The Youngest

The Youngest – “Thick as Thieves”

How’s this for an email subject line? ”In 9 months we quit our jobs, relocated to a ranch in central Tx, recorded an album and completed a 30+ stop tour”. Pretty good right? Well that was the mail we got from The Youngest, a new band from La Grange Texas who believed in themselves and just went for it. Six months of living, writing and recording together later, they had an album Feral Road to show for it, from which “Thick as Thieves” is taken. We chose this track to feature as it seems to encapsulate all that they are about, it’s a bit folky, a bit country, a bit rocky and all good. Also, we expect that after such a long and intense period together they must all be as “Thick as Thieves” so, you know, it felt appropriate. The lead vocals have a cracked, world weary feel to them which is offset with mellifluous female harmonies before both give way to a little crash, splash and grind of guitar and drums. It may have many traditional influences, but it still comes off as a quality example of modern Americana. Hats off to them for having the courage to follow their dream and just go for it, the result was well worth it. - Alphabet Bands

Today we head back to the roots, get in touch with some fine folk/Americana from The Youngest. I have nothing but mad respect for artist who can put down well written words with some melodies that just take you far away into the world that they are creating, it’s art and that’s what The Youngest are doing, super use of multiple lead singers, harmonies and catchy beats, listening to this album makes me feel like I’m hanging out with my friends back home and we are listening to the music we all grew up on but it’s a whole lot of years later and this isn’t 1979 anymore. The Youngest have loads of talent running all through the band but I suppose that’s the definition of a good band. The sum of its parts turning out cool tunes that ought to be getting some play on Radio stations that play quality music made from the heart. Sit back and give a listen to The Youngest and if your anywhere around the cities where they are about to tour, go see them…..
Hi our name is…. The Youngest
People say we sound like….. A mixture of Band of Horses, Wilco and Fleetwood Mac
We are…. Andrew Taetz John Quinn Brendan Linnane John Wood Keren Tayar
We are from….. Houston, Chicago and New York
Who are some that have an influence on you Jeff Tweedy, The Band, Bon Iver, Andrew Bird, Van Morrison.
How old were all of you when you started to play and who plays what in the band Andrew started playing piano in high school and then started playing guitar in college. He plays piano and guitar and shares vocal duties with Keren. Keren has played guitar, piano and sang since she was in grade school and is utility player in the band, playing a little bit of everything live. John started playing the drums in middle school and handles the drums in the band. John and Brendan started playing guitar in grade school and share The Youngest’s guitar and bass duties.
Can you tell us about the process you use, from writing the songs all the way through getting the songs out: Our songwriting process was definitely unique given our situation. All of us lived on a 99 acre ranch in central Texas with no jobs and very little around us. We all had different songwriting processes: some of us would sit outside with a guitar and riff until we had something tangible while others would start with a lyrical theme and slowly add music to it. Most of the time, a member would bring their little nugget of a song as a group and we all would work together to tweak and arrange each piece.
What are some of the challenges you face as musicians and how have you overcome those challenges: As a completely independent band, we face a variety of challenges. We book our own shows, do our own marketing, create our own merch etc. With so much going on, communication between the band members is crucial and without it any independent band would be short lived. Obviously, a huge challenge to a full time musician is revenue and financial viability. We’ve worked on budgeting and cutting costs wherever we can and have relied on our awesome fans to support us. We eat a lot of beans too.
If you could pick any time to travel back to for music, where would you go and what year would it …. I think the 60-70s would be a safe bet. Although we all have different musical influences, I think that this period would satiate all of our music tastes. You have Mo-Town, the golden era of singer- songwriters, excellent Jazz and course the Beatles. Doesn’t get much better than that.
Who are all of you currently listening to and who would you like to see in concert Wilco, Vulfpeck, Little Feat, Josh Ritter, Dr. Dog, Blake Mills to name a few. Brendan, Andrew and John were lucky enough to see Wilco in concert in a few weeks ago. It was incredible.
If you could open for any Band right now who would that be and why? Dr. Dog would be a great band to open for. We love their music, their attitude and respect the journey they’ve had in the independent music world to get where they currently are.
My youngest son is 13 and in a Band, what advice would you offer him… Master your instrument and find a great group of people to play with, preferably at a young age. All though musical success depends on a lot of things, I don’t think it depends on anything more than those two.
The one thing we want you to remember while your listening to us…. That we’ve only been a band for 9 months! We quit our jobs, relocated to a ranch in the middle of Texas, recorded an album and completed a entire Midwest tour in less than a year. We’re not even close to being done yet and can’t wait to improve as a band and as songwriters.
Our plans for 2015….. We would love to break into the festival scene and start to get compile material for our second record. Getting signed by a huge record label and buying mansions in the Mediterranean with our advances would be nice too, but we won’t hold our breath. listen to some cool tunes… - See more at: http://www.50thirdand3rd.com/sweet-sweet-melodies-meet-youngest/#sthash.FCxoNiwo.dpuf - 50thirdand3rd

"The group's members are from all around the country and bring together a number of musical influences and aesthetics - See more at: http://studybreaks.com/blog/entry/youngest-set-perform-green-mesquite#sthash.0XmrB8xz.dpuf.." - Study Breaks

“‘Feral Road’ is filled with catchy tunes that are perfect for a drive in your car with the windows down.” - The University News

"As a person who can and will enjoy live music 7 days a week if possible, schedule in pen, not pencil, a time to see The Youngest." - MOTORCITYBLOG

The youngest child in the family is usually babied, bratty and demands attention. With every member of The Youngest, except for singer Keren Tayer, being the youngest child of the family it would be easy if the Texas based band fit the mold; they don’t. They do however demand attention with their sweet tunes.

Their bouncy bubble of Americana, Rock, and Folk music makes for a nice listen and I’ve found myself listening to it over and over. From the melancholy track “Thick as Thieves” to the lighter “Our Town” The Youngest hits the mark every time. Thank god for this nice streak of weather we’re having because it’s perfect music to roll down the windows and cruise under the speed limit too.

Guitar player John Quinn hopes to continue the good vibes and then some at the band’s show at the Vaudeville Mews Friday night.

“We’re trying to bring that super electric energy of live shows back,” Quinn said.

While Quinn can appreciate when a band sounds just as good in person as they do on an album, he says some lack the showmanship that makes live shows even better and The Youngest plan on changing that.

“I think what we do is a perfect blend of musicianship and also putting on a fun, great show that people will want to dance to, I think it’s unique to our band,” he said.

For a band that formed in March 2014, The Youngest are off to an impressive start. They dropped their debut album “Feral Road” in October and acquired a new singer, Tayer, in February. “Karen has brought such an awesome energy,” Quinn commented. The Berklee Collge of Music alum not only sings, but plays several instruments too. They found her through drummer John Wood, a fellow Berklee alum.

Once they had a rehearsal or two with Keren the band promptly set off on a mini tour everywhere west of Texas. After Des Moines the band will even be hitting up Iowa City to record a Daytrotter session. Once their west coast tour comes to an end March 20 in Chicago they’ll take three weeks off then leave for an east coast mini tour. After the tour there’s a possibility they’ll playing a few festivals this summer and then it’s back to the studio to work on their sophomore album.

But for now the band is psyched to be playing Des Moines for the 2nd time. “The people are great consumers of music. Every time I’ve visited I’ve been continually impressed at how supportive and creative the people are,” Quinn. Then there’s the food. “Zombie Burger is incredible and my favorite spot is Manhattan Deli.” BB - Band Bombshell

“What do they say about the best laid plans?” After one listen to Chicago-based the The Youngest’s sophomore effort, the band’s wary lyric proves an apt bellwether for their generation’s growing anxiety. Thirteen unified tracks roar with sonic energy, colored by the crashing nerves of adulthood and cementing the group as one of the most alluring young bands from America’s heartland, who will release See It Through on October 28th.

Produced by Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse, Josh Ritter), the album offers the textured mix, pulling emotion to the forefront of each track. The album’s central vibe—its sweeping ornamentation and swirling keys—the band credits in part to their “secret weapon,” Wilco’s Pat Sansone, whose instrument production fills out each lush arrangement.

Frontman Andrew Taetz (vocals, rhythm guitar, keys) identifies the album’s inspiration as “half relationships and half society.” See It Through’s frenetic lyricism offers a reflection on both the current civil zeitgeist and modern youth’s reaction to it. Anchored by an enthralling sound scape courtesy of John Wood (vocals, drums), Brendan Linnane (pedal steel, guitar), and John Quinn (guitar), the tracks drift from upbeat Americana to wistful folk to guitar-driven blues without ever moving arms-distance from their pensive through line. Lead single “Built To Last” is available now and offered as an instant-grat track when you pre-order the album through iTunes.

Take a listen to this glimmering track, and start your day on the right foot…or, ear: - East of 8th