A Great Big Pile of Leaves
Bio
Brooklyn-based trio, A Great Big Pile of Leaves got their start in 2007 when guitarist/singer Peter Weiland and drummer Tyler Soucy took time from their prior projects to start writing material of their own. The first six songs came together as the self-released EP The Fiery Works, which the duo put out as a free download on their Web site. As word spread online, the band’s fanbase grew along with Weiland and Soucy’s excitement to get back to recording.
Continuing with the formula of self-producing, The Fiery Works II followed shortly afterward and was also released as a free download. Within the next year, the digital releases were downloaded over 12,000 times and the group prepared for a live setting with the addition of Tucker Yaro on bass. After playing several shows and writing a batch of new songs over the next few months, the newfound trio prepared themselves to record a full-length record Have You Seen My Prefrontal Cortex?
With each member also taking on engineering, production, mixing and mastering duties, the record became a full collaboration of each member’s respective influences and knowledge. “We don’t like to set up any boundaries when writing; we don’t consciously come into it with any walls up” says Soucy. “The three of us have a rather eclectic background of musical influences and we like to explore that and have a good time. The only thing we knew coming into this record, is that we were in control and that we wanted to make the best record we could; something we would enjoy from beginning to end with no sense of filler.”
Following the release of Have You Seen My Prefrontal Cortex? earlier this summer, the group have seen a rapidly growing fan base as well as praise on infuential sites such as absolutepunk.net where the record was reviewed with a 93% approval rating. The rest of the year will see a vinyl release of the album for hardcore fans as well as a large-scale fall tour that will showcase everything that this band has worked so hard for. “The positive reactions to our music have been pretty overwhelming so far, especially in a day and age when the Internet seems to be filled with a lot of negativity on message boards,” explains Soucy, “we haven’t really gotten much of that yet.”
Press
“One of the most enthralling, captivating releases of 2010, HYSMPC? is one of those albums that you can listen to dozens of times without ever settling on a favorite song, because they’re all your favorite. It’s one of those albums where you want to show it to the whole world, but you’ll only show it to a select few friends because it’s that good. You won’t just recommend this to any old acquaintance. This album is basically equivalent to how I want my marriage to be. After my honeymoon phase with Have You Seen My Prefrontal Cortex?, I continue to love it dearly and take it to bed with me every night.”
-absolutepunk.net (93%)
“They are good friends of mine, but I can say without bias that the integrity, emotion, and musicianship they posses is out of this world.”
-Jesse Mack of Motion City Soundtrack
“[A] band that you probably havenÕt heard of, but definitely should.”
-Positive Exposure
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PropertyOfZack Road Blog : : A Great Big Pile Of Leaves (Update II) Mon, Apr 09, 2012
From Tyler Soucy:
SXSW is always a lot of fun, but this year was a million times better than last year. The Topshelf Records show, our Making Moves showcase with Motion City Soundtrack, and the Giant Steps Productions show with Look Mexico were all amazing. The only bad part was the really terrible choice I made to jump into an empty pool during a photo shoot; 5 foot drop with my year old vans turned into a really bad bruised heel. Then combine that with all the walking one needs to do during SXSW and 8 shows in 4 days. Needless to say, I?m pretty happy to be laying in the back of the van right now, and to be back on a ?normal? schedule.
We just jumped back into the second half of our run with Mansions and Young Statues, and I must say, it?s great to see everyone on a daily basis again. I?m excited to finish out these next two weeks, get home and start writing and recording for the next full-length.
I?ll leave you with some photos from the past week:
Hey everyone,
We just got home from a really amazing tour with Mansions and Young Statues! We?ll post a final update on that tour soon, but for now you can use coupon AGBPOL20 over at our WEBSTORE and get 20% off all of our Shirts / Totes / Posters. We?re trying to clean house for some new designs, so this will be the last time you?ll be able to grab any of these!
A Great Big Pile Of Leaves have been added to the Saturday date of this year?s Bamboozle Festival. Check out the full lineup below by clicking ?Read More!?
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A Great Big Pile Of Leaves are currently out on tour with Mansions and Young Statues. The band will be doing a Road Blog for PropertyOfZack to keep fans updated from the road. Check out the first entry below and be sure to come back each week for more!
From Tyler Soucy:
We?re a week into our run with Mansions and Young Statues, and I think I can speak for everyone when I say we?ve been pleasantly surprised by the turnout at these shows. It?s awesome to see people reacting to, and supporting all three bands each night.
The best part so far, has been how well the bands have been getting along. We have played with both Mansions and Young Statues a few times before, but you never know what it will be like to see the same people everyday. It?s interesting to be out on the road with bands that are on the same level and have the same goals and aspirations.
I?ve been pulling double duty on drums, playing with AGBPOL as well as with Mansions every night, and even though I?m typing this out with a total of ten blisters on my left hand, this tour has been one of the smoothest, stress free runs we have been on. Although, Young Statues? van did catch on fire a couple of days into the trip, so I?m sure they?ll discuss that further.
