Bound Stems blow into the ’Burg from the Windy City
Chicago quintet to perform songs from debut
By Jill Yaworski, a&e editor
Posted on December 7, 2006

Never been to Chicago? No problem. Pop in Bound Stems’ debut full-length album Appreciation Night released by Flameshovel Records and the band will take you there. From sampled noises of the Windy City’s O’Hare airport to cab drivers to a recitation of a Thax Douglas poem, the indi-rock record pays homage to the band’s hometown.

Bound Stems’ seven-song EP The Logic of Building the Body Plan was released as an introduction to Appreciation Night.

“The EP sets up ideas that become complete in the album,” the band’s drummer and rock band Harvey Danger refugee, Evan Sult said. “It describes the temporal place and environment we’re living in. The album is a book to the EP’s chapter.”

According to Sult, Appreciation Night explores the lives of the bandmates and the city from their perspectives.

“Our influences are more environmental than musical,” he said. “It’s more a private act, a journey of how we are working through things as people and friends in the city.”

The band even recorded its friends messing around with instruments on the album.

“Those are the people that are constantly surround us, so we wanted their voices on the album too,” Sult said. “Our inspirations are as much in the music as they are in the lyrics.”

Dan Fleury (guitar), Bobby Gallivan (vocals, guitar) and Dan Radzicki (bass, keys, vocals) started the journey together in high school, when they used to play basketball together. When the three moved to Chicago, they began looking for a project — and Bound Stems was born. Sult arrived from Seattle in 2002 to join the others. The foursome released The Logic of Building the Body Plan EP and Appreciation Night. Soon after, the band drafted new singer and multi-instrumentalist Janie Porche. The band reopened the album to Porche so she could be recorded on it.

“She really completed the band,” said Sult of Porche, who can play almost any instrument handed to her. “She is one of those people who has the ability to play what’s needed and add to each song.”

Bound Stems garners its name from an obscure linguistic phrase. It’s difficult to explain, but according to Sult it is a word that used to exist by itself, but now only exists with prefixes or suffixes. For instance, the ruth in ruthless.

Bound Stems is one of the latest indie bands to surface from the musical blogosphere, and the Chicago quintet were rewarded by being named one of the breakout artists at this year’s Computer Music Journal music marathon awards. The band’s EP has also acquired rave reviews from publications like The New York Times, Anthem and Entertainment Weekly.

The Chicago quintet just recently kicked off a 16-date tour with the band Rahim and are bringing the Windy City to the Friendly City Friday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m.