Brasstronaut
Hailing from Vancouver, British Columbia, Brasstronaut is an experimental, orchestral rock outfit with tendencies to dabble in electronica. Brasstronaut was formed in 2004 by the eclectic duo of electronic music producer Edo VanBreemen (lead vocals & keyboard) and the classically and jazz trained Bryan Davies on trumpet. After hiring John Walsh on upright/electric bass and Brennan Saul on drums for live performances and the EP recording, they were permanently added to the line-up. More recently, Sam Davidson (clarinet and EWI) and Tariq Hussain (electric and lap-steel guitar) joined the band.
From January to March 2009, the band took part in a 3-month winter residency at the Banff Centre to write and record their first album. After some summer touring with all six members, they decided to add some new songs and re-mix old ones to reflect their evolving sound.
Their debut LP, Mount Chimaera, was released on March 1, 2010 to critical acclaim from industry and audiences. The first release, ‘Slow Knots’, charted at #1 on CBC Radio 3’s R3-30. The album was honored with a nomination for the 2010 Polaris Prize (long list) and the song ‘Hearts Trompet’ won Socan’s 2010 Echo Songwriting Prize.
Brasstronaut toured North America in March/April 2009 from Vancouver to Washington D.C. Their following North American tour in March/April 2010 encompassed showcases at CMW (Canadian Music Week) in Toronto and SXSW in Austin, Texas. They regularly appear at Canadian festivals including POP Montreal 2008 & 2009, Sled Island 2009, the Vancouver International Jazz Festival 2010, Hillside 2010 and Rifflandia 2010. Internationally, Brasstronaut performed at the renowned Iceland Airwaves Festival in Reykjavik in October 2009, and they just completed a 10 day tour of the United Kingdom that included a showcase at Manchester's In the City festival in October 2010.