game “Ninja Gaiden 2.” Already creating a buzz in the underground community of video game music hijackers. Accompanies select audio/visual performances.

Heart of Sawdust: 2005 release. New full length original. Showcases the many moods and movements the group is capable of. Preview tour of the material left everyone waiting for their summer return.

PRESS

“…It’s a booming battering ram of disparate riffs, epic synth atmosphere and every-instrument insanity. In other words, you’ve never heard anyone rock an accordion this hard…”

-Doug Wallen
Philadelphia Weekly
Dec 22-28, 2004

“Hailing from Philadelphia, this crazed collective fuses together metallic guitar action, howling synths, grinding accordion and circular motifs to fashion a bold, catchy, proggy instrumental mélange that I think can best be described as “spaceship rock.” Genuinely impressive – they had my attention from “hello” to “goodnight.”

-Rupert Bottenberg
Montreal Mirror
October 2004
Vol. 20 No. 18

“Memories of sitting at home in the basement for hours playing Mega Man and Zelda come rushing back after hearing these songs…. this explanation is pointless, because to understand how cool this is, you have to hear it. This is highly recommended.”

-Tim Kuehl
Punk Planet
March/April 2004
Issue #60

“Truth is, this is pure gold. Chromelodeon is an instrumental powerhouse (with some minimal vocals) that creates epic tracks from rock and new wave roots… This is truly an example of a book that should not be judged by its cover. I consider myself schooled.”

-Jason Kucsma
Clamor Magazine
Issue #26

Download: 

Things are going nuts in preparation for our 3rd US tour… we leave in 3 days! We’ve got new material, new visuals, and new car troubles. Thanks to everyone who came out to our local shows in the last month. In the meantime, check out another review we got in the Philadelphia Weekly here, along with a decent electronic compilation album we’re on for sale here.

The following files were saved with Visual Boy Advance 1.7.2 for Windows, running LSDJ version 2.2.7 and have not been tested with hardware, other emulators, or LSDJ versions. These will not work with versions of LSDJ newer than 2.4.4.

Visual Boy Advance 1.7.2 + LSDJ version 2.2.7 (demo) – ZIP – 832 KB 

Heart of Sawdust:

The Final Recordings:

Sprite Slowdown

Tour Journal:

Our tour launch show! Our new material/video has been unveiled with great response… started off shaky, but we’re getting used to it. Was great as usual to see our hometown friends/fans/family before we go.

See you all on the road….

Setlist:

  1. Polygon Sun [4:38]
  2. Aluminum [5:53]
  3. Triangular [10:01]
  4. One [5:12]
  5. Five [5:47]
  6. Six [3:46]
  7. The Parasprinter [3:03]

Audio:

Flyers:

Tour Journal:

Whoops… we barely made it out of Philadelphia…we had to get the van inspected (it passed!), and had to drive really far to pick up the trailer. After stocking up on supplies at Scam Ash we hit the road with the usual late start (thanks for the hookup Tom!).

The show tonight went very well for our first out of town date on this tour. Our new set has come together nicely already, and we’ve found new friends with Karmella’s Game. Also, we ended up completely sparked thanks to the bartender Liz dishing out way too many free “Long Island Spark Teas”. Seriously sparked. Check the pictures at this link for proof:
http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/

Photos:

Setlist:

  1. Polygon Sun [3:54]
  2. Aluminum [5:54]
  3. Triangular (aborted) [1:50]
  4. The Parasprinter [4:28]
  5. One [4:41]

Audio:

Tour Journal:

Our second show in the city with Temp Sound Solutions… the space was this strange half-warehouse run by old head punks. Had potential, but it was an off night and an overpacked bill of touring acts.

Had an optimistic last supper with Shawn Phase before leaving for TN that night, the real tour has fully begun…

Pictures!!!
http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2022%20baltimore/

Photos:

Setlist:

  1. Polygon Sun [3:24]
  2. Aluminum [5:56]
  3. Triangular [8:20]
  4. One [5:01]
  5. Five [5:43]
  6. Six [3:43]

Audio:

Tour Journal:

Monday night in a small town= dead zone. Once again we get the shaft from being on a bill entirely filled with touring acts… its a shame that even though most promoters realize this is a mistake, it still happens regardless. We kept up good spirits with relaxing all day in the hotel with none other than LITTLE CEASAR and his royal pizza. Fine pizza that we conned out of him.

Pictures!!

Photos:

Setlist:

  1. Polygon Sun [4:20]
  2. Aluminum [5:55]
  3. Triangular [8:02]
  4. One [4:56]
  5. Five [5:30]
  6. Six [4:09]
  7. The Parasprinter [2:42]

Audio:

YouTube:

Tour Journal:
Today’s show was also a video shoot… the venue is well known for its “on the fly” live video editing setup. We walked away with all around fair dvd copies of our performance, which we’re still deciding what we want to do with.

Otherwise, the show was dead…and the hotel adjacent to the venue refused to give us the “band discount” the venue promised they’d offer (we couldn’t crash with anyone, because there was hardly even anyone to ask). The 8 of us slept sitting up in the van, in a Wal-Mart parking lot. Southern hospitality once again fails us.

At least we figured out how to scam free food from Chick-Fil-A.

Tour Journal:

Things may be picking up, but ever so slightly. Tonights venue was a rad combination of bar, book & record store, and small performance space. Despite yet another weekday southern show bombing in our face, we walked with enough funds to possibly make it to Atlanta. Depends on gas prices down there. At least we got to see some friends in the area (Country Bears).

Our new material is getting much more tight by now, and The Junkdog (Joeseph Theodore Idell III) is fitting in great.

Pictures!!!
http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2025%20chapel%20hill%20NC/

Tour Journal:

This show turned out a lot better than we expected… of all the southern places we’ve hit, we really enjoyed Atlanta. Got to see some friends and fans and all that. Overall decent show.

Friends of ours JET BY DAY have this amazing side project called RUMP POSSE… we’ve been screaming its cheesiness for hundreds of miles now.

Kudos to Gavin, who runs Stick Figure Distro, which our new album is on… we stayed in his large warehouse and managed not to ruin anything.

Pictures!
http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2026%20atlanta%20GA/

Tour Journal:

Another surprize…. the area of Knoxville we hit was impressively alive and a decent part of town. Seems the majority of venues are in dead zones.

Show bombed for the most part, except for the few awesome fans we have (a national following… spread thinly out!). The south has been a little rough for us money wise, barely scraping by but with great receptions.

Had to leave right after the show to drive all night….

pictures!
http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2027%20knoxville%20TN/

Tour Journal:

Originally we would warn all to stay away from Arkansas at all costs, but in retrospect, we may return one day…. again the same story of the south for us on this tour… disappointing show, particularly for a saturday night. Although this time apparently it was due to the fact that Hank Williams Jr was playing across town. And we were in Arkansas. So this sort of makes sense.

“I though ya’ll fags wur gonna suck, but yah ROCKED!!!”
http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2028%20Little%20Rock%20AK/

 

Tour Journal:

A totally rad venue. We had no idea what to expect, but the show and venue turned out to provide ok enough in the end.

The show actually ended up being a “Dirty South Shizz Event”… all acts being members of The Shizz community. Much thanks to Slacker for setting up the show and playing. We enjoyed Texas for the time we were there.

Had to drive a thousand miles to get to Phoenix by tuesday! Long haul desert style.
http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2029%20ft%20worth%20TX/

Tour Journal:
Unfortunately, this show didnt turn out as well as it could have, with two area acts on the bill. Had to spend the night in the venue with no other compensation (medium sized warehouse). The two things we needed badly we had to wait even longer for…. a shower and a kitchen. At least we wont need gas money for tomorrow, since we have a two day stint in the city.

http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2031%20phoenix%20AZ/

Also, yesterday we were driving all day and came across the gem of the southwest… if you ever are driving on rt 10 in the New Mexico/Arizona area, stop by THE THING. You won’t regret it. We swear. We swear so much, we won’t tell you why. Unless you paypal us the dollar we paid for entry fee.

http://photobucket.com/albums/v617/chromelodeon/3rd%20US%20tour/may%2030th%20driving/