Album Notes

With its debut release "Desert Center", Los Angeles based quintet Felt seek to carry on the tradition of quality songwriting and musicianship set down by their numerous influences. Solid playing and tight arrangements provide the foundation upon which bold harmonies, and powerful guitars can ebb and tide to expose layers of subtlety uncommon in today's musical landscape.

Felt benefits from years of creative collaboration between two pairs of friends. After several years of producing bands such as Burnin' Groove and Ultralight, in addition to several of their own projects, Singer/guitarist Mark Wein and guitarist Scott Francisco set out to form a new creative outlet. Bassist Martin Torres and keyboardist Gary Pritchard, also longtime friends and frequent collaborators, signed on along with drummer Charlie Waymire.

"Chemistry happens right away or not at all, usually. Most of us were friends before we ever played as a unit, so the music came easily." -Martin Torres

Felt's original and powerful sound is a testament to the members' broad range of influences: Radiohead, The Beatles, ACDC, Counting Crows, Elvis Costello, Cheap Trick, Dada, Jeff Buckley, Charles Mingus, Queen, Miles Davis, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Paul Westerberg, Tori Amos, and Led Zeppelin to name just a few.

"At times we have the kind of an intimate singer-songwriter, kind of sound and sometimes we just want to rock out! Being able to cover that kind of ground sonically and emotionally makes for a very exiting experience."-Gary Pritchard

After a period of developing their dynamic sound and a sizable catalog of original songs on the stages of Southern California, the members entered the studio to produce Desert Center. Though Desert Center is the first release from Felt, the years of previous collaboration lend a maturity rare in a debut release. More than just a collection of 11 songs, Desert Center goes beyond being a snapshot of Felt's creative evolution circa 2002 to be something greater than the sum of its parts. Though each song stands on its own, there is an underlying mood that evokes the sense of a journey. It's not just the references to geography or the scenes depicted in the lyrics, each song in some way is about someone who seeks to find himself or has somehow gotten lost. Tight arrangements, catchy choruses, and evocative lyrics invite the listener into a world of characters, each moving through the light and shadow of the rich atmosphere that binds the entire album.

"The people in these songs are all people on some sort of journey. Some of them are us and some are people just passing through, telling their story and moving on. It's like some weird road trip."-Mark Wein

With Desert Center completed, the members look forward to returning to an active live playing schedule as well as developing the follow up to Desert Center.

"There is nothing like looking out from a stage into a crowd of people all singing along with your song. That's when you feel like you are really communicating!"-Scott Francisco

Check out the felt web site www.felthq.com to see where they're playing next.