released 26 October 2010
This New York City based folk trio is not some grand political statement. Instead, The End of America is an honest attempt among three friends to return music to its purest form. After years of leading their own bands, James Downes, Brendon Thomas, and Trevor Leonard found a powerful sound in joining their three voices. The vision for this new trio included a willingness to travel to the ends of the continent to create and record music in unique and inspiring locations.

The End of America's refreshingly honest approach to making music has created a buzz. "This is top notch songwriting and proof that you don't need to turn 100 knobs and use studio effects to illuminate music." (thebykerack.com) They now find themselves sharing the stage with artists such as Teddy Thompson, Rocky Votolato, Good Old War, and Anthony Green. At its core, The End of America is an intimate snapshot of three friends trying to reconcile and understand life the best way they know how; through music.



THE STORY BEHIND "STEEP BAY"

Steep Bay was recorded live in a cabin on Schroon Lake, located in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York. The album is named after the cove on which the cabin was built: a beautiful bay surrounded by rock cliffs and towering pine trees, beyond the reach of power lines, accessible only by boat.

In July of 2010, the trio made the drive up to a family cabin and paddled across at dusk. The old canoe that carried them could barely hold their weight let alone the gear, but they made it over safely at dusk. Their first recording was by a campfire that night, guitars on the shore under a sky full of stars. Using a small battery powered recording device with two mic inputs, the group set up everywhere: in the cabin, on the porch, even out on the water.

In the course of one week the trio wrote and recorded the album live, unedited, 9 tracks in all. The takes that were kept are from performances that felt the most honest, regardless of minor imperfections. Steep Bay is as much a documentary as it is a record.
_____________________________________________________

Credits:

Brendon Thomas - Vocals, Guitar, Banjo, Mandolin
James Downes - Vocals, Guitar, Percussion
Trevor Leonard - Vocals, Guitar

All songs (c) 2010 The End of America