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Rainer Maria

 
Artist: Rainer Maria
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Rainer Maria

Group Members:

William Kuehn, Kyle Fischer, Caithlin De Marrais

Similar Artists:

Modest Mouse, Jimmy Eat World, Sunny Day Real Estate, Braid, Tsunami, Sarah Dougher, Seam, Superchunk, Yo La Tengo, Pixies, Barbara Manning, The Spinanes, Matson Jones, Sleater-Kinney, Bettie Serveert

Followers:

The Forecast

Formal Connection With:

Ezra Pound, The Prosaics
  • Formed: 1995, Madison, WI
  • Disbanded: 2006
  • Genres: Rock
  • Representative Albums: "Anyone in Love With You (Already Knows)", "Look Now Look Again", "A Better Version of Me
  • Representative Songs: "Breakfast of Champions", "Soul Singer", "Artificial Light

Biography

Madison, WI, emo trio Rainer Maria emerged in 1995 from the ashes of another poetically inclined local combo, Ezra Pound, reuniting singer/guitarist Kyle Fischer and drummer William Kuehn. Enlisting singer/bassist Caithlin De Marrais, within six weeks Rainer Maria recorded their first demo cassette, quickly selling out all 350 copies. Following a handful of compilation appearances, the group resurfaced in 1996 with a self-titled EP on Polyvinyl; the single "New York: 1955" appeared in early 1997, heralding a shift toward the more subtle melodicism of the full-length Past Worn Searching. Absent throughout 1998, a year later Rainer Maria returned with both the full-length Look Now Look Again and the EP Atlantic. A Better Version of Me arrived in early 2001.

Within the next two years, the band would tally nearly 80,000 records sold worldwide. Rainer Maria's sweet indie rock was contagious and their fan base never lacked enthusiasm. Long Knives Drawn, which appeared in January 2003, marked Rainer Maria's slickest effort yet and was a sure challenge to their rock & roll peers. The band's first ever CD/DVD combo, Anyone in Love with You (Already Knows), was released in March 2004. The double-disc set included various live cuts from Rainer Maria's touring days and live footage from a show in Chapel Hill, NC, from their 2003 tour. In 2006, the band moved to Grunion Records and released Catastrophe Keeps Us Together. Unfortunately, that album's title didn't hold true, and after final shows that December, Rainer Maria called it quits. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
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Wikipedia: Rainer Maria
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
For the poet, see Rainer Maria Rilke.
 This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (November 2009)
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Rainer Maria

Rainer Maria at their farewell show, December 16, 2006, at the Bowery Ballroom
Background information
Origin Madison, Wisconsin
United States
Genres Indie rock, emo
Years active 1995 – 2006
Labels Polyvinyl, Arena Rock Recording Co., Grunion Records, Artificial Light
Former members
Caithlin De Marrais
Kyle Fischer
William Kuehn

Rainer Maria was an indie rock/emo band originally from Madison, Wisconsin, later residing in Brooklyn, New York. Named after the German-language poet Rainer Maria Rilke, they formed in the late summer of 1995 and released five full length albums, a live DVD, numerous live recordings, and EPs. In its earlier days, the band had a dual male and female vocal line-up; later, Caithlin De Marrais took over most singing. The gender ambiguity of the name Rainer Maria paralleled this and was one of the reasons it was selected as the band's name.[citation needed]

The band's many tours and intimate live shows at venues such as Brooklyn's North Six (which lead singer Caithlin De Marrais referred to as "home" during her final show because it also served as the band's rehearsal space), Washington, D.C.'s The Black Cat, the Bowery Ballroom in NYC, and Chapel Hill's Cat's Cradle helped to grow its fan base and fuel album sales.

On November 6, 2006, the band announced, through Pitchfork Media, that the December 16th show at New York City's Bowery Ballroom would be their last. It was accompanied by this statement:

"We are grateful to our new listeners and especially our longtime fans for their endless support and attention. We feel incredibly fortunate to have come up during a unique time in rock music, in a community that grew with us from the Midwest to Brooklyn and beyond. Making records has always been a revelation, and walking onto stage together we found a vision we could share.
"For us, this transition can be nothing short of heartbreaking. But for reasons both musical and personal, the three of us have chosen this time to move on."

The band played their last show on December 17 2006, at North Six in Brooklyn. They opened with "Artificial Light" and closed with a lengthy version of "Rise." Referring to the intensity of the show and the enthusiasm of the crowd, guitarist Kyle Fischer at one point remarked jokingly in-between songs "we should break up every night."

Caithlin and Kyle were at one point romantically involved, however the two were no longer together when the band broke up.

Contents

Band members

Caithlin De Marrais
  • Caithlin De Marrais — bass, vocals
  • Kyle Fischer — guitar, vocals, synths
  • William Kuehn — drums, percussion

Discography

Albums

Other releases

  • Demo
  1. The Argument From Simplicity
  2. E-mail to Kimley
  3. Song Without Words
  4. Battery Park
  5. Todd Haynes
  6. I Love You Too

Music videos

  • "Catastrophe" (2006, directed by David Ahuja & Claire Carré)
  • "Ears Ring" (2003, directed by David Ahuja)

References

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

Copyrights:

Artist. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
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