Live @ The Empty Bottle 1/27/08
Consortium was a rock and roll band based in Chicago, IL. They played their final show on February 6, 2010. Their final recordings, an untitled EP, will be released in March, 2010 Their third album, "Sloganeers & Moment Junkies," was released on 11/24/07 and it can be purchased at: www.cdbaby.com/consortium3. Their second record entitled "Potomac and Shenandoah," a concept album detailing the convergence and conflict of secularism and religion personified in the lives of two sisters, was released in November, 2006. Their first full-length record, "Circle the Day," was released in 2004. They contributed two original songs to a compilation cd in the August '06 issue of the art 'zine "Bailliwik" (www.bailliwik.org). The songs are "Gravity of Orbits (Secret Clone)" and "Fifty Ways to Sunday." They concern illicit robot love.and what happens when the robot leaves you.
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Some documented opinions of Consortium's music:
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"Sloganeers & Moment Junkies thickly lays on the raggle taggle Americana, coupled with frontman and songwriter Tom Winters’ literary-caliber lyrics. If every line in Bob Dylan’s “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” is the start of a whole new song, then the 11 tracks on this record each begin a novel…Joined by Simon Hunt (keyboards, melodica), Pat Winters (bass), Kiri Klawitter (vocals), and Seth Weidmann (drums), Winters puts forth a stalwart effort, especially on the rambunctiously crescendoing title track."
- Janine Schaults (Illinois Entertainer review of “Sloganeers and Moment Junkies” - 11/21/07)
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"Descriptive lyrics by singer Tom Winters draw listeners into Consortium’s ambitious concept album, Potomac And Shenandoah, while the band plays tuneful Americana music. Winters’ stories range from the Civil War atrocities of “Harper’s Ferry” to the simple life of a modern couple in “By The Light – Part II.” Kip Rainey excels throughout on guitar, lap steel, and mandolin."
– Terrence Flamm (Illinois Entertainer review of "Potomac and Shenadoah" - 4/29/07)
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5 Stars - mid-atlantic folklore at its best
"Maps and Legends are beautifully interwoven in this wonderfully loose collection of narratives from frontman Tom Winters and his band of merry soulmates. From Texas to Maryland, secrets revealed and lost en route, the ride is wild and worth the trip. Hop on board, you won't regret it."
- oscar nongrata (cdbaby review of "Potomac and Shenandoah)
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4 Stars - The most beautiful nightmare you could ever wish for!
"Potomac and Shenandoah" is a wonderfully comforting conceptual piece which blends beauty and sadness by exploring the horrors of conflict with glorious moments of humanity. There is something here for everyone including masterful mandolin, sonic bursts of energy and big league harmonies."
- Bill Geimer (cdbaby review of "Potomac and Shenadoah")
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4 Stars - A beautifully rendered collection of literary folk pop
"A beautifully rendered collection of literary folk pop, connecting heart, soul and brain. The singer displays the urgency of Vedder and the playfulness of Pollard, leading the music to places dark and deep, high and mighty. You'll want to play this one over and over."
- oscar nongrata (cdbaby review of "Circle The Day")
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