I Am the World Trade Center

I Am the World Trade Center is a synth-pop duo consisting of musician Daniel Geller (co-founder of Kindercore Records) and vocalist Amy Dykes. Geller creates almost all of the music using his laptop, occasionally using drum machines, keyboards, or other instruments.

History

Daniel Geller co-founded Kindercore Records with Ryan Lewis in 1996 in Athens, Georgia. Lewis, Geller, and Dykes soon moved to New York City, and Geller and Dykes began dating in 1997. When Geller asked Dykes to provide the vocals for an instrumental track he had written, they considered starting a band. With encouragement from Lewis, they played a live performance in Austin, Texas at the 2000 South by Southwest Festival.

Geller and Dykes had decided on the name in 1999 while living in New York City. The band's debut album, Out of the Loop, was released in 2001 on the Kindercore label and according to a 2002 interview with The Stanford Daily, the band's name represented the dynamic of the duo's relationship: "The two towers, equal and independent, together made up one entity and came to represent the relationship that Geller and Dykes forged professionally and personally." The Tight Connection, IATWTC's second album was also released on Kindercore in 2002. After Kindercore folded, their third album, The Cover Up, was released on Gammon Records. Dykes and Geller were no longer involved romantically by that time, but they continue to collaborate professionally.

Minor controversy

After the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, I Am the World Trade Center faced some media attention by critics^[who?] who assumed that the band was capitalizing on the tragedy.^{[citation needed]} (Coincidentally, the 11th track on their first album is called "September.") They toured briefly under the shortened name "I Am the World...", but soon resumed playing under their original name.

Health problems

In April 2004, Dykes was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. Dykes has undergone chemotherapy and has faced several complications, but her cancer went into remission in late 2004. I Am the World Trade Center began touring again in March 2005.

Discography

• Out of the Loop - (2001 · Kindercore Records)
• The Tight Connection (2002 · Kindercore Records)
• The Cover Up (2004 · Gammon Records)

References

• "I Am the World Trade Center". Retrieved May 10, 2005.
• Sands, Ryan (Nov. 15, 2002). "I Am the World Trade Center interview". The Stanford Daily. Retrieved May 10, 2005.

External links

• I Am the World Trade Center Official Website
• I Am the World Trade Center at Last.fm
• I Am the World Trade Center at MySpace
• I Am the World Trade Center at Musicbrainz
• Lazy-i Interview: October 2003
• Interview from Punk Planet 64 (2004)