Bow Thayer & Perfect Trainwreck

It has been a mighty fine year for the band and we owe much of it to you and your support. We capped off 2010 with a most enjoyable show at our favorite local watering hole, the Clear River Tavern. There is something magic about setting up in the corner of a bar, turning it up and just going for it! The night belonged to our newest member Chris McGandy and his shit was blazing. Last New Year's at the Clear was his first gig with us and he has come a long way baby! His pedal steel lines are cozier than a fart in a mitten and we couldn't picture a gig without him. Somehow we managed without "Sister" James Rohr on the keys. He was sorely missed but if he was there we can only guess that the building would no longer be standing.

To recap all the stuff that happened this year would take volumes, so we will just narrow it down to the stuff that sticks out, starting off with James Rohr and his wife, Rebecca, delivering their second daughter, Ida Rose, in the backseat of their car in a furniture store parking lot somewhere in Cambridge, Mass. Man, there has got to be a song about that in the future.

We have fond memories of playing the Chandler Music Hall, the Tupelo Music Hall, the Southern Vermont Center for the Arts, and many other wonderful rooms around New England. We also found ourselves in Southern California recording the "Monkeyhead" single with producer Marc Ford (guitarist for Black Crowes/Ben Harper).

In November, we put out the Perfect Trainwreck's second full-length, Bottom of the Sky, a damn fine record that we made at Levon Helm's barn (produced by his engineer and back-up drummer Justin Guip) and the response has been as great as it was for Bow's solo acoustic record Shooting Arrows at the Moon. The follow-up to that record, which was the catalyst for the string trio "The Holy Plow" featuring Bow, Patrick Ross and Kristina Stykos, should see the light of day this year.

The rest of the band has been busy with their own side projects. Jeremy found himself in 13 different countries this past year holding down the low end for the legendary Booker T. Jones, and Jeff continued to spank out rhythms for the hit TV program "Rescue Me".

Dreams came true in 2010. 10 years ago Bow decided to dig a hole in the side of the mountain and build a studio. That fantasy has finally become a reality and "Woodshed Studios" is open for business and music making. There is still much to be done but the room sounds great and will forever be evolving. Local soundscaper and songster Spencer Lewis christened the board with a new record to be out in 2011. Tim Mikovitz signed on as the band's official soundman as well as chief engineer and operator at Woodshed Studios.

Longtime fan, friend and metal blogger Scott Florance signed on as manager and is tirelessly paving new roads for us from his office at Battenkill Music in sunny LA. Former manager, longtime fan and dear friend Elizabeth Freund scored us the the gig of a lifetime when she hired us as house band for the Imagine There's No Hunger benefit in Hollywood, CA. We were the back-up band for Edgar Winter, Dave Stewart, and Booker T, and shared the stage with Ringo Starr, and Joe Walsh for a rendition of "Give Peace a Chance" to raise money for starving children around the globe.

And then there was the Tweed River Music Festival, only in its second year as a public event but this lil' fest of ours was a huge success and plans for 2011 are already in progress. You can expect to see live footage of the band performing at the Tweed last summer, as well as a live album from our last show at the Tupelo Music Hall.

We also hope to tour wherever we can to promote our new record. Your support means everything to us - this music is our lives and we want to spread it around as far as we can. We are very, very lucky and grateful and have huge aspirations for 2011.

See you soon!

Love, 
The Perfect Trainwreck