Album Notes

PRESS: "Holiday tunes are turned on their heads..." - www.ChristmasReviews.com 9/2005

Witty, clever, silly, heartfelt... and downright fun!

HOLIDAY FEAST VOL. I is a set of Christmas and holiday songs selected from the vast range that Gastronomical Unit has cooked up, spanning 1991 - 2004.

You'll first be grabbed by the twisted & wacky ideas, like the drunken pirates caroling in "12 Days", the hysterical parody of Tainted Love, or the nearly sinister "Santa Claus is Coming to Town".
Then disarmed and ready for silliness, you may be caught unprepared for the earnest melancholy lurking in "Santa to Be", and amazed at the smooth and sublime "Adeste Fidelis".

The songs range from classics done in familiar style, to wacky/strange versions of traditional songs, to parodies of popular songs with a holiday twist, to completely original works. Some are solo pieces, some are small groups, some have nearly everyone.

Gastronomical Unit strives for variety and freshness in all their holiday recipes - having explorer nearly every musical style except opera during their bi-annual recordings.

GASTRONOMICAL UNIT is a band (more like a loose collection of friends) separated by geography. The group orbits around Binghamton, NY with key members in Syracuse, Rochester, Philadelphia, and NYC. Due to the distance, GU primarily focuses on original compositions and recording.

Members of the group began collaborating as early as 1988, creating the bands Fear of Nebraska and EJO (Evan's Jazz Opera) along the way.
In 1991, the first Christmas recordings were made by a diverse group of Penn State friends.
Gastronomical Unit itself formed in 1996, when the group EJO merged with the unnamed "Christmas album" gang. At a group of recording/jam sessions called Free Assemblies the core members came together and explored creating music together, and continued the holiday tradition.

Every odd year since '91, the group has made a holiday album - despite now being spread across the country.
Each time, the people change a little.
Each time, the songs change a lot.
Each time, the recording technology gets better! You can hear the difference, as tracks from every year are included on Holiday Feast Vol. I. All songs have been self-recorded as the group is a technology-savvy bunch.

Today, Gastronomical Unit music embodies both halves of its origins: Smart-pop (a la Squeeze/ Barenaked Ladies/ They Might Be Giants/ Crowded House) and Holiday Music in original forms.

Holiday Feast Vol. I is now your chance to hear these Christmas songs that had previously been limited to private recordings only. It's a well-hidden Christmas secret that has been polished up and is ready to unwrap. Cheers!

And oh, by the way...
Members of Gastronomical Unit can be found lurking elsewhere on CDBABY. J Ted Potter has a CD of amazing smart-pop solo compositions, featuring much of the G.U. gang (www.cdbaby.com/cd/jtedpotter). And Mark Sylvester has an acoustic guitar instrumental CD that is intricate and phenomenal (www.cdbaby.com/cd/msylvester).

Please visit the band and sign the guestbook at www.GastroUnit.com !

Happy Holidays!