Summerbirds In The Cellar
Words: Steven Hobbs
Photos: Kros Sproul & Wheat Wurtzburger

Orlando’s Summerbirds in the Cellar is one of the most talented and important bands the central Florida music scene has produced in the last few years.  The quartet’s sound is rooted in rhythm, layered with thick, heavy walls of guitars and keyboards.  Singer and guitarist Brad Register’s vocal melodies exist metaphysically, weaving in and around the music.  All the songs are rich with dynamics, splitting the difference between ambiance and ardor.

Tyson and Yardley share drumming duties, with Yardley playing the electric drums and Tyson commanding the regular, pared down kit.  Curtis compliments each song with well-crafted guitar and keyboard parts, providing Brad with a perfect backdrop for his brooding, melodic vocals. Their shows in Orlando consistently draw capacity crowds, and the band’s use of floor lights in place of a venue’s stage lights evokes a unique, dream-like aesthetic.

Summerbirds in the Cellar play an important role in the region’s music scene.  In an indie-rock era of ease and expectation without effort, the band sets the standard for all up-start, would-be bands.  They record and tour tirelessly, they arrive early and stay late at their shows, they arrange their lives in ways that places their art first and they are constantly innovating and perfecting their sound.  In a region struggling to find its voice and place in the larger collective, Summerbirds in the Cellar’s approach and work ethic begs to be studied and imitated.

After their show at the Orpheum I sat down with Curtis to discuss the past, present and future of Summerbirds in the Cellar.

REAX:  Give a brief history and the evolution of Summerbirds in the Cellar.
CURTIS:  It started with Brad and I in 2003.  We began recording garage demos and playing together.  I would play drums and bass, he would play guitar and keyboards.  We then brought Tyson on to play drums permanently.  He’s the best drummer I’ve ever played with.  We recorded a record up in Athens, and from that recording we realized that we were a very rhythmic band, so adding Yardley as a second drummer was definitely a direction we wanted to take as band.

REAX:  Does everyone contribute to the song writing process?
CURTIS:  Well, for lack of a better word, we just jam.  We mess around and piece parts that we like together.  Sometimes Brad will bring a vocal melody, and we’ll add whatever we think is necessary.  We want it to be as natural as possible, so whatever organically comes out of us when we practice is usually what we go with.

REAX:  How has living in Orlando affected your music?
CURTIS:  I honestly don’t think it would matter where we were.  We have our own idea of how we want the band to sound.  Tyson has a very dance, club oriented approach to music, so the kick-drum is always constant.  I like noisy, shoe-gaze stuff, and Brad comes from a varied background.  He’s great with vocal melodies, and I feel his lyrics and what he has to say is very important.  So I really don’t think it would matter where we were geographically.  We would still create the type of music that we do.

REAX:  Your sound is very different from most bands in this region.  How has that affected setting up shows?
CURTIS:  As far as finding bands we’re compatible to play with, it can a little difficult.  But we love to put together more eclectic shows.  I like shows to be varied.  Who wants to see the same band play three times in one night?

REAX:  The band does a lot of touring.  Do you all have day jobs?
CURTIS:  Currently Brad and I play with Now It’s Overheard and they pay for us to go on tour.  In between going on tour with them and playing shows with Summerbirds it can get difficult.  Pretty much we’re never home.  Brad bartends when he can, I usually find door jobs at clubs, Tyson bartends and Yardley is an amazing graphic designer.

REAX:  A lot of bands now put little emphasis on touring extensively.  Why do you all feel that playing out is so important?
CURTIS:  We haven’t had anybody approach us label-wise that would take care of us the way we see fit.  We’re on our friend’s label, Slow January, out in L.A.  He paid for us to record and put out the record we have now.  So we see touring as a way to make things happen for ourselves.  Regardless if we have a label or not, we’re going to be out there. 

REAX:  I know the band is starting to spread out.  Where do you all now call home?
CURTIS:  I’m moving to Athens after this tour with Brad.  Tyson and Yardley are going to stay around in Orlando.

REAX:  How did the connection with Now It’s Overhead come about?
CURTIS:  Summerbirds played one of our earlier shows with Now It’s Overhead about three year ago.  After our set, Andy (the singer for Now It’s Overhead) approached us and said he wanted to record us.  He called around Orlando to find Brad, and Brad agreed to go out on the road with them.  When Maria Taylor from Azure Ray left to focus on her own music they needed a bass player, so that’s when I came in.

REAX:  When Summerbirds goes on the road with Now It’s Overhead, you and Brad play in both bands.  How does it feel pulling double duty each night?
CURTIS:  It’s not that bad, actually.  I just constantly want to be playing music, so I like it. 

REAX:  A lot of the lyrics have religious overtones.  What’s the story behind those songs?
CURTIS:  In between one of the bands that Brad and I were in together, Brad actually went off to Colorado and studied religion and was qualified to be a preacher.  Now, in no way, is he a representative of Christianity.  He is very interested in religion, so it shines through in his lyrics.  We’ve seen the dark side of religion.  We’ve been raised in the church and seen the corrupt aspects of it, so without really trying that idea comes through in the songs and the lyrics.

REAX:  It seems like you all are striving to perfect a sound.  What can we expect from the new record?
CURTIS:  We realized from our last record that we are a much better representation of what we want to be live.  It’s much more aggressive and heavy.  This record will be much more raw, but at the same time I think our melodies are more solid and in tact.  I think this recording will be a better representation of who are.

REAX:  Lastly, what does the next year hold for the band?
CURTIS:  We plan to put out the new record, tour over a hundred days a year, and continue to chip away.  Brad and I will be doing a lot of touring here and in Europe with Now It’s Overhead as well.

www.summerbirds.com