GRAMERCY ARMS releases sophisticated & endearing fourth album 'The Making Of The Making Of' via Magic Door Records

April 27, 2024

Bringing a little light into our lives, NYC-based collective Gramercy Arms has released their fourth album 'The Making Of The Making Of' via Montclair, NJ-based Magic Door Record Label. With nine tracks on offer, this album presents a varied smorgasbord of superb radio-friendly indie pop-rock gems and more intimate acoustic offerings. The band also present a new video for 'Never Say Anything (Magic Door Session)'.

A loose treasure-trove of musicians and artists, masterminded by Dave Derby (The Dambuilders, Lloyd Cole) and producer Ray Ketchem (Guided by Voices, Luna, Elk City), Gramercy Arms is inspired by the artistic heyday of ‘70s and ‘80s New York, creating addictive indie pop with exquisite hook-laden melodies and lyrics that will have you floating back in time and remembering your favorite mistake.

With many of the songs recorded during the same sessions for the band’s 2023 'Deleted Scenes' album, 'The Making Of …' is decidedly more of a band album with a looser and more raucous approach featuring live in-studio performances and an even wider array of contributors.

Produced, recorded and mixed by Ray Ketchem at Magic Door Recording in Montclair, NJ, it was mastered by Ketchem and award-winning engineer Greg Calbi (John Lennon, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Talking Heads, Patti Smith, Tom Petty).

Earlier, Gramercy Arms released 'Never Say Anything', a gorgeously performed paean to paranoid times featuring Lysa Opfer (Aeon Station) and Mark Lizotte (Diesel), and 'After the After Party', a rueful power pop gem about chances missed and taken, featuring longtime collaborators Kevin March (Guided by Voices, The Dambuilders, Shudder to Think), Hilken Mancini (Fuzzy, the Monsieurs), Rainy Orteca (Joan As Police Woman, Dead Air) and Mike Errico.

Both albums are loaded with talent, involving Doug Gillard (Guided by Voices, Nada Surf, Cobra Verde, Death of Samantha), Sean Eden (Luna), Phoebe Summersquash (Small Factory), Renée LoBue (Elk City, Flowers of America), Kendall Meade (Mascott), Verena Wiesendanger (Semi Gloss), Claudia Chopek (Bright Eyes, The Little River Band, Echo of the Ghost), John Leon (Roky Erickson, Royal Arctic Institute), Rafa Maciejak (Lloyd Cole and the Negatives, Ivy), Jules Verdone, Richard Alwyn-Fisher (King Canutes, The Winter Drinks), Steve Hurley (Gigolo Aunts), Carl Baggaley (Elk City, Royal Arctic Institute), Peter Hess (Phillip Glass Ensemble, Slavic Soul Party) and Gary Burton (Dovedale). 'Deleted Scenes' also involves the legendary Lloyd Cole.

"I initially thought about doing a double album and then decided against it. To me 'Deleted Scenes' and 'The Making Of The Making Of' are companion pieces and part of a larger work. I think of them as two sides of a double album and may release them as a double vinyl album in the future. To me, there is an understated, almost dark horse element to “The Making Of …” that gives it a special charm. In many ways 'Deleted Scenes' was more of the ‘obvious’ A-tracks, whereas 'The Making Of …' is just more fun. Songs like 'Lux', 'Susan' and 'The Long Game' capture that for me. The fact that the album has 4 different drummers with different feels and approaches has a lot to do with that because it still hangs together," says Dave Derby.

"Even though these songs came from the same sessions, this album was much more of a band record whereas “Deleted Scenes” was more about me and Kevin March building the tracks up together. Many of these songs were live full-band takes. I think that approach shows up in the final versions."

'The Making Of the Making Of' album is out now, available from fine music platforms, including Apple Music, Spotify and Bandcamp. Their record release party takes place on April 26 at Berlin NYC with support from The Gershwin Brothers and the Hilken Mancini Band.

CREDITS
Written by Dave Derby (Passive Aggressive Music BMI)
Recorded at the Magic Door Studio, Montclair, NJ
Engineered, Mixed and Produced by Ray Ketchem
Mastered by Greg Calbi and Ray Ketchem
'After The After Party' video by Max Skaff
'Never Say Anything' video by Debora Francis
Dave Derby photos by Debora Francis

Gramercy Arms presents fourth album 'The Making Of The Making Of' and live Magic Door session for 'Never Say Anything'

April 17, 2024

"Wistful, bittersweet and soaring power pop... With echoes of the likes of Teenage Fanclub and Dinosaur Junior, as well as the classicism of 80s indie-pop, it’s yearning and hooky in all the right places, a gleaming melodic pick me up" ~ God is in the TV Zine

Made up of members from New York and New Jersey, indie pop-rock collectiveGramercy Armsprese nts their fourth album'The Making Of The Making Of', released via Montclair, NJ-basedMagic Door Record Label, along with a new video for'Never Say Anything (Magic Door Session)'.

Gramercy Arms is a revolving collective of musicians and artists, masterminded byDave Derby (The Dambuilders, Lloyd Cole) and producerRay Ketchem (Guided by Voices, Luna, Elk City). Inspired by the artistic heyday of ‘70s and ‘80s New York, Gramercy Arms makes addictive indie pop - exquisite hook-laden melodies filled with lyrics that will have you floating back in time and remembering your favorite mistake.

With many of the songs recorded during the same sessions for the band’s 2023'Deleted Scenes' album, 'The Making Of …' is decidedly more of a band album with a looser and more raucous approach featuring live in-studio performances and an even wider array of contributors.

Produced, recorded and mixed by Ketchem at Magic Door Recording in Montclair, NJ, this album was mastered by Ketchem and award-winning engineerGreg Calbi (John Lennon, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Talking Heads, Patti Smith, Tom Petty).

Earlier, Gramercy Arms released'Never Say Anything', a gorgeously performed paean to paranoid times featuringLysa Opfer (Aeon Station) andMark Lizotte (Diesel), and'After the After Party',a rueful power pop gem about chances missed and taken, featuring longtime collaboratorsKevin March (Guided by Voices,The Dambuilders,Shudder to Think),Hilken Mancini (Fuzzy, the Monsieurs),Rainy Orteca (Joan As Police Woman, Dead Air)andMike Errico.

Both albums are loaded with talent, involving Doug Gillard (Guided by Voices, Nada Surf, Cobra Verde, Death of Samantha), Sean Eden (Luna), Phoebe Summersquash (Small Factory), Renée LoBue (Elk City, Flowers of America), Kendall Meade (Mascott), Verena Wiesendanger (Semi Gloss), Claudia Chopek (Bright Eyes, The Little River Band, Echo of the Ghost), John Leon (Roky Erickson, Royal Arctic Institute), Rafa Maciejak (Lloyd Cole and the Negatives, Ivy), Jules Verdone, Richard Alwyn-Fisher (King Canutes, The Winter Drinks), Steve Hurley (Gigolo Aunts), Carl Baggaley (Elk City, Royal Arctic Institute), Peter Hess (Phillip Glass Ensemble, Slavic Soul Party) and Gary Burton (Dovedale). 'Deleted Scenes' also involves the legendary Lloyd Cole.

"I initially thought about doing a double album and then decided against it. To me 'Deleted Scenes' and 'The Making Of The Making Of' are companion pieces and part of a larger work. I think of them as two sides of a double album and may release them as a double vinyl album in the future. To me, there is an understated, almost dark horse element to “The Making Of …” that gives it a special charm. In many ways 'Deleted Scenes' was more of the ‘obvious’ A-tracks, whereas 'The Making Of …' is just more fun. Songs like 'Lux', 'Susan' and 'The Long Game' capture that for me. The fact that the album has 4 different drummers with different feels and approaches has a lot to do with that because it still hangs together," says Dave Derby.

"Even though these songs came from the same sessions, this album was much more of a band record whereas “Deleted Scenes” was more about me and Kevin March building the tracks up together. Many of these songs were live full-band takes. I think that approach shows up in the final versions."

As of April 26, 'The Making Of the Making Of' album is available from fine music platforms, including Apple Music, Spotify and Bandcamp. Their record release party takes place that evening at Berlin NYC, also featuring performances by Hilken Mancini Band and The Gershwin Brothers.

'The Making Of The Making Of' album https://bit.ly/4cubTrw
Bandcamp http://gramercyarms1.bandcamp.com/album/the-making-of-the-making-of
Spotify https://open.spotify.com/artist/4gofSEYW9jDmstAkNZhI5O

Gramercy Arms presents 'Never Say Anything', a paean to paranoid times ahead of their fourth album

March 26, 2024

"A fabulous and fresh slice of positivity, wrapped up in a finely-tuned package of upbeat and harmonious pop-rock that will leave you wanting more and checking local concert listings to see if the band is heading your way. Impeccably performed; superbly arranged and produced" ~ The Spill Magazine

"Wistful, bittersweet and soaring power pop... With echoes of the likes of Teenage Fanclub and Dinosaur Junior, as well as the classicism of 80s indie-pop, it’s yearning and hooky in all the right places, a gleaming melodic pick me up" ~ God is in the TV Zine

NYC indie pop collective Gramercy Arms presents 'Never Say Anything', a gorgeously performed paean to paranoid times. This is the second taste of the band's fourth album 'The Making Of the Making Of', released via Magic Door Record Label.

Gramercy Arms is a revolving collective of musicians and artists, masterminded by Dave Derby (The Dambuilders, Lloyd Cole) and producer Ray Ketchem (Elk City, Guided By Voices, Luna). This particular track features shimmering acoustic guitars by Derby, moody basslines by Lysa Opfer (Aeon Station) and haunting sonic textures by Mark Lizotte (Diesel) on guitar, vocals and effects.

“Never Say Anything' is a song about unease and paranoia in the strange environment we inhabit right now. The fear of not knowing if someone is listening in. In some ways, it was inspired by the films 'The Conversation' and 'The Secret Lives of Others', which deal with surveillance and swirling paranoia," says Dave Derby.

"We did two separate takes of 'Never Say Anything' during the 'Deleted Scenes' / 'Making Of' sessions. The ‘band’ version with its frenetic early Feelies-inspired drumming fits the mood of 'Deleted Scenes' better. This version is darker and sweeter at the same time and my personal favorite of the two. Lysa Opfer’s harmonic bass parts are sublime and gorgeous. Mark Lizotte, true to form, recorded parts in his Sydney, Australia home studio, taking the song to new unexpected heights."

The accompanying video, created by Debora Francis, features members of the Gramercy Arms collective, including Jessie Kilguss, Renee LoBue, Richard Alwyn Fisher, Ray Ketchem, Dave Derby, Sean Eden, Gary Burton, Claudia Chopek, Lysa Opfer and Phoebe Summersquash.

Inspired by the artistic heyday of ‘70s and ‘80s-era New York City, Gramercy Arms makes addictive indie pop - exquisite hook-laden melodies filled with lyrics that will have you floating back in time and remembering your favorite mistake.

This album was produced, recorded and mixed by Ray Ketchem at Magic Door Recording in Montclair, NJ with mastering by Ketchem and award-winning engineer Greg Calbi (John Lennon, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Talking Heads, Patti Smith, Tom Petty).

Earlier, Gramercy Arms released the lead track 'After the After Party', a rueful power pop gem about chances missed and taken, featuring longtime collaborators Kevin March (Guided by Voices, Shudder to Think, The Dambuilders), Hilken Mancini (Fuzzy, the Monsieurs), Rainy Orteca (Joan As Police Woman, Dead Air) and Mike Errico.

'Never Say Anything (Acoustic)' is out now, available from fine music platforms - Apple Music, Spotify, Bandcamp and elsewhere. 'The Making Of the Making Of' album, slated for release on April 26, is now available for pre-order.

CREDITS
Written by Dave Derby (Passive Aggressive Music BMI)
Dave Derby - main vocals, guitars
Mark Lizotte - guitars, backing vocals, effects
Lysa Opfer - bass
Recorded at the Magic Door Studio, Montclair, NJ
Engineered, Mixed and Produced by Ray Ketchem
Mastered by Greg Calibi and Ray Ketchem
'After The After Party' video by Max Skaff
'Never Say Anything' video by Debora Francis
Dave Derby photos by Debora Francis

Gramercy Arms announces new album, shares lead track 'After The After Party'

February 21, 2024

"I had the tune and general structure of the song lying around for a long time. For a long time I had the opening line ‘Do you suppose the door was already closed?” and the general vibe of the song but not much else. The song title and lyrical concept came for me while sitting at a bar in Brooklyn and overhearing a group of people talk about what they were going to do after an afterparty they were attending that night. I thought that that was a great title and general concept to anchor the song around. The song is about two people who’ve been chasing after each other for years but the stars never align until this one fated night where they are chasing after some magic that has been eluding them," says Dave Derby.

"The “somewhere out on along the seven” line in the middle eight came from another overheard comment I wrote in a notebook somewhere. “Where does she live?” “Somewhere out on the 7 … in Queens". I played the guitar solo, thinking it was a placeholder but Ray Ketchem, Kevin March and I fell in love with it and kept it."

Inspired by the artistic heyday of ‘70s and ‘80s-era New York City, Gramercy Arms makes addictive indie pop - exquisite hook-laden melodies filled with lyrics that will have you floating back in time and remembering your favorite mistake.

As of February 21, 'After The After Party' will be available across online platforms, such as Apple Music, Spotify, Bandcamp and elsewhere. 'The Making Of the Making Of' album will be released on April 26 and is now available for pre-order.

CREDITS
Written by Dave Derby (Passive Aggressive Music BMI)
Kevin March - drums
Stephen Hurley - bass
Mike Errico - guitars
Dave Derby - main vocals, guitars
Hilken Mancini - backing vocals
Recorded at the Magic Door Studio, Montclair, NJ
Engineered, Mixed and Produced by Ray Ketchem
Mastered by Greg Calibi and Ray Ketchem
'After The After Party' video by Max Skaff
Dave Derby photos by Debora Francis