AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Two Gallants

Artist:Two Gallants

Song:Fly Low Carrion Crow

Album:Two Gallants

Two Gallants is an indie folk duo from San Francisco. They had modest success twenty years ago. They went on hiatus in 2008 and returned in 2012. After two more albums, they went on hiatus again. This time it looks more permanent but they are hedging their bets just in case. Adam Stephens and Tyson Vogel knew each other while growing up in San Francisco. They were in bands while in high school. After they both learned about blues, they decided to form Two Gallants in 2002. The band name is from a James Joyce short story. They write and produce everything themselves. On stage it looks like they both play guitar which is why I label them as a folk duo. In the studio, Stephens sings lead and plays guitar and harmonica. Vogel plays drums. But they decided not to turn it into a band for live performances. At first Two Gallants performed in Sn Francisco clubs and busking outside BART stations. Then they released their 2004 debut album The Throes on the indie label Alive Records. Their big break came when Pitchfork's Jonathan Zwickel gave the album a rave review of 8.5/10. That generated interest and Two Gallants expanded their touring. They also realized that for the 2006 album What the Toll Tells, they needed to sign with a larger label with better distribution. So they signed with Omaha based indie label Saddle Creek Records owned by Conor Oberst's brother Justin Oberst. They appeared on Saddle Creek's CMJ Showcase at New York City's Bowery Ballroom and they played a couple of festivals in England. What the Toll Tells wasn't received as well as the first album. But Two Gallants toured North America so that got them out there. Fly Low Carrion Crow is from the 2008 album Two Gallants. The album got mixed reviews similar to the previous album which means the rave review for the first album was probably overpraised by this one guy. It just came at a good time for Two Gallants. The 2008 album Two Gallants is available as a digital download. They appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and continued to tour. After six years of touring, Two Gallants decided to go on hiatus in the summer of 2008. Both recorded albums and neither was received as well than when they were a duo. Two Gallants returned in 2012 with the album The Bloom and the Blight on Dave Matthews' ATO label followed by the 2015 album We Are Undone. They tried to make their music more mainstream rock. But that made some listeners wish for the sound of the early albums. After touring Two Gallants again decided to go on hiatus. And they are still on hiatus. It seems more permanent but they are not ready to admit to a permanent split. So Two Gallants was around for over a decade because of one fluke rave review. Subsequent results indicate that they weren't that good in the first place. That kind of thing can happen with indie music. Here's Two Gallants performing Fly Low Carrion Crow by Seattle radio station KEXP at the 2008 Bumbershoot Music Lounge in Seattle.