Archers of Loaf profile picture

Archers of Loaf

VEE VEE SHIRTS FOR SALE! SCROLL DOWN FOR DETAILS

About Me

************** FAN SITE! NOT THE BAND!!! *************
The Archers of Loaf were darlings of the indie world in the early to mid-'90s, thanks to an off-kilter sound that was edgy and challenging, yet melodically accessible at the same time. Cornerstones of the Chapel Hill, NC, indie scene that also spawned Superchunk and Polvo, the Archers' chief inspirations were the Replacements and Sonic Youth, but that only began to tell the story. Their music was frequently likened to a more intense, raucous version of Pavement's postmodern pop, and indeed they shared key elements: fractured song constructions, abstractly witty lyrics, clangorous guitars, and lo-fi production. More rooted in punk and noise rock, however, the Archers took the dissonance, white noise, and angularity to greater extremes, and played with more overt commitment and enthusiasm in concert. The Archers became a hip name to drop with their acclaimed 1993 debut, Icky Mettle; several more accomplished albums followed before the group called it quits in 1998.
The Archers of Loaf were formed in Chapel Hill in 1991, when all four members were attending the University of North Carolina. Coincidentally, they'd all grown up in Asheville, in the western part of the state, but hadn't all gone to the same schools. Singer/guitarist Eric Bachmann, guitarist Eric Johnson, bassist Matt Gentling, and drummer Mark Price cut an independently released single, "Wrong," that helped them land a contract with the California-based indie label Alias (also home to releases by American Music Club and Yo La Tengo). Another single, "Web in Front," became a substantial hit on college radio in 1993, creating a strong buzz for the group's full-length debut. Icky Mettle arrived later in the year to highly positive reviews and more alternative-radio airplay, and the Archers supported it with an extensive national tour.
A five-song concept EP, Archers of Loaf vs the Greatest of All Time, arrived on the heels of Icky Mettle in 1994. Amid growing media attention, Madonna's Maverick label made a play for the band, but they elected to continue developing on an independent, with lower commercial stakes. Their second album, the rawer and noisier Vee Vee, appeared in 1995 and was an even bigger college-radio hit, thanks in part to the single "Harnessed in Slums." The album landed in the CMJ Top Five, and even got some press from the hipper mainstream media outlets. In its wake, Eric Bachmann convened the Chapel Hill side project Barry Black, an eclectic, mostly instrumental outfit given to bizarre arrangements; their eponymous first album was also released in 1995.
Meanwhile, the Archers compiled a raft of non-LP indie singles, B-sides, alternate takes, and live cuts for 1996's The Speed of Cattle. Their proper third album, All the Nation's Airports, came out later that year and showed the band moving into quieter, more layered territory. Bachmann's second album with Barry Black, Tragic Animal Stories, arrived in 1997, as did the live Archers of Loaf EP Vitus Tinnitus. The band's fourth proper album, 1998's White Trash Heroes, continued its exploration of calmer, more spacious sounds, and began to incorporate keyboards and samples. However, their marathon touring commitments were contributing to a sense of stagnation within the group. After the supporting tour for Heroes, the Archers decided to call it quits. A live album recorded at that tour's Chapel Hill show, Seconds Before the Accident, was released posthumously in 2000. Bachmann moved on to the folkier Crooked Fingers, which issued the first of several albums in 2000 as well.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 4/11/2006
Band Website: webinfront.com
Band Members:

Eric Bachmann - Vocals, Guitar
Eric Johnson - Guitar
Matt Gentling - Bass
Mark Price - Drums

Influences: Web in Front

Might

Lowest Part is Free

Harnessed in Slums

Underachiever March and Fight Song

What Did You Expect?

Scenic Pastures

Excellent Surf Video with White Trash Heroes as the background

Sounds Like: The Greatest of All Time...

Record Label: Alias Records
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Shirts!

At long last are done and mailing this week.  I've already sent a few out and will do the rest tomorrow and Saturday. I really appreciate everyone's patience through this whole ordeal, because i...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Thu, 17 Jan 2008 03:43:00 PST

Vee Vee Shirts - For Sale Here! ***UPDATED 9/12/07***

Hello Loaf fans  Well, after much back and forth - I finally got everything squared away with the printer and we're a go for the shirts. Rejoice ye merry indie rockers! The shirts will be $20 each ...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:58:00 PST

F.A.Q. - PLEASE READ!

Q. Hey, my crappy band is playing in NC soon, wanna get us a show with you guys/ trade shows with us/open for us sometime?A. No. First off, this page is run by an Archers fan, not the band so I can't ...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Tue, 19 Jun 2007 11:15:00 PST

Amazing Attempt by an Archers Fan at Fulfilling His Wish...

Our friend Glen (the guy who posted a lot of the live videos on You Tube) had an interesting wish he wanted to get fulfilled from his credit card company. Read on...----------------- Original Message...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Wed, 09 May 2007 08:36:00 PST

Nostalgia! A live Archers of Loaf show (on video) 10-22-98

I've got a real treat for all of you. I don't know how many here have actually seen Archers of Loaf play live, but I'm assuming that there's not many. It seems that with almost any band these days, th...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Thu, 05 Apr 2007 01:42:00 PST

Permissions for this page

This page is being maintained with the express permission of Eric Johnson and Archers of Loaf. There is no material on here that is not approved by Eric himself, so that means please don't delete thi...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Wed, 22 Nov 2006 08:36:00 PST

Eric Johnson Interview

Sean: Ok, so first off - thanks a lot for doing this. The response from fans has been overwhelming.EJ: No problem. Should be fun.Sean: First question is from Stephen: So, my question would be (if Eric...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Wed, 12 Apr 2006 08:58:00 PST

friends...

so i've been going through the search feature and adding anyone who has archers of loaf in their profile. problem is, there are like 409 pages, so it's going to take the better part of my life to add...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Wed, 12 Apr 2006 08:09:00 PST

Fuck you very much, myspace.

so for some unbeknowst reason myspace deleted the original archers profile i had up. I got some people hitting me up on my personal page asking me if i deleted the aol profile because i got fed up wi...
Posted by Archers of Loaf on Wed, 12 Apr 2006 05:47:00 PST