Still a relative newcomer to the oft-fickle NYC/Brooklyn music scene, Phonograph formed in 2005, playing small clubs up and down the eastern seaboard.   In February 2007, the band released their debut, self-titled album to massive critical acclaim.  David Dye, in a review for his World Cafe program, wrote, ‘Phonograph’s debut sounds surprisingly assured for a new band.  Balancing synths and pedal-steel with a twangy, roots-pop sensibility, the disc impresses with both the depth of its songwriting and the impeccable musicianship that backs it up.”

Beginning as singer Matthew Welsh’s solo effort with the help of Pere Ubu’s Tony Maimone, the group’s current line-up began taking shape when a then-studio engineer, John Davis, befriended Welsh. Davis in turn introduced a pair of friends, guitarist Abe Seiferth and drummer Dave Burnett, to the fold, before multi-instrumentalist Phil Sterk rounded out the line-up.  Wesh points out, ‘Even though we’re known more for an alt-country aesthetic, we experiment with a variety of instruments and instrumentation. We're always going to have that element of stripped down Americana, but we want a healthy balance between interesting psychedelic sounds and good-old-wholesome-American-songwriting.  John, aside from playing bass, also plays a Moog to get all the background sounds going.  Abe goes through as many different combinations of pedals as he can do simultaneously ‹ a lot of the stuff that sounds like synth lines on the record is actually Abe. When we opened for Wilco, Nels Cline was standing about a foot away from him watching everything he was doing.”

The admiration of their peers is something Phonograph has enjoyed since their inception.  Other notable fans include Mekons/Waco Brothers’ Jon Langford and Wilco’s John Stirratt.  Now, closing in on a year since the release of the highly-regarded debut (‘One finds it hard to believe this record is the band's debut; it's that good.” ‹ American Songwriter Magazine), the band has released an inspired EP, Hiawatha Talking Machine, and is quickly building a legion of new fans and friends nationwide.  Other recent success stories include nationwide commercial and non-commercial airplay from both the EP and full-length, a review in Billboard Magazine’s Now Hear This and a mid-west tour with Backyard TIrefire in November 2007.  Upcoming  events include a slew of shows at SXSW and a slot in the Mountain Jam Festival (Allman Bros, Levon Helm, Drive-by Truckers).  Currently, the band is in the studio recording their second full-length LP.

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