Recently described in SPIN magazine as "a high-energy cross between Brian Wilson, Paul Stanley, and Elton John,” Adam Marsland's pop adventurism, brash vulnerability and stubborn idealism have not earned him the record sales of his L.A. contemporaries Weezer (with whom he once shared rehearsal space) or the cult following of Wondermints or The Negro Problem (both of whom he has performed with), but he has had one of the more prolific and intriguing music careers of the last 10 years.
A talented singer, arranger, performer, multi-instrumentalist and "one of the most gifted songwriters to come out of the west coast in a long time" (Time Out-NY), Marsland has pulled off rock, punk, baroque pop, soul and alt-country through the course of seven albums and 22 tours. When his label collapsed on the week of the release of his band's third CD, he went totally underground, touring alone for 2 1/2 years straight and selling thousands of albums out of the back of a 1994 Toyota Tercel. More recently, thanks to the advent of myspace, a jaw-dropping band that includes a bonafide pop legend, and a tour-de-force live album of similarly overlooked but worthy Beach Boys songs, Marsland's smartass-punk-meets-music-geek songs and persona have attracted a new audience.
Cockeyed Ghost/The Big Deal Era
This writer of songs "almost too literate and catchy for mass consumption" (All Music Guide), scored a local hit at age 17 in upstate New York before moving to California to found the high-octane pop-punk band Cockeyed Ghost with current drummer Kurt Medlin. The band signed to Rykodisc-distributed indie Big Deal in 1996 and made two albums, KEEP YOURSELF AMUSED and NEVEREST, appeared with Fastball, Third Eye Blind and Shonen Knife, graced the cover of the L.A. Weekly and even appeared in an NBC-TV movie. A change in membership and a move toward emotional, baroque pop resulted in 1999's THE SCAPEGOAT FACTORY, which The New York Press named album of the year. It also coincided with Big Deal going bankrupt, killing momentum for the band.
The D.I.Y. Era
Disgusted with the music industry, Marsland fought for and won back the rights to his albums and then pressed on with Cockeyed Ghost's last and finest album, LUDLOW 6:18, a desert rock film noir which came out in May 2001. At first ignored and poorly distributed, Adam hit the road in a series of "One Man, One Car, One Guitar" tours, logging 350 shows and 75,000 miles in the next two years, documented on his 2002 live album 232 DAYS ON THE ROAD. He also found time to contribute keyboards and vocals to L.A. singer/songwriter (now Tony winning "Passing Strange" Broadway playwright) Stew and The Negro Problem on tours with Counting Crows and John Mayer and on the highly acclaimed albums JOYS AND CONCERNS and THE NAKED DUTCH PAINTER. The LUDLOW 6:18 CD eventually garnered a small, but devoted following. Bassist Robert Ramos left the band for family reasons shortly thereafter, and the Cockeyed Ghost moniker was retired.
Adam Marsland's Chaos Band
Returning back to Los Angeles after 2 1/2 years of constant touring, Adam formed an unlikely -- but extremely satisfying -- alliance with the similarly unpredictable and sometimes underappreciated ' soul chanteuse Evie Sands (writer of songs for Barbra Streisand and Beck and the original voice of "Angel of the Morning," among many other accomplishments). Along with Cockeyed Ghost alumni Kurt Medlin and Severo and keyboardist John Perry, they cut Adam's solo studio debut YOU DON'T KNOW ME, which was released in 2004 and was the first of Adam's records to garner substantial commercial radio play, but once again fate intervened as Adam was soon after sidelined for several months with a mysterious illness (probably an untreated outer ear infection) that affected his hearing for years afterward and made performing difficult.
By mid-2005 he had recovered enough that Adam Marsland's Chaos Band -- with Dragster Barbie bassist Teresa Cowles replacing Severo, who left to join The Smithereens – began a rigorous playing schedule and stunned audiences with its NRBQ-like versatility, whipping out covers by Dead Kennedys and the O’Jays with equal panache, and playing as many as 60 songs in one night. They then mounted an ambitious tribute to Beach Boys Carl and Dennis Wilson with archivist Alan Boyd. This drew the attention of Beach Boy Al Jardine, who appeared with the band at a few shows that year.
Dennis and Carl Wilson Tribute Album
Grammy-award winning engineer Mark Linett (Brian Wilson Presents SMiLE) recorded the band's June 24, 2006 performance for the LONG PROMISED ROAD: SONGS OF DENNIS AND CARL WILSON – LIVE album, which was released over the internet in December and hit record stores March 13, 2007. The album, which showcased the band's harmonic and instrumental versatility and was released with few studio overdubs, was a steady seller throughout the year and even made the short list for a Grammy nomination, missing by only a few votes in the Pop Performance category.
"Daylight Kissing Night - Adam Marsland's Greatest Hits"
In 2008 Adam completed his return to full-time music-making with a 20 track album called DAYLIGHT KISSING NIGHT: ADAM MARSLAND'S GREATEST HITS released on March 18, 2008. With a artist-breaking $5.99 list price and several new recordings included, the album was his first marketed exclusively to the retail chain since his Big Deal days, and was the subject of an intense word-of-mouth campaign among Adam's fan base. The CD immediately sold out across the U.S. and reached #17 on Amazon's rock chart, followed by a traditional media campaign and a 40-date national tour in the summer.
"Go West"
Upon returning from tour, Adam immediately set to work on his first album of original material in five years. Despite the deaths of two family members and a home invasion, recording progressed so well that two album's worth of material was recorded around a coming-of-age storyline. The stylistically varied, 23-track double album GO WEST was released on August 18, 2009, immediately shooting to the top of Amazon's best-seller list (#22), followed by an extensive national press and radio campaign and a full-band tour of the U.S. throughout the last quarter of 2009. GO WEST made significant inroads to college radio, with 120 stations adding the record. Many critics and listeners considered the album Adam's finest album to date, but despite its quality (and a popular video for the single "When I Lied To Everyone"), the extreme length and diversity of the album coupled with the difficulties of touring in a recession hindered its breaking through to a larger audience.
"Hello Cleveland"
While on tour, Adam added another jaw-dropping achievement to his resume: he wrote an entire album in the van, and recorded all 14 songs from start to finish with his touring band in one 8-hour session at a studio outside Cleveland, Ohio with noted metal producer Bill Korecky. Titled HELLO CLEVELAND, it saw limited release in January 2010 and will see general release in April 2010. After 6 years, he also unexpectedly reunited with his bandmates in Cockeyed Ghost for a benefit concert in December 2009, and has left open the possibility of future reunion shows. After the release of HELLO CLEVELAND, Adam indicated he had tired of managing his own career and would step back from promoting his own music to work with other artists, though he indicated he would continue to perform and might return to recording original music if there was enough outside interest.
Session/Sideman Work
In the last several years Adam has become an increasingly sought-after triple threat (keyboards/guitar/vocals) session player and sideman with a reputation for accuracy and detail, most notably after recording and playing live with Hal Blaine, Don Randi and Jerry Cole of the legendary Wrecking Crew. His list of backing credits includes members of the Beach Boys, Stew, Davie Allan, Carnie and Wendy Wilson, Pete Ham of Badfinger (posthumously), Paul Collins, Julia Fordham, Kjehl Johansen (Urinals), Sara Stanley, Rich McCulley, Kaz Murphy, Jeff Merchant and countless others. He acted as producer on soul singer Norman Kelsey's 2007 debut album A Talent For Loving, as well as arranging vocals on Anny Celsi's 2009 album Tangle Free World, and music directing the 2008 Carl Wilson Foundation concert at the Roxy Theatre. He opened his home studio to the public in February 2010 and is currently producing the debut album for EverBlue lead singer Adam Exler, as well as constantly working as a session musician and singer.