Thin Cities (formerly Braille)

About Me

In 1972, Italian author Italo Calvino re-imagined conversations between an energetic Marco Polo and an aging Kublai Khan, in which the two discuss the idea of how perspective can interject new hope and understanding into a corrupt world. The book was written in a series of poetic entries, and was titled Invisible Cities (italics).
In 2006, a small band from Illinois was served a cease and desist order, ending a five year run with name Braille. This news came after 3 independently booked U.S. tours, their first nationally distributed full length record and hundreds of shows, many with bands that held their admiration, like Pedro the Lion, Elliott and Denali. Rather than taking this situation as a tragedy, the band decided to take a more optimistic perspective and look at this as a chance to begin a new chapter in the progression of their music.
To champion this, the name Thin Cities was adopted from one of Calvinos entries and their orchestration grew beyond their three-piece format of bass, drums and guitar to include extensive layers and textures. The songwriting process would now include string arrangements and programmed loops, while still heavily under the influence of artists like Sunny Day Real Estate, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sigur Ros and Steve Reich.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 10/4/2004
Band Website: thincities.com
Band Members: Paul Karner- Guitar/Vocals
Tim Mortensen- Bass/Keys
Jay Warner- Drums
Influences: Sunny Day Real Estate, Sigur Ros, Sleeping at Last, Smashing Pumpkins....other bands that begin with "S"
Record Label: Common Cloud Records
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Tour Blog 2: Rules > Yankees > House Party 4

Some things you should know about the South: if you order a "Coke"you'll be immediately asked "what kind of Coke?" because apparently theyavoid the soda vs. pop debate altogether by calling everything...
Posted by Thin Cities (formerly Braille) on Thu, 29 Jun 2006 11:25:00 PST

Tour Blog 1: Deep Thoughts > Hi Dives > Chemugans

There are few things in life like being on tour. It's something that makes total sense to me, but to most outsiders it seems borderline commitable. I can try to put into words why it means so much t...
Posted by Thin Cities (formerly Braille) on Wed, 21 Jun 2006 11:01:00 PST

June tour with Bernard!

Hey Everybody!Well, it's tour time again, and we couldn't be more excited. We're going to do a couple weeks throughout the East half of U.S. with our new friends Bernard. They just released a new re...
Posted by Thin Cities (formerly Braille) on Thu, 04 May 2006 01:29:00 PST

New website! "Fourteen" video for your iPod!

Hey gang,No more temp pages for us- we have a new online home at www.thincities.com! We are really excited about it. It was designed by our long-time collaborator Eric Mortensen. The site is chalke...
Posted by Thin Cities (formerly Braille) on Fri, 14 Apr 2006 11:56:00 PST

Stream "Thin Cities" & Watch Video for "Fourteen"

Hey Everybody, Tour has been going well, and I hope our updates in the tour blog have kept you curious. I'm in New Jersey right now at our friend Evan's house from The Progress. I just wan...
Posted by Thin Cities (formerly Braille) on Mon, 15 Aug 2005 11:41:00 PST

Braille/Those Transatlantic Summer Tour (help?)

Hey, I just posted the tentative route for our tour this summer. We're really excited to get out on the road, especially now that our new friends, Those Transatlantics, will be joining us. If yo...
Posted by Thin Cities (formerly Braille) on Mon, 01 Jan 1900 12:00:00 PST

New photos

Hey everybody, I put up a few new photos. Feel free to check them out, especially to see the latest addition to the Braille line of drummers- Jay Warner. He's a keeper. We'll have a releas...
Posted by Thin Cities (formerly Braille) on Mon, 01 Jan 1900 12:00:00 PST