Sometimes you’ve got to take a few steps back in order to go forward. That was what songwriter Dan Luperini was thinking when he disbanded Madras in February, 2006.
By that time, over the course of nearly a decade, he had logged time with bands at opposite ends of the country. The earliest years were spent in the indie/pop scene in his hometown of Baltimore, most notably with Seven Planet Sun, and the latter in his adopted home of Los Angeles, fronting rock quartet Madras.
By most measures, things were going well. While the names and locales had changed, Dan’s voice and songwriting would become the focus of and consistently garner attention for both projects. A product of the musically tumultuous 90s, when the lines between mainstream and alternative were ever blurring, Dan’s songwriting brandished a multi-colored timbre - angular in foundation, yet driven by willowy melodies over lush and layered backdrops. Having a broad appeal, they would play in a diverse group of venues, dating back as far as the days on the east coast. Hitting stages from hometown indie stalwart,The Ottobar, to New York City rock rooms, Elbow Room and CBGB; From D.C.’s Black Cat, back to Baltimore’s funky 8x10 club, a wide ranging audience was getting turned on to the music.
In the years following his move to Los Angeles in 2001, Luperini and Madras would continue building a diverse fanbase. Methodically rising up the ranks of the L.A. music scene, playing timeless venues like The Troubadour , Silver Lake Lounge, Viper Room and The Roxy. while also spreading southward into the O.C and Long Beach scenes. Looking to bring the music to an even wider audience, their travels also took them to some of the industry's most renown national conferences, with performances at Nashville's New Music Conference, Austin's South By Southwest, and in Indianapolis for the up and coming Midwest Music Summit.
Madras was also making waves with their self produced releases. Fueled by the momentum of title track “Slow The Tide”, Madras' 2003 EP was added at more than 200 college radio stations across the U.S. and Canada. With their sophomore effort, the dynamic "Dimestore Raves" took the band to the next level in the 2004/2005 academic year, being added at more than 300 stations. As it was finding an audience at radio, Madras’ music was also making it to the big (and little) screen. With tracks licensed to film and television, including WB series “Summerland”, The N network’s “Beyond The Break”, and surf film heir apparent Wes Brown’s “Peel : The Peru Project”, the band was working their way into public consciousness on many fronts.
So why stop a moving train ? Well, it had been several years since his move to Los Angeles, and while things were pushing forward, Dan still felt there was an importante hurdle to clear. Though the successes were mounting,and though Madras was becoming more financially self sufficient, their budget was still reliant on Dan and the bandmembers enduring conventional day jobs. For Dan, it was well past the time when the formula needed to be changed.
Exercising his characteristic flair for drastic measures, in the early part of 2006, Dan would disband Madras. His plan would be to stop gigging, and work extra hours at the day job to sock enough money away to eventually quit, and focus only on making music specifically writing and recording. By the summer, he had left the job, and was putting pen to paper to complete some unfinished material. Living off of savings, and taking sparse work engineering for and recording other artists, he was preparing to record an album of his own material, in hopes of using it as a calling card perhaps to get more work as an engineer/producer or solely as a writer or player. In no uncertain terms however, there was no future plan for Madras.
Regrettably, as a result of the split, Dan would bid farewell to longtime bass player, Mark Tuminello. Mark’s travels with Dan had dated back to the Seven Planet Sun days in Baltimore, but in light of the nature of the Madras shutdown, and given that Mark had grown weary of the L.A. lifestyle, he moved back east to pursue a different path.
In the fall of 2006, Dan commenced work on a new LP, which would contain some material from the Dimestore Raves EP, along with those newly finished songs. For this go-round he would take a somewhat indulgent approach, playing bass, guitars and keyboards on all tracks, and drums on selected tracks. Dan would tap Madras guitarist Marc Thomas to put his singular textural signature on the record, and drummer Ryan Brown to cover rest of the rhythm duties.
During the production of the record, be it from the excitement from the new material, or simply from having suffered from being disconnected with live performance, Dan became eager to bring the material to the stage. He would of course need a band. Stil in town, and having helped with the production of the CD, guitarist Marc Thomas and drummer, Ryan Brown were ready and willing to take part. It was looking like there would be a Madras reunion. Of course, with the exit of Mark Tuminello, Dan would need to find someone to take on the bass duties. In a chance browsing of the classifieds at myspace, bassist Eddie Hudson would contact Dan and would soon join the group.
And now, despite the loss of a founding member, Dan Luperini and Madras plot their return. With what has transpired in the last year comes undeniable change; however, the voice and vision are in tact, and the focus is altogether stronger - if not picking up exactly where they left off, reaching far past where they had already gone.
