About
The root of all Fourth Of July songs is singer/songwriter Brendan Hangauer playing alone with a nylon-stringed guitar. Awash in a love of Dylan, Townes and Kitty Wells (as much as Silver Jews, Papa M and Palace), Hangauer’s songs are full of intimate interactions, cutting observations and dreamy, heartfelt candor. But as soon as they’re brought to the band, which includes Hangauer’s brothers Partick (bass) and Kelly (keys/trumpet) as well as fellow singer Adrianne Verhoeven (former Anniversary), guitarist Steve Swyers and drummer Brian Costello, the songs explode into amplified urgency and bold, bright heartland-pop.
Fourth Of July is a Lawrence, Kansas band insofar as the signals sent from coast to coast get filtered through their eyes and ears, leaving them utterly clued-in and yet carelessly left-out. Making music in Lawrence is an end in itself. Friends play together for the joy of it. Songs are written after the bars close. Raw, ramshackle live shows cap hours of daydreaming in holding-pattern jobs. It's an idyl and "Fourth Of July On The Plains" shines a light on all of it, the young and searching ("Be Careful"), nights of drinking too much ("Why Did I Drink So Much Last Night?") and the escapes into (and sometimes from) the arms of lovers ("She's In Love', "Pimps in Paris").
"Fourth Of July On the Plains" is an immediate, exuberant glimpse into young adulthood grappling with social dramas, corrupt politics and the hopes and desires no storm can shake.
Credits
Recorded in Feb 2007 by Ben Jackson at Mixtape SoundLab, Lawrence, Kansas.
Mixed and Mastered by Jim Vollentine at Jack Rock's Studio, Austin, Texas.
Artwork by Pre Sense Form.
Brian Costello: Drums.
Steve Swyers: Lead Guitar.
Kelly Hangauer: Keys, Vocals, Trumpet.
Brendan Hangauer: Vocals, Guitar.
Adrianne Verhoeven: Tambourine, Vocals.
Patrick Hangauer: Bass.
Released June 5, 2007 (Digital/CD) on Range Life Records.
Reissued July 21, 2017 (CD/Vinyl) on High Dive Records.
Links