Apse is an American rock band signed to the UK label ATP Recordings [1] and Spanish label Acuarela Discos. The band has moved through many different musical styles since its inception, weaving together at various times shoegazer, Heavy Metal, gothic rock, post-punk, prog-rock, industrial, and post-rock influences; while at the same time working in tribal, experimental, ambient and ethereal atmospheres. The most common lyrical themes have to do with spirituality, relationships with others (human as well as paranormal or divine), paranoia, power, and control.

Biography

Apse was formed in 1999 in Newtown, Connecticut by high school friends Robert Toher (guitar), Ezer Lichtenstein (drums), and Ryan Todd (bass). Seeking to shy away from common trappings, they decided to forgo lyrics and pop structure altogether in exchange for heavier experimentation with purely instrumental ambient rock[2].

The band played shows in and around the Connecticut and New York area, and in 2001, recorded their first EP. Friend Aaron Piccirillo joined the band during that year to play keyboards, but switched to guitar before playing any gigs with the group. This lineup went on to record 2002's Cloud EP, in which more elaborate structures and atmospheres were noticeably incorporated into the band's sound, which had come to be described as "post-rock". 2003's Three Dialogues EP was the group's first to feature lead vocals from Toher, on the song "For An Errand or a Fleet."

Live performances during this period were intense and well-received, while being notable for their restraint -- the band almost always played seated and in low light, using only the glow of various old pieces of electronic equipment. Bassist Todd was often seated front and center, and was typically the only member to speak to the crowd sparingly between songs.

In the spring of 2003, friend Michael Gundlach joined the group to play guitar, and the band's new material incorporated more of Toher's lead vocals. The band's recorded output from this point on would be entirely self-produced.

By the end of that year, Apse was signed to Acuarela Discos, based in Madrid, Spain. Apse (a self-titled, 34 minute EP), was released internationally in the spring of 2005 after a nearly year-long writing and recording process. The EP was received positively by the press,[3] and the group went on two brief self-promoted tours in the Northeast to support it. It was at this time that Matthew Wick was added to the band as a second drummer.

The group underwent another lineup change in the late summer of 2005, when Todd and Wick left the band to pursue other interests. The lineup was reconfigured, with Piccirillo switching to bass, and new member Albert Gray recruited to play guitar. With this lineup, writing sessions and rehearsals began in the fall in preparation for their first full-length album.

That album, Spirit marked a radical shift in sound - a much darker record, it placed a heavier focus on the rhythm section and tribal atmospheres, and also had a stronger lyrical and vocal presence than any previous recording. It was released internationally on November 21, 2006, and the group toured Europe in support of it throughout October and November of that year, most notably appearing at the Tanned Tin festival in Castellon, Spain[4].

Gray and Piccirillo left the band in early 2007, and friends Austin Stawiarz (guitar) and John Mordecai (bass) were taken on as new members. This lineup toured Europe in the spring and fall of that year, and performed a well-received set at Belgium's Pukkelpop Festival that summer. However Lichtenstein and Stawiarz would play their final performance with Apse on Nov. 10, 2007, in Den Bosch, Netherlands.

Toher and Gundlach relocated to Cape Cod, MA, in late 2007, when the band started work on the follow-up to Spirit. But by January 2008, creative and personal differences led to Lichtenstein and Stawiarz parting ways with the band. With a six-week European tour planned for that spring, the group soon added drummer Brandon Collins and guitarist Jed Armour to complete the lineup, with Piccirillo rejoining soon after as a keyboardist/guitarist/percussionist. The band made its UK debut on that tour at the ATP v. Pitchfork Festival in Camber Sands, England.

A re-release of Spirit with alternate packaging and a bonus track (a version of the Eras track "Ark," which here features an alternate ending) was released on London-based ATP Recordings in July (UK) and August (US), 2008, and the band performed at the ATP New York Festival that September.

An album titled Eras was released in a limited run of 425 vinyl copies on Feb. 14, 2009, on Equation Records. Recorded during 2007, it was initially conceived as an EP in which Toher and Lichtenstein would each compose and record a side themselves, but soon expanded to a full-length album featuring primarily songs written by Toher and Lichtenstein, with an individual track each from Piccirillo and Gundlach. Songs from the album regularly appeared in the band's live sets starting in fall of 2007 and spring 2008, with Piccirillo's "Deathless" often used as intro music as the band took the stage. Eras, while similar to Spirit for its dark, experimental nature, ambient passages and heavy rhythms, marked the beginning of a stylistic shift, particularly for the occasional use of major-key chords and overall shorter song lengths. The album notably features performances from all of Apse's former and current members (as of 2007) except Todd and Wick. Various production delays prevented the album from being released until early 2009, and by the end of the year, all copies were sold out at Equation Records' online shop.

Numerous new songs for the follow-up to Spirit had been written, demoed, performed and discarded since 2007, and another round began in late summer of 2008. Recording commenced that fall and continued through the spring. The album, Climb Up, was finally released Oct. 20, 2009 in the UK and Nov. 10 in the U.S. on ATP Recordings. The album marked another departure for the band; the songs are noticeably less dark, shorter, and sometimes even adhere to common rock song structures, versus previous releases. Members have attributed the change in sound to the long time spent touring for Spirit, after which a stark contrast to the dark atmospheres was desired. A double A-side 7" single for "3.1/The Whip" was released ahead of Climb Up in September. By this point, Piccirillo was no longer a regular contributing member of the group, though he was present for the initial writing process and is thus credited with co-writing several songs on the album ("Rook," "The Age," "The Whip"). The band took on Daniel Sobo as an additional keyboardist/guitarist/clarinetist/vocalist for live performances in summer of 2009. Sobo, a longtime friend, produced the group's 2002 Cloud EP.

Discography

Albums

• Spirit (2006, 2008) Acuarela Discos / ATP Recordings
• Eras (2009) Equation Records
• Climb Up (2009)

Extended Plays

• Untitled EP (2001)
• Cloud EP (2002)
• Three Dialogues EP (2003)
• Apse EP (2005) Acuarela Discos

Singles

• Dornier (Three Dialogues EP, 2003)
• Marrer (Apse EP, 2004)
• 3.1 / The Whip (2009)

Related Projects

Besides their work in Apse, members Robert Toher and Aaron Piccirillo have projects outside of the band. Robert writes solo material under the moniker Goldfall, and Aaron writes under the moniker Somnolent. In September 2005, Somnolent released two tracks on a sampler CD entitled Nothing Concrete[5].

The sampler was released on 99xoutof10 records, a label created in 2005 by Roger O'Donnell[6], former keyboardist for The Cure.

Bassist John Mordecai writes, records and performs with his band Shark, as well as with New Haven, CT-based garage-pop band The Tyler Trudeau Attempt.

Press

pitchfork.com review of Spirit
Spin-Catch the Buzz-Apse
Hartford Advocate review of Apse live in Hamden, CT
NME review of Spirit
thelineofbestfit.com Spirit review
godonnybrook.com review of Spirit
Apse interviewed on upbeetmusic.com
Apse interviewed on post-rock.lv
Apse S/T reviewed on AmpCamp.com
Spirit reviewed on AmpCamp.com
Spirit reviewed by Kenny Herzog on CMJ.com
S/T reviewed on upbeetmusic.com
S/T review on splendidezine.com
S/T review on etherreal.com (in French)
Spirit reviewed on musicOMH.com
Spirit Reviewed on Daily Music Guide
Spirit Review on AllMusic.com
Spirit Review on AllMusic.com
Eras Review at Heathen Harvest
Climb Up Track-by-Track Guide at Clash Music
Climb Up Reviewed at The Donnybrook Writing Academy
Climb Up Reviewed on Strangeglue
3.1/The Whip Single Debut on Stereogum

External links

• Official Apse website
• Apse on Acuarela Discos
• Apse performing at the Tanned Tin festival
• Apse on allmusic.com
• Apse on MySpace
• Alms on MySpace
• Somnolent on MySpace