Genre Rock | Albums body over mind, Prototype | |
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Record labels Loop Recordings Aot(ear)oa, R2 | ||
The Casual Fiasco is an American band that was active from 2003-2007. The band's beginnings can be traced to St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York, where Reilly and Read went to school together. While completing their undergraduate degrees, they began writing songs and playing at small, local venues such as the Tick Tock Inn and the Glass Onion as an acoustic duo, eventually incorporating friends on bass, drums and keyboards to round out their sound. During Reilly's senior year, the band began a heavy touring schedule that included many northeast colleges and universities, where the band began to build an underground following. While in school, the band self-financed two records; "The Casual Fiasco," affectionately referred to by early fans as "The Black Album," a play off of Phish's "The White Tape," was released in 2003. "Prototype" was released in 2004, which features several of the songs that would become popular in later years, including "Down on Sunday, "Feather" and "Prototype."
Contents
When Read and Reilly decided to move to Burlington, Vermont after graduation, they teamed up with Josh Cleaver on bass and Joshua Pfeil on drums and percussion and the true incarnation of The Casual Fiasco was born. The group quickly became the house band at the legendary Nectar's, a mid-sized venue in Burlington that was once home to the popular jam-band Phish, tightening their sound and beginning work on what would become their defining EP, "Body Over Mind," with Grammy Nominated producer Jack Gauthier. The release of the EP marked a turning point for the band, as several tracks were picked up by college and independent radio, including "Head Up," "Mint Condition," "Too Much Too Fast," and "Need my Fill."
The band played 150 concerts in 2005, building a following and drawing larger and larger crowds to venues that included Higher Ground (Burlington), The Knitting Factory (New York City) and The Paradise (Boston). The band also ventured outside of the Northeast for the first time, touring the south and sharing bills with acts that include State Radio and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, among others. The Fiasco also continued to build a college following, performing at dozens of universities over the course of the year.
The band's increased success lead to even more extensive touring during 2006, performing over 180 dates and headlining venues from Maine to Florida and thru the Midwest. Now a Northeast club and university mainstay, the band was headlining prestigious concert halls and sharing bills with their heroes.
The Casual Fiasco played 85 shows in 2007, hanging up their instruments during July of that year, largely due to exhaustion. Over the course of 4.5 years The Casual Fiasco played nearly 700 concerts, logged over 250,000 miles on their van, and entertained tens of thousands of concert goers.
The casual fiasco head up
Musical influences
The Casual Fiasco has a sound that is not easily categorized; listeners often describe it as a mixture of roots rock and reggae-flecked jam pop. Their music, written primarily by Reilly James and Will Read, has been influenced by Paul Simon, the Talking Heads, Phish, the Beatles, the Police, Dispatch and many more. The band has mentioned in interviews that they take pride in offering quirky lyrics and energetic roots-rock fervor. The Burlington quartet has been touring since 2004, and more extensively since their early 2005 residency at Nectar's, . The band played 150 dates in 2005 and 180 dates in 2006.
The Casual Fiasco has shared bills with bands such as moe., the Disco Biscuits, Dickey Betts and Great Southern, Toots & the Maytals, the North Mississippi Allstars, The Slip, Tea Leaf Green, Dave Mason, Big Wu, Addison Groove Project and State Radio. Notable venues include the Knitting Factory (New York City), the Paradise (Boston) and Higher Ground (South Burlington, Vermont). The band has also appeared at colleges, including the University of Vermont, Union College, Hobart-William Smith, Champlain College, St. Lawrence University, Johnson State, Kent State University, the University of Pennsylvania, Dartmouth College, Western Carolina, the University of Maine, Gordon College, Trinity College (St. Anthony Hall), Princeton University and many more.
Body Over Mind EP
In December 2005, The Casual Fiasco released the Body Over Mind EP with producer Jack Gauthier (Dispatch, David Grisman). The EP features several songs that have become concert staples for the band, and is slightly more reggae-based than their previous work. The disc debuted in the top ten at Awarestore.com and as at January 2006 was being played on 250 radio stations throughout the United States. The band's debut album, Prototype, was released in 2004 and features the songs "Down on Sunday," "Feather," and "Admiral Nelson."
Recent events
The band was back on the road in the spring of 2007.
Songs
Need MY Fillbody over mind · 2005
too bad you're crazyPrototype · 2004
salvador strutPrototype · 2004