Hailed as “Midwestern Rock Heroes” by American Songwriter magazine, Columbus, OH-based Red Wanting Blue were the consummate DIY band long before DIY was fashionable, spending most of their career outside the confines of the traditional music industry and building an expansive fan base through two decades of relentless touring.
The decision to work with an outside producer, renowned Nashville- based singer-songwriter Will Hoge, yielded what they consider to be an epic album, their latest release, The Wanting. The making of it pushed Red Wanting Blue outside their usual grassroots comfort zone. While they got to record for the first time ever in Nashville, the meticulous process took them off the road for a year.
RWB were at a crossroads, needing to hook up with the right new label quickly to get their machinery in gear for touring the album in 2018. The holidays were approaching, but the band told their management team, Danny Goldberg and Jesse Bauer of Gold Village Entertainment, to immediately start considering prospective labels.
“Their pitch was that we were, in essence, self-releasing, but anyone who wanted to jump on the moving train, to join the circus in progress, was welcome,” Scott Terry, lead singer, says.
Blue Elan, an artist-friendly L.A.-based indie label founded in 2014 with an eclectic group of heritage and up-and-coming artists (Rita Coolidge, Colin Devlin, America’s Gerry Beckley, Poco’s Rusty Young, Chelsea Williams) showed immediate interest. The label’s team––including owners Kirk & Conor Pasich, GM Niels Schroeter and Senior Director of Sales and Project Management Eddie Eastabrooks––was open to RWB using its own longtime publicist and radio promoter. When they made their offer, Terry was impressed that they were willing to work with what was in place and build on it. The label and the band were in a position where they could partner and help each other.
“They were about heritage acts and baby bands, but no one in the middle like us,” he says. “Usually either the artist or the label holds all the cards, but from the beginning, this felt like a true partnership. We’re excited about having a West Coast label to help us open fresh opportunities and build our following in that part of the country.”
Date Signed: March 2018
Label: Blue Elan Records
Type of Music: Alternative Rock
Band Members: Scott Terry, vocals, tenor guitar, ukulele; Mark McCullough, bass, Chapman Stick, vocals; Greg Rahm, guitar, keyboards, vocals; Eric Hall, guitar, lap steel, vocals; Dean Anshutz, drums & percussion.
Management: Danny Goldberg, Jesse Bauer - Gold Village Ent.
Booking: Jason Kupperman - Paradigm
Legal: Ted Graffam
Publicity: [email protected]
Web: redwantingblue.com
A&R: Niels Schroeter
