Coal Fired Bicycle

The supposed demise of a federally funded rail project in late 2010 dominated a lunchtime conversation between friends.

“We were bemoaning the imminent death of the 3C project and the shortsightedness behind that decision,” said Dan Sherwood, whose companion noted that “Ohioans are so backward, they’d be riding around on coal-fired bicycles if we let them.”

The comment stuck — but not necessarily in a political context.

“It functions more as a conversation starter,” Sherwood said, “and quasi-memorable name.”

Q How would you describe your music?

A Catchy indie rock with roots in old-school country, folk and jazz.

Q What topics do your lyrics address?

A The songs often deal with things like inequity, shortsightedness, dogma, intolerance and interpersonal dynamics between fictitious characters, simple pleasures and natural beauty.

It really runs the gamut because my source of songwriting inspiration tends to be a fast-moving target.

Q What other projects do you have on your plate?

A We’re going to release an EP of older recordings called Quick and Dirty in the near future — as a sort of sonic stopgap until we can finish writing and recording a proper full-length album.

We’re also putting a lot of effort into producing videos and playing as many festivals as we can.

Q Why should someone see your band in concert?

A Because the junk you’re probably going to watch on TV otherwise is killing your soul. - The Columbus Dispatch

The supposed demise of a federally funded rail project in late 2010 dominated a lunchtime conversation between friends.

“We were bemoaning the imminent death of the 3C project and the shortsightedness behind that decision,” said Dan Sherwood, whose companion noted that “Ohioans are so backward, they’d be riding around on coal-fired bicycles if we let them.”

The comment stuck — but not necessarily in a political context.

“It functions more as a conversation starter,” Sherwood said, “and quasi-memorable name.”

Q How would you describe your music?

A Catchy indie rock with roots in old-school country, folk and jazz.

Q What topics do your lyrics address?

A The songs often deal with things like inequity, shortsightedness, dogma, intolerance and interpersonal dynamics between fictitious characters, simple pleasures and natural beauty.

It really runs the gamut because my source of songwriting inspiration tends to be a fast-moving target.

Q What other projects do you have on your plate?

A We’re going to release an EP of older recordings called Quick and Dirty in the near future — as a sort of sonic stopgap until we can finish writing and recording a proper full-length album.

We’re also putting a lot of effort into producing videos and playing as many festivals as we can.

Q Why should someone see your band in concert?

A Because the junk you’re probably going to watch on TV otherwise is killing your soul. - The Columbus Dispatch

Saturday night, Athenians should head down to the Smiling Skull for some roots-y goodness with Coal Fired Bicycle, an Ohio band through and through whose name alone is a homage to the backwards stubbornness of the state.

Although Coal Fired Bicycle sounds like a simple Americana band at heart, the group is actually very dynamic, exploring the full expanse of the genre as well as incorporating styles of neighboring genres to mix things up. “[The band] is based in the broad indie aesthetic with roots in Americana, and then nearly anything can end up being sprinkled on top,” said guitarist and vocalist Dan Sherwood. “Its like the musical equivalent of the ridiculous sundaes you make when you're a kid at a sundae bar,” joked Sherwood.

This technique shows through with a bit more precision and accuracy than that kid dumping 10 gallons of chocolate syrup on his ice cream, however. The band manages to mix its sounds well, knowing how to incorporate each style to yield the most cohesive effect. There are times when the music feels down and dirty, capturing a bluegrass vibe, yet other times the band takes on a more modern edge, with Sherwood growling and demonstrating a vast range of emotion.

Saturday at The Skull marks the first time Coal Fired Bicycle will play the bar scene in Athens. “We are damn excited to be coming to The Smiling Skull. It’s such a cool little bar,” said Sherwood, who also expressed a profound love for Athens’ own O’Betty’s. “This band is powered by encased meat and meat substitute,” kidded Sherwood.

In keeping with The Skull’s bizarre, anything-can-happen motif, Sherwood looks forward to the unique experiences of performing live. “A huge part [of performing] is the interaction with an audience and all the unpredictability that goes with that. Having a man ask in broken English if he can take a photo with ‘my mime’ is simply not an interaction you get to have every day.”

Aside from the show, Coal Fired Bicycle will be playing a year-end show in Columbus before moving on to bigger horizons. “We [will be taking] a break from playing shows to record our yearly Christmas song cover video and a full-length album.” Beyond that, the gang seems adamant to return to Athens in the coming year; whether it’s for performing or just to eat all the great food is unknown. But if you feel like jamming with some great people and getting your fill of some good old indie roots, be sure to come down to The Skull this Saturday. You won’t be disappointed. - ACRN.com

In Chuck Klosterman’s book “Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs,” there’s this great essay that posits Billy Joel as a rare phenomenon in popular music: He is great, but not cool. Who else, Klosterman wonders, has so qualitatively mastered his chosen field yet so thoroughly embodies lameness?

I couldn’t help thinking of it Saturday when I wandered into my neighborhood watering hole (namely, Rumba Cafe) hoping to hear something new. I have to admit that Coal Fired Bicycle struck me as profoundly uncool — not Billy Joel uncool, but uncool enough that I was immediately biased against them to an entirely unfair degree.

And while they aren’t Billy Joel great either, this band of buddies restrained and reformed the part of me that expected to spend 350 words mocking them. They weren’t as rapturous as the bassist’s broad, giddy smile suggested (every note a masterstroke!), but their performance elicited a lot more excitement than I expected after judging them by their cover. I’m not ready to call them up to the majors, but they have the potential to wreck shop in the farm system.

Coal Fired Bicycle’s version of rootsy alt-rock hearkened back to a time when jangly underground music was known as “college rock,” particularly the Midwestern melting pot ramble popularized by Camper Van Beethoven. That group’s REM/Americana mashup allowed them to unfurl in a few different directions, and its descendants in this band continued that tradition.

Among the ingredients Saturday: shimmering guitar effects, jazzy organ grooves, rhythms ranging from bluesy rumble to syncopated punk rave-up. The violin did a lot to distinguish this from your average early-alt-era homage. The vocals cast them in the unfortunate light of post-grunge bar-band warblers like Seven Mary Three, though frontman Daniel Sherwood’s songwriting redeemed that aspect of the band to the point that I could envision Coal Fired Bicycle getting spins on the 1998 version of CD101. With more people in the room, pints to the sky, these could have been Pogues songs.

They were at their best when dredging up chaos, when everything was full blast and the melodies competed with the noise. Fortunately, that happened more often than not, and, yeah, it was kind of great. - Columbus Alive

Coal Fired Bicycle is a five-piece indie band. "We are indie, with catchiness and noise, folk and country-ishness." Subscribe for more local music: http://bit.ly/WGzTth

Thank you, Coal Fired Bicycle, for stopping by our studio to give such a memorable performance:

00:43 - Song 1: "Sinking ships"
03:52 - Interview 1
05:46 - Song 2: "Anywhere but Utah"
08:30 - Interview 2

Connect with Coal Fired Bicycle :
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/CoalFiredBicycle

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