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Biography
It’s quite often that the most interesting takes on a particular genre of music come from the people who never listened to it in the first place. This is absolutely the case with The Cave Singers, who were formed by Derek Fudesco, the bass player of raucous indie-punk quintet Pretty Girls Make Graves after that band split in 2007.
The whole band maintains that their favourite bands are still the Pixies, The Replacements and Fleetwood Mac and that they had no interest in folk music until they found themselves creating it.
Fudesco, along with ex-Hint Hint and Cobra High members Pete Quirk and Marty Lund respectively, formed the band the same year that Pretty Girls Make Graves split and made an immediate impact, signing to Matador Records within months.
Their debut album “Invitation Songs” was released in the September of that year to stellar reviews. There was no pressure or desire to become the biggest name in folk music, which was just as well because Mumford and Sons had already set that bar astonishingly high, so they just kept on doing what they do best, releasing albums, touring the world and building up a devoted following.
It wasn’t until their third album “No Witch” that Fudesco picked up a guitar and in a way, this sums up everything you need to know about The Cave Singers. He had no idea how he was meant to learn the instrument and so he started experimenting with it. In a short time, he became the best guitar player in the band; able to do things that none of the other members could because he approached the instrument in his own way.
The whole band took this attitude with folk music as a whole, and has become one of the most fascinating and inspiring bands in a very, very fertile American folk scene. With interest in the genre at an all-time high, you can’t go wrong with The Cave Singers.
Live reviews
Perhaps it’s not all that prominent, but Seattle really is one of the world’s most important music towns; it’s commonly associated, in the popular imagination, with grunge and everything that went with that era, but the truth is, it’s still turning out exciting acts today, with perhaps the most vital independent record label in the world, Sub Pop, still based in the city in which it was formed. The Cave Singers are a testament to the town’s ongoing importance; formed in 2007, they pre-empted the likes of Bon Iver and Fleet Foxes with their gentle brand of folk-tinged indie rock, and carved out a cult fanbase in the process. In 2010, they signed with Indiana indie label Jagjaguwar - for my money, one of the most exciting imprints anywhere - and have gone from strength to strength. Key to their appeal is their live show, and ability to flit between mellow, stripped-back indie and rollicking rockers in the blink of an eye; holding it all together is the gorgeously restrained croon of frontman Pete Quirk, who channels the audience’s emotion as he leads them through singalongs, as well as interacting with them via his dry sense of humour in a way that makes The Cave Singers’ shows feel intimate - regardless of where they’re playing.
Joeg_67
