Second Single is Here!
Because there isn't any year in the life that fails to bring us more than a few surprises, some great, some weird, with a few low points for good measure, you just never know what's coming up next, but maybe that's OK. Those who learn from history are doomed to be looking for the next bright spot and being glad to say they were there when it happened.
1996 brought us eBay, DVDs, the concept of Global Warming and Wheat the band: Scott Levesque, Brendan Harney, Ricky Brennan and Kenny Madaras. They began practicing and writing in Scott's bedroom, playing here and there in the Boston area, and grabbing the attention of local fans and writers.
1998 brought us Google, Eddie Murphy's Dr. Doolittle, Apple's iMac, and Wheat's Medeiros; recorded in Providence with Dave Auchenbach (Lightening Bolt, Black Dice, Small Factory), and mixed by Brain Deck (Iron and Wine, Modest Mouse, Red Red Meat). The music had an air of serene resignation, its yawning spaces filled in by aquatic washes of keyboards, slowly warping guitar chords and gently urgent rhythms. Later that year NME named Wheat's "Death Car" their Single Of The Week. The limited edition seven-inch sold out within days.
1999 brought us Napster, MySpace, the first in a series of disappointing Star Wars prequels and Wheat's Hope & Adams; the lush and yearning indie-pop classic. Recorded and mixed by Dave Fridmann (Flaming Lips, MGMT, Weezer), and featuring "Don't I Hold You", the album received extensive worldwide critical praise. It garnered four-star reviews in Melody Maker and Q, and made end-of-year lists in both Select and Uncut magazines. Rolling Stone's Dave Fricke called the music "beautiful murk".
2003 brought us SARS, Prometea, the first cloned horse, Governor Schwarzenegger and Wheat's Per Second, Per Second, Per Second… Every Second. CMJ proclaimed that, with this record, Wheat, "…straddled the line between the extremely personal, and the universal with maddening grace."
In 2004, 2.1 million people saw Win a Date with Tad Hamilton and heard "Some Days". That same year movie goers heard "I Met a Girl" in A Cinderella Story and in 2005 "Don't I Hold You" in Elizabethtown; all from 2003's Per Second, Per Second, Per Second… Every Second. Wheat was now signed to Aware/Columbia, and shared stages with the likes of The Flaming Lips, Liz Phair and John Mayer.
2006 brought us Nintendo Wii, Pluto's downgrade to a dwarf planet, Miami Vice to the big screen and Wheat's mini-album That's Exactly What I Wanted… Exactly That. This five-song program features some of Wheat's most experimental music to date. Aversion declared, "Wheat conquers everything with this EP, from start to finish."
2007 brought us Apple's iPhone, the massive Chinese toy recall, Shrek The Third, and Wheat's Every Day I Said a Prayer for Kathy and Made a One Inch Square. Some said, "a return to form" but Wheat said, "same as it ever was" - always refocusing the lens, always trying to find new and unique ways of delivering the love song. Spin declared: "You probably won't hear three such beautifully sweeping songs start another album this year."
2009 brought us the completion of the Large Hadron Collider, H1N1, the innovative music video game Living 2 Die Vs. Dying to Live, the 3 CD reissue of Medeiros, Hope & Adams (with the unreleased 30 Minute Theatrik) and the band favorite White Ink, Black Ink. Simple, concise, and rockin' and rollin'. "The punchiest, most disciplined exercise in pop-frosted skronk indulgence you're likely to hear." - Bullz-Eye
In 2011 Apple released the iPad2, we witnessed the capture of Osama bin Laden and Megan Fox was replaced in Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon and no one noticed. Wheat continues to forge their way through the tortuous terrain of the music industry, making their way past the weird and the low points; and now have one of those year-making great surprises in store. They want you along for the ride; glad to say that you were there when it happened. This is a noteworthy event, as creative as it is commercial, and undeniably Wheat.
On September 27, the boys will release the first of 3 limited edition CD singles. Each single will feature 2 new tracks, exclusive artwork hand-screened by the band, full liner notes and free downloads. Subsequent months will have a new single, each with two additional tracks. This project will culminate in a yet-untitled, limited edition CD along with other exclusive downloads. The second single (as well as the first) can be purchased now at:
http://www.wheatmusic.com/
