Representative Albums: "Precious," "Distorted Lullabies," "Mercy (Dancing for the Death of an Imaginary Enemy)"
Biography
Although technically consisting of five members, Ours is essentially the brainchild of self-described music obsessive Jimmy Gnecco. Born and raised in New Jersey, Gnecco toyed with music and various band configurations after graduating high school, but it wasn't until 1996, when he returned to America from a brief sabbatical, that he decided to pour his complete energy into music. It didn't take Gnecco long to attract industry attention; a major-label bidding war quickly ensued, with Gnecco turning down a few deals on the way to ultimately striking a partnership with DreamWorks. The relationship formed slowly -- Gnecco didn't even set foot in a studio for another year. The task of recording that elusive debut proved to be daunting; with Steve Lillywhite at the helm, it took Gnecco over three years to complete. The ensuing album, 2000's Distorted Lullabies, was met with asterisked critical acclaim; the prevailing sentiment seemed to suggest that Gnecco was almost too similar to the late Jeff Buckley (in voice, style, and even appearance) to properly appreciate in his own right. Two years later, Ours returned to the scene with the lushly beautiful Precious. ~ Mark Pytlik, All Music Guide
Since their creation in 1990 the line-up has evolved many times, but Gnecco has always felt that having a rotating group of musicians who could play off each other was important. In high school, Gnecco was in the band Lost Child and later, The Harmony Bandits (which eventually evolved into what is now OURS). Around 1992-1994, OURS released their first album titled Sour under their own label entitled "Beatnik Records" owned by Mike Marri. Afterward, the band dissolved and would not reform again for several years.
In 1997, Jimmy Gnecco started OURS again and quickly drew industry attention. Ours signed with DreamWorks Records and after 4 years, OURS released their first major label album Distorted Lullabies in 2001. Produced by Steve Lillywhite of U2 fame, the album received mixed reviews but led to successful tours with acts such as Ocean Colour Scene, Pete Yorn, and The Cult. The track "Sometimes" peaked at #31 on the US Billboard Modern Rock charts that year, while the music video saw moderate airtime on MTV.[3]
Precious followed quickly in 2002. Precious featured a more stripped-down sound and received much more positive reviews and a slot opening for The Wallflowers.
Jimmy Gnecco was a friend of Jeff Buckley and it is often mistakenly claimed that he worked as Jeff's guitar tech in 1995. Jimmy never worked as his tech. He later shared Jeff's management team.
