FULLER
Mac Randall (guitar & effects)
Michael Gelfand (bass)
Peter Catapano (drums)
After garnering praise from an array of fellow mad geniuses such as Gary Lucas, Wharton Tiers and Daniel Lanios, the New York City-based trio, Fuller have repackaged their two most recent mindbending, but tuneful albums -- 'Year of the Rat' and 'The Lotus' -- into a single CD, at single CD cost! Twice as many reasons to dive into the sonic wonderland that is Fuller.
Forged in the damp, dingy basement of a former sweatshop on New York's Lower East Side during 1999, the sound of Fuller is complex, dramatic, muscular, and proudly vocal-free. The group taps into both the sonic aggression of rock and the exploratory aesthetics of jazz, but it is not a jam band. Its music is tightly composed and orchestrated, with a wide dynamic range and a strong sense of melody. Influences include the likes of Tortoise, Trans Am, and Don Caballero, but also In A Silent Way-era Miles Davis, King Crimson, Bill Frisell, Erik Satie and Thelonious Monk.
If the names Mac Randall, Michael Gelfand, and Peter Catapano sound familiar, that may be because you've seen their bylines in publications like the New York Times, Rolling Stone, Esquire, Musician, Salon, and Launch. Though all three have made their living as writers and editors, they separately served time in local bands for over a decade. As Fuller, they have performed Austin, TX's heralded South By South West confernece as well as major NYC clubs such as the Mercury Lounge, the Knitting Factory, CB's Lounge, and Tonic and Boston's Lizard Lounge.
In 2000, Fuller recorded an EP called The Tiers Suite (named for Wharton Tiers, longtime Sonic Youth associate, friend of Fuller, and leader of the Wharton Tiers Ensemble, of which Randall is a current member and Gelfand was once a member). A collection of four separate pieces linked by interlocking themes, The Tiers Suite ranges in mood from pastoral folk-jazz to paint-peeling avant-rock. Parts of the EP are featured in the indie-film soundtracks of Nyle Garcia's Humidity and Jane Gaffney's Cowboy.
February 2002 marked the completion of Fuller's first album, Year of the Rat. All eleven tracks were recorded and mixed at Engine Studios, the converted Chinatown basement that also served as the band's rehearsal space. Water leaks, ceiling cave-ins, and a severe rat infestation plagued the recording process, but the trio's DIY spirit was strengthened by the appetizing fare at the nearby Lotus Rice Noodle Shop, and they found the resolve to press on. The kaleidoscopic prog of "Privy to the Math" and "Karmic Overhead" and the dreamscapes of "Peekaboo" and "Elephant Rock" prove it was worth the effort.
Fuller's newest disc, The Lotus, was released in late October 2002. The five-song EP was recorded, mixed and mastered by Wharton Tiers at his Fun City Studio over a two-day period, and the condensed session perfectly captures the band's energy. From the implosive introspection of the title track and angular thwack of "Daisy Cutter" to the sauntering Steely Dan swank of "Catman Shuffle" and Appalachia-cum-Apocalypse groove of "Veronsky," The Lotus breaks new ground for Fuller, catching the band in amber as it boldly expands its musical vocabulary.
For more information on Fuller, contact Peter Catapano 212-556-7743 or petercatapano@optonline.net
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