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Label:
The End Records |
all photos by Jim Newberry & Jeff Grote
Biography
Scott Lucas & the Married Men’s The Cruel Summer EP was inspired by their experience playing the title track as part of the A.V. Club’s Undercover Summer Break series last summer. The band was asked to choose a classic summer song to cover and decided to reinterpret the sweet pop of Bananarama’s “Cruel Summer” as melancholy metal. They played it live at Novelty Golf on Chicago’s northwest side. You can watch their original take on it here: http://www.avclub.com/articles/scott-lucas-the-married-men-cover-bananarama,83709/. The track was re-recorded this past winter at Million Yen Studios with producer Andy Gerber for the EP.
“When they asked us to choose a summer song - I was like, Bananarama. Absolutely. No question,” Lucas recounts. “Maybe it's because I love Elisabeth Shue. I don't know.”
“Cruel Summer” is on side A of the 7” record. The new song “Never Better,” a master class in dynamics that sees Lucas wearing his heart on his sleeve again, is the B-side. A cover of the story song “Coward of the County” (best known as a Kenny Rogers song) and stripped down, violin and acoustic guitar versions of two Married Men songs from their sophomore album Blood Half Moon round out the digital version of the EP: “Heavy Lidded (Acoustic) Love” and “There You Are (Again).” The entire five-song EP is available at all the usual download and streaming sites. Fans who purchase the limited-edition 7” vinyl record get a code to download all the songs, too.
“The covers are fun and all - but what we're really excited about is the new track,” Lucas says. “I wasn't prepared to like it this much.”
“The format is cool because it can be both an EP AND a seven inch single,” he explains. “So, the EP is like a supplement to Blood Half Moon, but the single can stand on it's own, apart from the record.”
Lucas is best known as the singer/guitarist for two-man, Chicago rock band Local H. For his solo records, he plays with a collective of musicians -- the Married Men -- which sometimes numbers as many as seven and includes violin, organ and accordion. Reviewers have compared the band to American Music Club, Wilco, the Waterboys and Nick Cave. Lucas calls the group’s evolving sound "country-ish, alt-rock for people who like metal." Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune listed their current album, Blood Half Moon, in the top 10 indie releases of 2012. The band toured with Deer Tick last summer and has played shows with James Iha, Kelly Hogan, Tristen, EmptyMansions, the Airborne Toxic Event and others in the past year.
The Cruel Summer EP track listing:
1. “Cruel Summer”
2. “Never Better”
3. “Heavy Lidded (Acoustic) Love”
4. “Coward of the County”
5. “There You Are (Again)”
“When they asked us to choose a summer song - I was like, Bananarama. Absolutely. No question,” Lucas recounts. “Maybe it's because I love Elisabeth Shue. I don't know.”
“Cruel Summer” is on side A of the 7” record. The new song “Never Better,” a master class in dynamics that sees Lucas wearing his heart on his sleeve again, is the B-side. A cover of the story song “Coward of the County” (best known as a Kenny Rogers song) and stripped down, violin and acoustic guitar versions of two Married Men songs from their sophomore album Blood Half Moon round out the digital version of the EP: “Heavy Lidded (Acoustic) Love” and “There You Are (Again).” The entire five-song EP is available at all the usual download and streaming sites. Fans who purchase the limited-edition 7” vinyl record get a code to download all the songs, too.
“The covers are fun and all - but what we're really excited about is the new track,” Lucas says. “I wasn't prepared to like it this much.”
“The format is cool because it can be both an EP AND a seven inch single,” he explains. “So, the EP is like a supplement to Blood Half Moon, but the single can stand on it's own, apart from the record.”
Lucas is best known as the singer/guitarist for two-man, Chicago rock band Local H. For his solo records, he plays with a collective of musicians -- the Married Men -- which sometimes numbers as many as seven and includes violin, organ and accordion. Reviewers have compared the band to American Music Club, Wilco, the Waterboys and Nick Cave. Lucas calls the group’s evolving sound "country-ish, alt-rock for people who like metal." Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune listed their current album, Blood Half Moon, in the top 10 indie releases of 2012. The band toured with Deer Tick last summer and has played shows with James Iha, Kelly Hogan, Tristen, EmptyMansions, the Airborne Toxic Event and others in the past year.
The Cruel Summer EP track listing:
1. “Cruel Summer”
2. “Never Better”
3. “Heavy Lidded (Acoustic) Love”
4. “Coward of the County”
5. “There You Are (Again)”
THE MARRIED MENScott Lucas - Vocals & Guitars
Jason Batchko - Organ & Piano Aaron Duggins - Accordion Rebecca Brooke M. - Violin Pete Muschong - Guitars & Vocals Randy Payne - Drums Tom Szidon - Bass & Vocals |
DISCOGRAPHYGeorge Lassos The Moon (G&P) February 2010
The Absolute Beginners EP (G&P) October 2010 Who Listens to Radio Anymore?: Live Sessions (G&P) October 2010 Blood Half Moon (The End) June 2012 The Cruel Summer EP (The End) June 2013 |