Simeon Soul Charger

/Simeon Soul Charger

Band

Simeon Soul Charger

Details

Genre
Rock
Year Formed
2008
Town/City
Akron, Ohio
Country
USA

About

Simeon Soul Charger is an American Psychedelic Rock

band. Their music has been described as a cinematic

pastiche of folk, blues, progressive, 70's psychedelic

and stoner rock.

 

The band's original lineup formed in Akron, Ohio in

the summer of 2008 consisting of vocalist/guitarists

Aaron Brooks, drummer Joe Kidd, bassist Jim Garibaldi,

and auxillery cellist Kevin Bjerre. Caleb Dixon joined

the band on lead guitar for their eponymous EP

"Simeon Soul Charger" in 2009 recorded at

Lighting Rock Records by Clint Covey. The extended

play earned the band a place in Cleveland

Scene magazine's 12 bands to watch in 2010.

 

"On their 2009 self-titled debut EP, Simeon Soul

Charger capture their distinctive cosmic gospel.

For six songs, the Akron five-piece orchestrates arena

rock you might associate with Muse or Spiritualized,

backed by grandiose guitar sweeps, electronics,

pizzicato strings and singer-songwriter Aaron Brook's

operatic screams, which go from Matthew Bellamy

to Jeff Buckley." -Keith Gribbins (Scene Magazine)

The release was followed by a month-long

midwest/east coast tour of the United States where

the band met 2 German tourist at the reputable

Arlene's Grocery in Manhatten's lower east side.

Bernd Buchberger and his cousin Helga Baumgartner

were so enthralled with the band, they asked them to come to Germany for a tour the following year. 

In the meantime, the band parted ways with Caleb Dixon and welcomed lead guitarist Rick Phillips whom Brooks had met at a festival the previous year. With the current lineup, Simeon Soul Charger returned to LRR and recorded their sophomore EP "All Rather Dead."

These five new tunes form a pentagon of dark, atmospheric musical alchemy. Join the "Coffin Party" or try "A Dance for the Moon God," and you'll find the quintet mixing glam, electronica and art-punk into a jam-band brew that will knock your ass into a trance. -Scene Magazine (U.S.)

In an era of watered down rock and roll, Simeon Soul Charger manages to stand out as a truly great rock band. It's good to still be able to listen to new bands that aren't afraid to melt the audience's face off. - Buzzbin Magazine (U.S.)

Immediately following the release of "All Rather Dead" Simeon Soul Charger flew to Germany for a two week tour in April, 2010. Upon returning to the U.S., the band parted ways with Jim Garibaldi and welcomed Spider Monkey, brother of Rick Phillips on bass. Shortly after, German director Mike Manhart, flew to America to shoot a music video for "Coffin Party."

In the fall and winter of 2010 the band returned once again to LRR to record their debut full length album "Meet Me in the Afterlife," during which time, Buchberger taking on the role of European manager, had secured the band a deal with German indie label 'Gentle Art of Music' headed by the German prog rock singer Yogi Lang of RPWL. The band released "MMITAL" in February of 2011 to a sold out hometown crowd and flew back to Germany to pursue a lengthier tour.

The band with their current lineup of Aaron Brooks, Joe Kidd, Rick Phillips, and Spider Monkey, moved in together to a communal living environment in an old Bavarian farmhouse. Upon their arrival, "Meet Me in the Afterlife," was receiving mass critical acclaim. Micheal Rensen of the lucrative German magazine ROCK HARD said, "One of the most exciting debut albums of recent years. You HAVE to hear this great record, and as soon and as often as possible!" www.trespass.ch from Switzerland said, "It is duly-substantiated to regard Simeon Soul Charger from Ohio as the next hype," and Music in Belgium remarked, " This is a group that will devastate everything in its path in the coming months. " The album also earned the band a slot in Eclipsed Magazines Top 100 albums (55) of 2011 trumping notable acts such as Radiohead, Primus and Kate Bush.

Over the course of the next year, the band maintained an unfaltering tour schedule throughout Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, and The Czech Republic, quickly amassing a sizable European fanbase. Their live show, deemed legendary, was immortalized in August, 2011 during their headlining slot at Labertal Festival in Schierling, Germany. There, the band filmed their DVD "LIVE AT LABERTAL."

During this time, Simeon Soul Charger rejoined director Mike Manhart to shoot their second official music video for "Europa's Garden." In the fall of that same year, the band made their first appearance on German television for SÜDWILD on Bayern 3 which included a mini documentary. In the coming year the band made 2 more appearances on the show including SÜDWILD's band of the week showcase.

In late fall/winter of 2011, Simeon Soul Charger joined Eschi, their European sound technician at Kreischsäge studios to begin recording their new concept album "Harmony Square." For the first time in their carreer, the group had an unlimited time frame to work with and access to vintage analog tape. Over the course of the next 6 months, all the while touring between sessions, the band along with violinists Sandra Rieger and Susi Salomon, Cellist Friederike Seeßelberg, percussionist Manfred Feneberg, Floutist Cindy Robertston, and Jawharpist Claudio Vollino, recorded their most complex and cinematic record to date; a single flowing composition that plays out like an orchestral rock opera about an alien circus offering transcedence to a band of oppressed humans. This was coupled with filming their 3rd official music video for "Ms. Donce," with THD Deggendorf. Again the band was met with a round of positve plaudits.

In the spring and summer of 2012, the band continued touring throughout Europe joining Denmark's D-A-D and Germany's Stefan Dettl Band (La Brass Banda) for a string of dates further escalating their status to "cult." In the fall of that year, the band returned to the U.S. for the first time in 2 years for a 5 week tour. Upon returning to Europe that winter, the band filmed several live performances to a capacity audience for lower Germany's largest broadcasting company BR. Between the show's filming and official broadcast, Simeon Soul Charger built a recording studio in their home and began recording a single for vinyl and digital release and a follow up to 2012's "Harmony Square." The band also filmed their 4th official music video for "Cain" in collaboration with German claymation and digital film artist Marcus Grysczok (Hypertrashwonderland). The BR program Heimatsound aired in June, 2013 and included a performance of their new single "Cain." The two-sided vinyl and digital download "CAIN" (A side) and "ABLE" (B side) was released on Sept. 13th, 2013. The band is slated for a winter tour in the Czech Republic and Italy and is planning to release their anticipated 3rd full-length album in 2014 followed by a full-scale European and U.S. tour.