A new commercial for Fairfax, VA boutique clothing store The Factory features “You’re So Pretty” from our second album, Wake. Watch it here:
Filed under: commercial, fairfax, the factory, wake, youre so pretty
Thanks for checking out our new website. We’ve got some new things happening that we’re pretty excited about. First and foremost, we’ve been writing some new tunes. After spending some time focusing on other things, like families, houses, etc., it’s been great getting together again and writing new music. We also signed a distribution deal with Redeye so you can buy our stuff online. Look for a special new version of our Christmas song Silver Star to be available very soon. In addition to new music we will also be re-releasing our first CD dark when the snow falls with unreleased bonus tracks next year.
Thanks to all of you who have supported us through the years. We hope you find some things here you like. We want to say a special thanks to our friend Scott McCaughey. When he found out we were all getting facelifts and liposuction, he suggested that our website could use the same treatment and generously offered his time and considerable talent to produce what you see here.
See you soon,
Erik and emmet swimming
Filed under: website
There are two interesting things to note about “The Dance” (maybe 3 if you consider that our old friend Morgan Routt played harmonica on the original demo):
I took Spanish in College, but never would have passed it if it weren’t for the guys that worked in the kitchen at the Black Eyed Pea in Fairfax. Mis amigos de Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua taught me every bit of Spanish that I know, and most of that terrible Spanish is on display in “Johanna at the Door.” This might be the funniest of all emmet songs. My Spanish is terrible. It’s a broken tale of some poor bastard who’s uncaring girlfriend (Johanna) is at the door and going to kick his drunk ass, old school, for no good reason. I can’t help but laugh whenever we do this one.
Filed under: background, bathing in the new economy, johanna at the door, the dance
I first met Todd, Erik, and Tamer in October 1993… Temperature: 45 degrees… Location: George Mason University – Rugby Fields – It was a four-band bill of legendary proportions, featuring emmet swimming, Godhead (yes, the goth band signed by Marilyn Manson), Atticus Finch (Shane Hines’ band from his college days which included Luke Michel on bass) and my band called BIOHIO.
Something for everyone I guess, but all I remember was a sea of melancholy goth kids in full regalia sitting in the dirt with their backs to us talking amongst themselves during our entire set. We were freshly graduated from Virginia Tech and trying to establish some fans beyond Blacksburg, VA. We rolled in on a chilly morning to load in our gear and met “the fellas” hanging out under the goal post at the end of the field. I had just read a feature article on these guys in the local music rag, The Northern Virginia Rhythm the night before when we played a gig to no one at The Irish Brigade in Fredericksburg, VA. Both bands enjoyed each other’s sets and vowed to play together again at some point.
Soon after, BIOHIO made the move to the DC area and played some opening slots for ES at local haunts like Planet Nova. We all became fast friends. I started to join ES on stage to sing the “Broken Oar” backup vocal whenever we opened. BIOHIO ended up recording our second album with Marco Delmar, producer of both Dark When the Snow Falls and the independent version of Wake. From then on, all of the bands that I was involved with (The Drowners, Smartbomb) maintained close ties to ES, even putting out our independent releases on Screaming Goddess Records. I even did a couple of stints as a fill-in bass player to cover shows when needed. I remember one in particular at a frat in Charlottesville in a basement with then-fledgling band Carbon Leaf as the opener. Ah, the smell of stale beer, last night’s cigarette butts and a hint of vomit from the freshly-hosed floor drain…
Filed under: atticus finch, biohio, blacksburg, carbon leaf, charlottesville, fairfax, fredericksburg, george mason, godhead, luke michel, memories, planet nova, shane hines, smartbomb, the drowners, the irish brigade, the northern virginia rhythm
Look for a special holiday release of a newly recorded version of an emmet swimming classic to be available for download from all major music download portals (Amazon, iTunes, etc.). Stay tuned to our web site for the official release date and links to online stores when they are available!
Filed under: download, re-release, silver star
After releasing three CD’s on Epic Records and touring nationwide for the better part of 7 years, Fairfax, VA’s legendary emmet swimming took a long look at each other and at the van that they had largely called home for so many years and decided to take a break in the early 2000’s to focus on non-musical interests. The toils of the road and the all-consuming nature of the music industry had left long unfulfilled promises and prospects back at home, and the band largely dispersed to pursue families and careers. In 2007, with original drummer Tamer Eid rejoining the band and longtime friend and collaborator Scott Brotemarkle settled in on bass, the band began playing shows including a sold out performance at the 9:30 Club in Washington DC. The chemistry was undeniable. After a number of successful festival and club dates and some early Sunday morning writing sessions the band collectively decided to once again record and release new music as well as make rarities and previous albums on their own label, Screaming Goddess Records, available digitally for the first time.
“Few bands in America today can get under one’s skin as effectively as Fairfax, Virginia’s emmet swimming. Tied to neither trends nor movements, emmet swimming specialize in an effortless sort of transcendence creating music equally suited for providing one-to-one connection or filling stadiums.” — Creative Loafing
The first offering (via Redeye Distribution) will be a re-release of 2003’s Bathing in the New Economy E.P. with a brand new bonus track (“Door 2”). The collection will be released on July 21st and also includes “The Dance”, “Don’t Call Her” (with lead guitarist Erik Wenberg on lead vocals), “Johanna at the Door” (recorded by the Legendary Don Dixon) and “Heart Like an Eskimo”.
emmet swimming is recognizably one of the most successful national touring bands to come out of Virginia, having sold out venues from Boston to Atlanta to Chicago to the West Coast. The virtual collapse of the old record industry coupled with the rise of digital collaboration and online promotional channels have provided the band with a new vigor. They’ve found new ways to write and record material for a release this Fall. Other releases (also via Redeye) will include a re-release of the band’s first album “Dark When the Snow Falls” and their live album “Ear Plugs 50¢” which will both contain previously unreleased bonus tracks.
The Facts:
Filed under: distribution deal, new material, press release, redeye
Yes, that’s right. We’re climbing in the van for a “southern swing” with dates in North Carolina and Richmond! We’ll also be playing a show with our old friends Athenaeum along the way. Here are the dates with details to follow:
Filed under: alley katz, amos southend, athenaeum, berkeley cafe, colourside, north carolina, richmond, tour dates
