Most aptly described by the band them selves, Otter Petter “is the four-piece rock outfit you’d hate to take off.” Coming together as a band through their pre-existing friendships in 2005, drummer William Pritchard and front man Michael Pritchard had already been bandmates all their lives, “driving their mother crazy practicing in the basement for hours and hours.”(Otter Petter)
Releasing their first EP in the same year as their formation, the self-titled five track quickly picked up steam, and in 2006 the lutrinae loving musicians were chosen along with nine other bands by the Chicago Tribune to compete in the Metromix Rock ‘n’ Vote contest, in which the band won the opportunity to play a show at the Metro along with three other contestants. Since then the indie-pop players have had a slew of publicity, being featured on CLTV, WXRT radio, The Chicago Sun-times, and the Chicago Reader, just to name a few. They’ve even had Thax Douglas write and perform a poem about them, a right of passage for Chicago bands that any city musician knows is a definite sign that you’ve arrived.
With so much positive press it’s no wonder that the band has performed across the Midwest and Eastern Seaboard, following up their EP with the 2008 full-length Fireflies and Lamp Lights. New City called the release “devastatingly infectious” and we couldn’t agree more- Otter Petter delivers definitive indie-pop that takes a shine to the likes of Weezer, The Shins, and early Death Cab for Cutie. Catchy choruses from singer Pritchard and bass player Amy Anderson coupled with buzzing keys by Raphael Dussaussoy make up a sound that is absolutely charming and mostly lighthearted, cloaking lyrics that are sometimes slightly less so, such as “In that motion picture sky I saw a thousand clouds that I/ Knew would only pass across our screen/And every single one reminded you that everyone/That you had ever held or love will leave/ I’m somewhere in between” The band, having spent the fall on a number of small Midwestern tours and performing at the CMJ Festival in New York, is currently in the midst of putting together their second full-length, for which they anticipate an early 2010 release.
Otter Petter Online:
Otter Petter.com
Myspace
iTunes
Otter Petter took their noses from the grindstone long enough to answer a few questions for Telegram Sam earlier this month, sharing their favorite venues, Chicago bands, and musical influences.
Telegram Sam: Top three favorite venues to play?
Otter Petter: Schubas, Empty Bottle, Subterranean
T.S: Can you tell us a little bit about your writing process?
Otter Petter: The process for writing and developing songs usually starts with Mike brining an idea to a rehearsal. Then everyone puts their personal touch on it and eventually the idea becomes a song. The song a lot of times ends up very different from what the original idea was. We do all of our own recording - we self recorded and released 2008′s Fireflies and Lamplights as well. Bill is the recording engineer of the band and makes sure everything sounds good and does all of the mixing. Many of the tracks on the upcoming release were recorded in a cabin at Thunder Lake in northern WI.
T.S: What are your top three musical influences as a band?
Otter Petter: It’s too difficult to narrow it down to just 3. We all come from different musical backgrounds and have picked things up from everything from modern rock/indie bands to jazz, R&B, classic rock etc…
T.S: Who are 3 of your favorite Chicago bands?
Otter Petter: Again, too many to name - Chicago is loaded with great current and past artists. but here a 3 names
The Buckinghams
Material Issue
Neko Case (does she count?)
T.S: Best and worst band moment?
Otter Petter: The best (and definitely weirdest) moment might be when we were picked by some well-known television writers to appear in a pilot episode for NBC’s prime-time, Chicago-based comedy State of Romance (Universal). It was directed by Peter Sollet, of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. We appeared performing our songs in segments at Double Door and Millennium Park.
The worst might have been when we found out the show was not picked up for 2009-2010 and we didn’t even get copies of the show or see anything we shot because it wasn’t released.
T.S: What other projects have you been a part of as individuals?
Otter Petter: We’ve played in various other bands over the years including Redball (Raphael) - the highlight of which was opening for Big Star at Metro), Amy was in the Pillow Mints and the Venom Lords.
T.S: If you could book a tour with any 3 bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Otter Petter: We had some mixed answers on this one.
Guided By Voices - Becasue we love their music and they might be willing to share some of their booze with us.
Silversun Pickups - This is another band favorite, and they have a girl in the band so it would give Amy someone to talk to while all the dudes are being sleazy or talking shop about their gear.
Big Star - getting a chance to see them as a full band with all the original members would have to be fantastic.
T.S: If you were to record a tribute album, whom would it be to?
Otter Petter: Maybe Sam Cooke - but wouldn’t him any justice.
Tags: Interview, Upcoming Release, Video
