Album Notes

The Niche Makers are a new collective revolving around the words and inspiration of internationally acclaimed artist Raymond Pettibon. An icon of contemporary art, Pettibon has exhibited at MOCA, SFMOMA, Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Whitney Museum of American Art and his work is in the permanent collections of galleries and museums throughout the world. His early artistic roots lie in music, specifically in the Los Angeles punk rock scene, both designing artwork and performing along with brother Greg Ginn in Black Flag as well as designing artwork for other bands such as The Minutemen, SST Records' stable, Foo Fighters, and Sonic Youth among others. He has continually created music over the last twenty years under various band names and collaborated with the likes of Mike Watt, Firehose, and Unknown Instructors.

The band consists of the principal members above and frequently has special guests which partake in awkward performances and investigatory recording sessions. The compositions are choreographed to the endless pages of Pettibon's lyrics, either vocalized by himself or other Niche Makers, and are held together with a sound based on early New Orleans jazz and campfire spirituals. Members of the Niche Makers are simultaneously both seasoned and up and coming musicians in Los Angeles, taking part in other projects such as Old War Shirt, the Slings, and the Hootenanny All-Stars. The band just released it's debut album Soul Sealed the Deal.

The Band:
raymond pettibon - occasional vocalist and full time lyricist and visualist extraordinaire
jon yvan cournoyer - guitar, bass, vocals, percussion and vodka
famous bob rokos - accordian, trombone, engineer, keyboard, vocals, v-neck tees
ashley lauren saks - mime, vocals, cabaret dancing, shaking that special stuff of hers
dustin poulton - guitar, keyboard, percussion, iphone, pug control
robert berman - trumpet, vocal performance, and then more trumpet
m.s. garvey - vocal performance, smiling, percussion, saying "that's fantastic" tomas jacobi - guitar, charango, sweetness
nicolas barry - bad ass bass, spanish translations
angie featherstone - vocals, cheerleading, envelope stuffing