Eric and the Adams

Greatest Hits
With a year full of awards and surprises, Eric and the Adams looks to score higher with debut disc

BY G.K. HIZER

When local rock act Eric and the Adams releases its debut CD this weekend, in all likelihood, the only ones to be surprised will be the band members themselves. For local fans (and there are many) a CD release seems only natural. For Eric Himan, Angel Adams and Jimmy Adams, however, it's the culmination of a long year of hard work -- one in which finding the time and finances to release a CD seemed nearly unbelievable.

For Himan, this is nothing new. After all, he's been a full-time musician for roughly a decade now, releasing eight solo discs and carrying a heavy touring schedule as a solo artist through 2008. Nearly two years ago, however, as Himan began to settle into Tulsa, the direction of his music and career started to subtly change.

While performing in Washington D.C. in 2007, Himan met Tulsa musician Kelly Morrison, who was visiting a friend. Once they became acquainted, and Morrison realized Himan was from Tulsa as well, she invited him to look her up when she was playing here in town. When he finally did, Himan sat in with her for a song during an open mic night at River's Edge, where he met brother-sister rhythm section Jimmy and Angel Adams, who were backing Morrison at the time.

Later that year, as Himan looked to book more local gigs in Tulsa, he ran into a little bit of a roadblock when the manager at The Continental shared that he liked Himan's music, but he needed a band to get booked. As a result, Himan called the Adams siblings to back him up and Eric and the Adams was conceived.

Sometime within the past year, however, Himan's songs started to take on a different character: perhaps a bit more edgy and poppy with the band performing together. Part of it was due to Eric's transition to playing more electric guitar, and part of it was due to the band developing a true chemistry.

"It just sounded different," Himan said. "...Still good, just different."

That's when Eric and the Adams truly became a band. It also made the group's moniker seem all the more appropriate. Himan said, and both Adams agreed, "It tied us together as a band, but still allowed us to keep our own identities."

Two years later, what started off as a temporary and perhaps an arrangement of convenience has turned into something that now appears to be far more permanent and one of Tulsa's hottest rising young acts. If you think not, just take a peek at the past year: 6 ABoT Music award nominations (Himan won two: Best Male Vocalist and Best New Artist), a highly lauded DFest showcase, repeat appearances on local television program Up Late with Ben Sumner and more than 100 shows played in 2009 alone.

Yes, it's been a busy year, but things only promise to get busier as they prepare the release of a five-song disc (the first as a group), a coinciding music video shot by Kelly Kerr and Jeremy Charles and a new promotional agreement with Tinderbox Music.

Although the band set a list of goals at the beginning of the year, including trying to release a CD, all three members agreed that they weren't sure how they would be able to pull it all off.

Nevertheless, as December arrives, the band not only has a debut CD in hand, it also has a new HD video (for the single "Every Move") creating a stir both locally and on the Internet.

It's taken a lot of dedication and more hard work behind the scenes than most fans will ever realize for them to get here, but that work is already reaping rewards. A new agreement with Tinderbox Music has all the pieces in place to market the band and its new music to more than 300 college radio stations.

Not to mention, Himan recently scored not one or two, but eight licensing contracts that should land songs from Resonate--his last solo disc--on cable networks E!, Oxygen, MTV and VH1.
As a listener however, the band's debut disc has come as a pleasant surprise. While Himan has always been a strong musician, his solo work consistently fell squarely in the pop and singer/songwriter genres. By building off chemistry with Jimmy and Angel Adams and gaining confidence in his guitar skills, Eric and the Adams has become a completely different creature.

Whereas songs form Resonate would have been more suitable for pop or Adult Contemporary radio, the five songs on the self-titled disc cross genre boundaries and could reasonably land the band on multiple formats. It's a testament to both the bands flexibility and its songwriting prowess. Plus, none of the disc's five songs truly fall flat, and the group crosses between pop, rock and alt-rock and even throws in a touch of blues and soul without tripping over itself.

Lead track "Sugar You Ain't So Sweet" and closing track "Keeper of the Secret" show off the band's rock chops, albeit each in a different manner. Whereas "Sugar..." channels attitude and a touch of Lenny Kravitz and should land spins on KMOD, "Keeper" opens with a bluesy riff and segues into a more soulful delivery.

"Frozen in the Sun" is the obvious runaway pop single of the bunch, while "Every Move" is probably the most logical choice as a lead single and video as it could simultaneously go to pop and alt-rock radio.

In fact, it's rather ironic that the most acoustic and singer/songwriter oriented song of the bunch was actually written by drummer Angel Adams. Its inclusion not only keeps the band's vibe but builds upon Himan's grassroots songwriter background and should draw additional attention at college radio.

Overall, the disc is a great summation of the band.

"It's exciting because it feels like it's a picture of this year in retrospect," Himan said. "We've worked so hard to get this far and put the CD together by the end of the year.

"It's like our first disc is a retrospective, greatest hits of our time together so far."

Even on a Sunday night, the band was hard at work planning out its next move, then taking time to discuss the record, but never lost its sense of humor or camaraderie. They even laughed when discussing how the band worked and acknowledged that each one plays a distinct and different role. Jimmy joked, "Eric's the engine (he does the booking and press), Angel's the transmission (she handles the marketing and graphic design), and I'm the tires -- I put the flyers on all the f***ing telephone poles!"

As 2010 hits, Eric and the Adams will undoubtedly be past putting flyers on telephone poles. With a new disc in hand, a push to college radio and an emphasis on building the band's regional touring, this next year should be even bigger than 2009. For now, however, it's time to enjoy the release of a new disc.

Eric and the Adams CD release party will be held Saturday night, Dec. 5 at Electric Circus (formerly Exit 6C). Tickets are $12 in advance and will include a free copy of the CD at the door. Dante and the Hawks will open the show with an acoustic set at 9pm.

Eric and the Adams will also be taking over Dwelling Spaces earlier that afternoon from noon-2pm with a listening party for the new disc, meeting fans and selling tickets, CDs and the band's new shirts. Stop in and check them out, and see why this year's Best New Artist will be a legitimate threat for Artist of the Year in 2010.
- Urban Tulsa Weekly

BY G.K. HIZER

Home Sweet Home. While Himan still doesn't play too frequently in town, his schedule has allowed him to settle in and become a part of the local community. Just as his songwriting has developed, so have his ties and his Tulsa pride.

When singer-songwriter Eric Himan relocated to Tulsa from Pittsburg in April of 2007, he was a welcomed addition to the local music scene. Fulfilling a bit of wanderlust that he inherited from his childhood (Himan's father was in the military, resulting in his growing up in the Carolinas, Hawaii and Brooklyn), Himan settled into a centralized area that allowed him to travel more easily between coasts.

And although he didn't get plugged into the local community immediately, still touring constantly behind his catalogue of songs, he quickly found an affinity with Tulsa. In fact, Himan is quick to discuss his pride in calling himself a Tulsan now (he even recently purchased a home here, securing his roots in our local soil) and how just the mention of Tulsa brings a strong and enthusiastic response when traveling coast to coast.

And while Himan still doesn't play too frequently in town, his schedule has allowed him to settle in and become a part of the local community. Just as his songwriting has developed, so have his ties and his Tulsa pride.

He has begun to find his voice and released his most consistent album to date, Resonate. ("I used to feel like and island, trying to do everything myself, but now I realize it's really about networking and making connections," he told me recently.)

A self-confessed "genre-jumper", Himan has never been afraid to take from whatever he heard and incorporate it into his songwriting, but the process has taken a distinct turn during the past year and a half. According to Himan, his focus has changed, allowing him to take on his own voice.

"I listen to all styles of music, in phases, as I think all of us do," he shared, explaining his development. "I'd listen to different genres and kind of take from each of them, thinking 'I wonder what I'd sound like writing in this style, or like this person...' As a result, my sound would bounce around, even within albums.

"It took time to learn that whole process, and I think everyone goes through it, but now I'm not thinking that way," he continued, admitting that he learned directly from the artists he listened to as a child and teen, having no formal musical training.

"Now, when I travel, I constantly have people come up to me and ask me how can I not sound like someone else," said Himan. "It's because I tried for so long to imitate other people, until I finally let go and decided I'll be me and listen to my voice and see what it does.

"This time (with Resonate), it's more about the lyrics than the styles.

"For my last album, Everywhere at Once, I went in and recorded 15 songs and brought in some friends and recorded it in about three weeks," Himan explained. "Later, when people said it sounded rushed, it was like 'You're right -- it was...' There was too much going on."

When going in to record Resonate, then, Himan admittedly set a timeline to work within, but took the time to let the album breathe and come together organically.

"I decided to sit with it and let it happen -- don't force or push anything," he explained. "Some of the songs I didn't want to put out, but my friends pushed me to. This is the first time I've actually put my thoughts and opinions on a record, which makes it very vulnerable."

The result is a much more relaxed, personal and well-rounded disc than anything Himan has released previously.

Whether looking back at lost relationships in "Wish You Would," being true to yourself in "Little Boy Blue" or addressing the dynamics of relationships in "He's Using You" or "We Are The Same," the disc is full of songs that connect immediately on a personal level.

That's exactly what Himan is trying to do on multiple levels -- not just with the music, but also in his interaction with his audience. ("On an Independent level, I don't think you can have 'fans' and draw that line," he shared. "It's all about making a personal connection and networking.")

Even while being based in Tulsa, Himan's career has continued to blossom, with him touring year round on the club and coffeehouse circuit.

Expanding His Sound

Just recently, Himan was requested to play the main stage at the North Halsted Market Days Festival in Chicago, Illinois -- a gig he is usually jockeying to get attention for. Once he finally go the call, he decided to take full advantage of it and instead of using the studio band that he usually calls on for bigger shows back east, he called on Jimmy and Angel Adams, whom he previously met through songwriter Kelly Morrison.

"I wanted to make it an actual show, not just recreating the CD, like I would with a studio band," Himan shared, explaining the shift in his performance. "So we put a lot of practice in, changing some things and making it an actual show. The band just brought so much to it, so much more energy, it seemed a shame to just do the Chicago show and be done, so I made some calls to book a Tulsa gig."

Although economics may not allow Himan to tour with a full band year round, this weekend Tulsa gets a chance to sample his work both ways. Himan plays at Capellas this Friday evening, August 29, with Jimmy and Angel, presenting a variety of his songs, both in full band and acoustic format. The group will also throw in a few covers, rearranged to fit and reveal Himan's true colors.

Cover is only $5 and Brian's White Bandana, a five-piece blues-rock band, opens the evening at 9pm, followed by Eric and The Adams. If you haven't seen Himan yet, now's the time to get acquainted with our Tulsa transplant.

- Urban Tulsa Weekly

The seeds of Eric Himan’s latest career path were planted in Washington two years ago.

Himan, a gay singer/songwriter who spent most of his early years in Florida and Hawaii, was playing the U Street Tavern when a fan tapped him on the shoulder and introduced him to Kelly Morrison who, like Himan, lives in Tulsa, Okla., but was visiting the District.

Himan had moved to Tulsa in early 2007 to be with his partner, Ryan, a bartender he’d met there. Through Morrison, Himan met Jimmy and Angel Adams, a brother/sister rock duo who play bass and drums respectively and with whom Himan forged a musical partnership that has morphed into Eric and the Adams, a three-member rock combo he says will be — and to some degree already is — his latest musical incarnation.

“We all have the same goals,” Himan, 30, says during a lengthy phone chat Wednesday while driving to Philly for a gig. “We want to rock and put a voice out there from a place people wouldn’t expect.”

The two-thirds gay group — only Jimmy is straight — is writing songs together, playing gigs in Tulsa and beyond and plans to record in Nashville in July. In the meantime, Himan, who’s garnered substantial attention as a solo performer who plays acoustic guitar, is continuing his one-man touring schedule. He plays D.C. gay bar Nellie’s tonight at 10 p.m. and plans a 90-minute set.

The heavily tattooed Himan was initially seeking musical cohorts for a specific gig, but the sonic camaraderie with the Adams’ was strong enough that it morphed into more than a one-off. It also played into Himan’s yearning to master electric guitar.

“I’d been doing this acoustic thing for six or seven years and fairly successfully for an out, independent musician,” Himan says. “So it’s like I’m starting over, in a way. And that’s the cool part. I think musicians naturally want to push themselves.”

Himan wanted to be a singer/songwriter since he was in high school but money had been set aside for him to go to college after his mother’s death and he put the musical dreams temporarily aside, graduating early this decade from Penn State with a psychology degree after dabbling in film, journalism and visual arts.

“Somehow I still managed to finish in four years,” he says.

Eight albums (depending how you count) and seven years later, Himan has achieved a level of fame many indie musicians dream of. Event promoters now come to him for appearance and concert requests. He quit having to pound the pavement quite as hard after several positive profiles in the national gay press. He’s proud of the fact that he’s done it without a record label, booking agent, manager or publicist. “Resonate,” his 2008 release, is his latest album, which he’ll be promoting tonight at Nellie’s. Is there some nobility in taking that route? Himan says it just kind of worked out that way.

“People at Penn State were saying to me at the beginning, ‘Why don’t you record something to send out to the major labels?’ That seemed like a huge waste of time because most record labels don’t take unsolicited music. I also thought it seemed kind of odd to let them decide if this was music that people would like. Why not just present it to the people myself and let them decide?”

Himan says fellow musicians he’s known who have gone the major label route have found themselves constricted.

“I like having the control,” he says.

But it didn’t come easily. Though he’s doing music full time now, he admits to “a million side jobs — everything from waiting tables to selling bagel sandwiches, selling shirts, you name it.”

Going the independent route also factored into his decision early on to be openly gay. He has to stop and think about whether it was a conscious decision or not.

“I kind of just decided to myself that I wasn’t gonna be phony,” Himan says. “I wasn’t gonna write all these songs then stick girl in there. Plus all of my early influences were lesbians — Ani DiFranco, Melissa Etheridge, the Indigo Girls. I just kind of thought I was one of them or wanted to be one of them. It wasn’t until later that people were telling me I wasn’t one of them at all. That what I was doing was different because, other than Rufus [Wainwright], there really weren’t any other openly gay men doing this and my music is completely different from his.”

Himan imagines his acoustic solo stuff will always be ...

continued...

part of his act. He intersperses eclectic cover choices that could range from Queen to Lenny Kravitz to Dolly Parton in his sets.

Inspiration to write comes in spurts. The recent suicides of 11-year-olds Carl Walker-Hoover and Jaheem Herrera, who’d been bullied with anti-gay taunts, was a source of contemplation and songwriting.

Himan pauses for a second while driving, trying to recall the chorus he just wrote about them.
“I can’t think of it right now but I had this image of someone whispering in their ears. I just thought, ‘these kids were 11. We don’t know anything when we’re 11. What if somebody could have whispered in their ear and said, ‘It won’t always be like this. You’ll look back on this and it will be nothing more than a small blip in your life.’ Even the kids who are bullying them might eventually realize they were wrong once they grow up.”

Himan has become a strong advocate for gay-straight alliances in schools. A recent gig playing for a group of GSAs in Dallas made him realize how important they are.

“These were the most confident gay kids I’d ever seen,” Himan says. “They were just flourishing like crazy. They were like 14, 15, 16 — I was so jealous of what they had. It was really cool to realize that these opportunities exist.”
By: Joey DiGuglielmo

- The Washington Blade

Eric Himan has accomplished what so many musicians can only dream of without the help of record labels, booking agents, publicists or management.


As a solo guitarist, he has single-handedly built an impressive grassroots audience that spans throughout the country. Himan has established his own record label, Thumbcrown Records, where he has recorded six studio albums.


He’s been featured in OUT Magazine, The Advocate, Genre, Instinct and Curve magazines, and Fender Guitars has not only featured him in their catalogue, but has endorsed him as well.


All of this under Himan’s own management, where writing and playing independently for the past six years has helped hone a musical style he describes as a mix of folk, rock and blues.


Years after venturing out beyond the college circuit playing happy hours for his fraternity and clubs around his native Penn State, Himan’s sound is gaining more and more recognition.


He was recently up for a New Now Next Award on MTV’s LOGO channel, which recognizes the best of LGBT pop culture from the web, film, television and music.


“It was really exciting to attend the show at MTV in New York City,” he says. “I was nominated for best music artist and ended up seeing the award go to one of my favorite Australian singers, Missy Higgins, but it was still great to be nominated.”


These days, fresh from a solo tour in the Caribbean, Himan is focusing on playing more in Tulsa and the Midwest with his band, Eric and the Adams.


“I’d really like to reach a wider audience with my music through playing with the band,” he says. “I’ve always wanted the big rock band live sound, and I believe that as a trio, we are on our way to fulfilling that dream.” – Meika Yates Hines











- OK Magazine

This week's best bets • March 20, 2009


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Mar 19, 2009 - 1:07:25 PM Email this article
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Concert


Eric Himan and the Adams storm into Sue Ellen’s Friday
Ever since 2002’s “Dark Horse,” Eric Himan’s breakout CD, we’ve had a thing for the gay Tulsa-based rocker, who has drawn comparisons to everyone from Maroon 5 to Ani DiFranco. Now with his new band, The Adams, the super-sexy, tattooed hunk Himan returns to some familiar haunts of the Southwest for the Dallas debut of the threesome. The soulful tenor will take to the stage at Sue Ellen’s on Friday for a concert featuring older hits and newer songs, including a cover of Sugarland’s “Stay.”

Sue Ellen’s, 3014 Throckmorton St. March 20. 10 p.m.
- The Dallas Voice

UP AND ADAMS
Eric and the Adams performs at Sue Ellen’s,
3014 Throckmorton St. Jan. 15. 10 p.m.
Caven.com.
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If you think you have an idea about the kind of music Eric Himan makes, that idea may be about to change.

Himan - the sexy, tattooed Oklahoman - has spent the better part of a decade staking his claim to gay indie musician cred. Dark Horse, his soulful 2005 CD, established him as a guitar god equally at home with rockabilly and radio-friendly pop ballads. But while his acoustic sound identified him, it did not define him - at least, not to himself.

"I have been touring non-stop since 2002 with solo acoustic music," Himan says from his home in Tulsa. "But when I was growing up, I liked bands like the Black Crowes and Pearl Jam. When I heard the music I was listening to, I wanted to play that."

Yes, deep down, Himan has always been a closet metalhead who dreamed of sounding like Aerosmith: Loud.

Himan’s dad nurtured his music, buying him acoustic and electric guitars by the time he was a teenager, but making sure that he also studied the fundamentals (Himan can still play "Claire de Lune" if you press him). But when he went to college, it was the acoustic that he toted along.

"I liked a lot of the acoustic artists of the time, like Dave Matthews and Ani DiFranco. A guy holding an acoustic guitar? People responded to that. And it was easy to play acoustic by myself. If the power goes out, I can still play; with an electric, if the power goes out, no gig!"

Himan might have continued along that path if he hadn’t met Angel and Jimmy Adams. He was doing a show in Washington, D.C., when a friend mentioned a brother-and-sister team from Tulsa and said they should work together. Months later, he met Jimmy and Angel at an open mike night and asked if they would back him up for a show. It worked, and he tapped them for session work on his 2008 CD Resonate. They all recognized the chemistry when they came together.

"As brother and sister, they have been playing together for a while and they are very upbeat. Jimmy is the crazy one and Angel is the gracious one and I’m the business one. I was drawn to their charisma, which made me a little looser in my business mode and lightened up the whole thing. When you’re having a good time on stage, it shows and people are drawn to that," he says.

And then he switched to an electric guitar. And that opened an entire new sound.
"We took 2009 to develop the band and take my music to the next level," Himan explains. "We thought it would be great if, by the end of the year, we could go off the momentum of that work."

They just made it. In December, the eponymous five-song CD Eric and the Adams dropped, and while it may not rival Steven Tyler and company for stadium rock, it’s a surprising and bold ratcheting up of Himan’s usually leisurely tenor. Angel’s rollicking drumwork and Jimmy’s bass ground the songs, but also speed them up.

It’s evolutionary more than revolutionary, familiar yet different. Which is what Himan wanted.

"You always get the ’I liked you better when’ comments - some people just don’t like change. But it’s not like I’m instantly trying to be Nickelback. A good song is always a good song no matter what you do with it," he says.

So far, the response has been positive. Eric and the Adams toured extensively in 2009, working on their new material and their sound.

"We’ve played all over the country - a lot of Pride events - and even though it wasn’t exactly the same sound [I used to play], it has been well-received."

Himan has recently had some of his songs licensed for use on TV shows like Keeping Up with the Kardashians, The Hills and The Real World, and the new album has been heavily marketed toward college radio. But the gay identity does follow them - for good and bad.

"We do play a lot of gay events, which makes Jimmy stand out because he’s the only straight one. People always come up to him and say, ’It’s great of you to be here.’ He’s like, ’I’m playing a gig. I didn’t really donate to a charity.’"

Himan finds another taboo far more interesting: Having a female drummer, which still raises eyebrows sometimes. ("People are still shocked that she kicks it," he says.)

But ultimately, it’s all part of being who he wants to be musically.

"For me, being a gay artist who happens to play music, it’s funny to me how surprised people are [when they hear my music]. I still had to learn to play guitar and how to sing - it’s not like being gay is a handicap. But we don’t fit the stereotype of a band. We’re not dark or trying to create an image. We just play the music we like and let it be fun." - by Arnold Wanye Jones The Dallas Voice Friday Jan 15, 2010