Street Eaters are an American rock band from Berkeley, California. The band's sound, which they self-title using the moniker Truewave,[1] has been described by critics as "powerful post-punk"[2] that is simultaneously "bombastic and sharp, channel[ing] the raw approach to rock 'n' roll once taken by 1970s and 1980s innovators such as Wipers, Gang of Four, and X...the weird era between punk and new wave"[3] while "wrap[ping] themselves in atmosphere like Savages".[4]
Street Eaters | |
|---|---|
 Megan March of Street Eaters | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Berkeley, California, United States |
| Genres | Rock, Post-punk |
| Years active | 2008–present |
| Labels | Nervous Intent Records, Contraszt! Records, Bakery Outlet Records, Cut The Cord That...Records |
| Members | Megan March, John No, Joan Toledo |
| Website | streeteaters |
Reflecting drummer/lead vocalist Megan March's background as a graduate of the avant-garde Mills College music program,[5] Street Eaters is noted for ambitious album themes and making forays into Sonic Youth–esque sound collage soundscapes, most notably on their 2017 album The Envoy (a concept album based on the Ursula K LeGuin books The Dispossessed and Left Hand of Darkness) and its 2018 instrumental companion release Inhabitations of Time.[6]
History
editMegan March (ex-drummer for Younger Lovers) and John No (bassist/vocalist, singer in Fleshies) began Street Eaters as a bass-drums-vocals duo in 2008, with No utilizing an overdrive-heavy double amplifier setup for his unconventional bass playing, while March plays drums while singing in a tom-heavy, driving mid-tempo style with a heavy focus on shifting dynamics.[7] Vocals generally have a defined lead voice, with frequent gang-style, harmonized, or synchronized vocals by the other member. While the band's early releases on St. Augustine–based label Bakery Outlet tended to switch equally between leads from March and No,[8] more-recent albums (on the band's own Nervous Intent Records and Koln-based label Contraszt!) and singles have featured March's distinctive vocals more prominently. According to Ravelin Magazine, "Drummer Megan March has one of those voices that can do anything: a Kim Gordon-like, guttural holler ("Means") Debbie Harry's snide menace, a quick shout in time with a break, a rationed, powerful scream maybe built upon agit-pop timing and dynamics."[9]
Most of Street Eaters' current discography was recorded in the two-piece configuration, with and the duo spent much of 2009-2017 playing shows in the US, Europe, and Japan, including extended tours and residencies as direct support for bands such as Screaming Females, Jawbreaker, forgetters, and Shellshag.[10][11][12] In 2018, Street Eaters were invited to perform four sets of their instrumental sound collage-oriented material at the Portland Art Museum for the premiere[13] of the PBS documentary Worlds of Ursula K LeGuin.
In late 2017, during a six-week tour supporting Screaming Females, Marissa Paternoster joined Street Eaters live on guitar for nightly performances of the Gang of Four song "Love Like Anthrax", which was recorded live at The Pinhook in Durham, NC. That recording, and three other tracks recorded with Tony Molina Band's guitarist Steve Oriolo, were released as the Simple Distractions EP (2021) – Street Eaters' first recording with six-string guitar. By early 2019, Joan Toledo, an editor of Maximum Rocknroll Magazine who March and No played with in the band Difficult, had become Street Eaters' permanent guitarist;[6] a series of new singles recorded with the trio were released in 2024.[14]
Discography
editStudio albums
edit- Rusty Eyes and Hydrocarbons (2011, Bakery Outlet Records)[15]
- Blood::Muscles::Bones (2014, Nervous Intent Records/Contraszt! Records)[16]
- The Envoy (2017, Nervous Intent Records/Contraszt! Records)[17]
- Deep Cuts singles compilation (2021, Nervous Intent Records, on streaming platforms only)[18]
Singles and EPs
edit- Street Eaters/White Night 7” split (2009, Small Pool Records/Repulsion Records)[19]
- Polluted Waters split with Severance Package (2010, Dead Broke Rekerds/Dirt Cult Records/Lost Cat Records)[20]
- We See Monsters 12” EP (2010, Bakery Outlet Records)[21]
- Ashby+Shattuck/Mother 7” (2011, Starcleaner Records)[22]
- Street Eaters Self-Titled 12” EP (2012, Cut The Cord That...Records)[23]
- Street Eaters/Autonomy 7” split (2013, Off The Books Records)[24]
- Inhabitations of Time cassette and digital-only (2019, Nervous Intent Records)[25]
- Typical Girls Volume 1 (2016, Emotional Response/Future Perfect[27])
- Our Lips Are Sealed - A tribute to THE GO GO's (2013, Solidarity Recordings)
- Frequency of the Truewave Volume I (2016, Nervous Intent)
- Frequency of the Truewave Volume II (2016, Nervous Intent)
- Collapse Board: Secret Punk and Basement Pop (2011, Collapse Board)
- Total Fest 9 Sampler (2010, Wantage Records)
- Live From The Devil's Triangle Eighteen (2015, KFJC)
- By Any Means (2013, Thrillhouse/Stay Punk/Fullyintercoastal)
- Lost Tapes From The Federal Sessions (UK, 2011, Collective Zine)
- Do You Like Music? (FR, 2016, RocknRoll Masturbation)
- Dead Broke Tape Comp Four (2011, Dead Broke Rekerds)
External links
edit
References
edit- ^ Boyracer, Stewart (2017-06-01). "STREET EATERS truewave punks release 3rd full length". Louder Than War. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ Martins, Chris (May 14, 2014). "Hear Street Eaters Sling Powerful Post-Punk On 'Reverse'". Spin Magazine. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
- ^ "Street Eaters Mine Post-Punk's Golden Era For Inspiration In Latest LP". bust.com. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ "PREMIERE: Street Eaters Channel Ursula K. Le Guin, Savages on "The Envoy" LP". FLOOD. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ Levy, Beck (February 18, 2014). "Alum Profile: Keepin' it Real with Megan March – The Campanil". The Mills Campanil. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
- ^ a b Green, Loren (September 19, 2021). "Street Eaters: Interview". Scene Point Blank. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
- ^ "Tom Tom Magazine Issue 12: The Orchestral Issue by Tom Tom Magazine - Issuu". issuu.com. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ "Now Hear This!: The Street Eaters, PopMatters". PopMatters. 2011-10-24. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ "Street Eaters Shake The Left Hand Of Darkness". Ravelin Magazine. 2017-05-10. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ "Forgetters, Street Eaters, The Hunting Accident @ The Echo, Los Angeles 2/5/11". Stereogum. 2011-02-10. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ "Hole in the Sky". Time Out Washington DC. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ Fu, Eddie (2017-08-02). "Screaming Females announce North American fall 2017 tour". Consequence. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ PDX, do (September 15, 2018). "WORLDS OF URSULA K. LE GUIN". dopdx.com. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
- ^ "Oakland trio achieves maximum truewave". East Bay Express | Oakland, Berkeley & Alameda. 2024-07-24. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
- ^ Street Eaters - Rusty Eyes And Hydrocarbons, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ Street Eaters - Blood::Muscles::Bones, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ Street Eaters - The Envoy, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ "Deep Cuts by Street Eaters — on BFF.fm". BFF.fm — Best Frequencies Forever. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
- ^ Street Eaters / White Night - Street Eaters / White Night, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ Severance Package / Street Eaters - Polluted Waters.... Split 7″, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ Street Eaters - We See Monsters, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ Street Eaters - Ashby And Shattuck / Mother, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ Street Eaters - Street Eaters, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ Street Eaters, Autonomy - Street Eaters / Autonomy split, retrieved 2023-04-27
- ^ "Inhabitations of Time, by Street Eaters (No/March)". Street Eaters. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
- ^ "Street Eaters". Discogs. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
- ^ "Street Eaters, "Paralyzed" – Impose Magazine". Retrieved 2023-04-26.