Courters have shared a new track May Song, which will be featured on the forthcoming split (with fellow Bostonians The Dazies) titled ‘Seen a Ghost’. The self-released split will be available on December 8. Take a listen to May Song via Soundcloud below.
Pre-order for ‘Seen a Ghost’: https://seenaghost.bandcamp.com
Courters began in late 2011 with guitarist Dan Palimeri, bassist William (Billy) O’Brien and drummer Ethan Cannon seeking to put some patina on Boston’s polished soundscape. The band brought the influences of post punk, 60’s garage, and power pop into Boston’s local music scene with grit and distinction.
They recorded a first EP titled simply ‘The’ with engineers Matt Reed and James Trout in their garage studio to fulfill the cliché. The session produced four songs laced with raucous rhythms and slide guitar. It released in time to pass around at the infamous 2012 Starlab Record Fest held in Somerville, Massachusetts. Courters nabbed an opening spot and played alongside the likes of Creaturos and Dan Webb and the Spiders.
Courters became a regular act in greater Boston clubs and venues for seasons to come as they’ve become a reliable draw to the stages of Great Scott in Allston, The Middle East in Cambridge and have opened up for The Dexateens at Atwoods. Comfortable playing aggressive but accessible sounds alongside the softest soloist or greasiest rippers.
Courters enlisted the help of Ben Wiser from The Diamond Mines to play lead guitar on their 2nd EP called ‘Hissy Fits’. The band’s 2nd offering showcased a tight garage band with eclectic taste. It was tracked at Chillhouse Studios with Kurt Schneider at the board in early 2014. Working with Kurt on Hissy Fits resulted in five solid rock and roll songs and a musical partnership that would endure as Courters and Kurt’s band The Dazies, helmed by Mikey Holland, would begin to collaborate.
The band continued as a three piece after the release of ‘Hissy Fits’ but sought a fourth member to fill out the sound they’d captured on the album. A candidate, James, was found hailing all the way from Japan. James wasn’t from Japan but was returning from a stint teaching English abroad. He was also a friend of Bill’s and wasn’t given a choice in the matter. James’s Hammond organ and tasteful guitar playing rounded out the band’s sound.
Come March 2015, Converse invited the band to record at their Rubber Tracks studio with legendary engineer and rocker David Minehan of Wooly Mammoth Studio. On a rainy afternoon, three knee stompers were cut at Rubber Tracks and the boys each got a free pair of shoes. Later the boys dug deep into some darker material they recorded themselves in a rented cabin and added two more songs to the project. The five tracks are queued for release in December 2017 on the 12″ split LP ‘Seen a Ghost’ with aforementioned Boston rockers The Dazies.
Courters/The Dazies “Seen a Ghost” East coast tour
- Thursday, Dec. 7 @ TBA – Providence, RI
- Friday, Dec. 8 @ O’Briens Pub – Allston, MA
- Saturday, Dec. 9 @ Pet Rescue – Brooklyn, NY
- Sunday, Dec. 10 @ Willimantic Records – Willimantic, CT
- Thursday, Dec. 14 @ Alphaville – Brooklyn, NY
- Saturday, Dec. 16 @ The Pharmacy – Philadelphia, PA
- Sunday, Dec. 17 @ KOTO – Salem, MA
