AM

Press Kit

“…a strong sense of melody and song craft.”
- Billboard

“AM takes equal parts of classic Americana, folk-rock and pop, and melts
them down into something entirely his own, and he does it with two
things money can’t buy: imagination and taste. These sturdily built
pop songs are graced with ingeniously colorful arrangements and have
that ‘instant classic’ thing stamped all over them”
- John Payne, LA Weekly

AM was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma and at the age of 13 his family
relocated to the suburbs of New Orleans, (Mandeville, Louisiana).
Taking refuge in his guitar, AM started playing live in bars at age 15
and played throughout high school. While attending college at Loyola
University New Orleans, he started writing songs, inspired equally by
his own reflective temperament, by the literature and texts he studied
as he earned his philosophy degree, and by the music he absorbed
simply by living in New Orleans. To this day New Orleans is a source
of deep emotion for AM. Always eager to lend his voice to charitable
causes, AM has performed at numerous fundraisers and is dedicated to
the rebuilding of his home city.

After moving to Los Angeles, AM began working out his songs encouraged
by Gary Jules, an acclaimed songwriter responsible for starting a
haven for musicians at the then newly formed Hotel Café, and a
friendship with Jamie Myerson, a respected solo artist and producer
who has worked with Duncan Sheik, David Poe, Paul Oakenfold, and
Sneaker Pimps.

Writing at home, he nurtured his unique style through a combination of
meaning, poetry, and sound and began recording the results in his
bedroom. AM eventually brought his homebrew discs to Myerson’s studio,
where he and the producer explored their potential to grow within
ambitious, expanded settings. Aside from some bass lines and drums,
they cut every new part themselves, vocal and instrumental. “Jamie
knew how to embrace the darker side of what I do,” AM points out,
“from the long reverbs to the creepy synthesizer pads in the distance.
It was a perfect partnership.”

Upon finishing the music that would become “Troubled Times”, the
reception in his current home of Los Angeles and world-wide
tastemakers has been considerably welcoming with radio-play and
podcasts of his live appearance on KCRW’s “Morning Becomes Eclectic”.
In the U.S., AM stirred strong responses at the South by Southwest
Music Festival (KCRW Showcase), after which he licensed “Troubled
Times” for North America and the UK. Television and film picked up on
the buzz; and in a matter of months AM’s songs were heard in indie
films at every major film festival in the U.S. and Canada including
the Sundance Film Festival, and on television including HBO’s “Big
Love” and MTV’s “The Hills” – all 10 songs from “Troubled Times” have
been featured in films and television shows and at least 51 placements
of AM’s music as of this writing.

Accolades began to pile up, hailing AM as “mellow gold” (Louisiana
Music Export) and “instantly classic” (LA Weekly) destined to “climb
the ranks to the top” (Performing Songwriter) with “the look of a
movie star and the sound of a rock star” (Indie Hype), while lauding
his music for its “deep soulful insights” (Music Connection) or
marveling that “I haven’t heard such passion and integrity in music in
a while” (Tuned in Music).

Today, having been tapped for iTunes “Best Indie Album of the Year”,
and the LA Weekly Music Awards “Best Singer/Songwriter of the Year”
award, AM has earned opportunities to expand his horizons co-scoring
the indie film “Man Maid” (starring Los Angeles punk legend John Doe)
with composer Tom Hiel (Swimming With The Sharks, The Practice). But,
he promises, writing and performing will be at the heart of whatever
he does. It’s almost as if he has no choice, not as long as new songs
keep demanding his attention … not as long as shadows remain, past the
edge of town or within the unquiet soul.

AM has recently produced a duets project “Side By Side - Duets EP.Vol.
1” mixed by Charles Newman (Magnetic Fields) featuring friends and
fellow Hotel Café/ Los Angeles favorites Buddy, Rick Garcia, Meiko,
Tina Dico, Julianna Raye, and Susie Suh which debuted at #58 on the
Itunes Folk Charts and was featured by iTunes in “What’s Hot” and also
“iTunes Indie Spotlight”. This is the first volume in a 6 volume
series. AM’s sophomore album “Soul Variations” has also been
completed and is already garnering placements in television shows such
as ABC Family’s “Kyle XY” and MTV’s “Real World”.

AM has shared the stage with such notable acts as Gary Jules, Rhett
Miller, Amy Correia, Michael Penn, John Doe, G. Love and the Special
Sauce, Bob Mould (Husker Du/ Sugar), and Glen Tilbrook (former Squeeze
songsmith), Bob Schneider, Duran Duran, The Flaming Lips, Pete Yorn,
and many more.

“…AM writes literate, emotionally balanced tunes that are infectious
without being moronic, hip without being oh so, and pop infected
without losing their edge… he is a songwriter ready to be discovered
by a wider audience, an audience interested in smart and sincere songs
that speak to the vastness of the human spirit.”
- Jedd Beoudoin, f5wichita

“A clear, expressive voice, meaningful lyrics, and a magical touch on the
guitar equal some great songs, that are translated perfectly on AM’s
new CD “Troubled Times” click to listen to him here, or catch him on
his US tour now.”
- MYSPACE Editorial Special Feature

“…effectively channels Wilco’s pop sensibilities, with the intimacy of Josh Rouse
and Coldplay. His soothing, soulful voice perfectly compliments his
personal and stark songwriting and layered production. This is rootsy
AM gold (pun intended).”
- Jeff Weiss, Miles of Music Front Page Feature

“A cool hybrid between Pete Yorns Music for the Morning After and
Coldplays Rush of Blood to the Head, Troubled Times uses the same
melancholic vibes as both artists, but inserts his own edge inside
each track like a secret addictive ingredient.”
- Andrea Mooney, WERS Radio