Backyard Tire Fire return to the studio next month to begin work on the follow up to their critically-acclaimed 2008 release, The Places We Lived. They’ll be joined by Grammy Award-winning producer Steve Berlin behind the boards. Berlin first discovered Backyard Tire Fire when they opened for his band Los Lobos last October. Backyard Tire Fire’s Ed Anderson counted the legendary East Los Angeles group among his biggest influences, so the opportunity to join them on a bill was a career high point. What Anderson didn’t expect, however, was that Los Lobos would watch Backyard Tire Fire’s entire set from the side of the stage and later invite Anderson and company to sit in for the encore. Berlin was so taken by Backyard Tire Fire’s performance that he reached out the following week to inquire about the possibility of producing their next record.
“It takes a pretty special band to rivet the attention of Los Lobos, and Backyard Tire Fire are exactly that,” states Berlin. “Great songs, great playing and great guys. I’m really looking forward to the recording sessions. They’ve come up with another amazing batch of songs. In my opinion they are one of America’s best young bands.”
Steve Berlin and Backyard Tire Fire will commence recording in late February. Jeff Stuart Saltzman (Death Cab for Cutie, Stephen Malkmus, The Decemberists) will engineer the sessions at Type Foundry Studio in Portland, Oregon where many of M. Ward’s projects have been recorded, including last year’s hit, She & Him. As has been Backyard Tire Fire’s aesthetic for all of its previous recordings, the sessions will be cut to tape and completely analog.
Backyard Tire Fire’s 2008 effort, The Places We Lived fed a growing buzz in the U.S. based around principle songwriter Ed Anderson’s ability to combine working class lyrical sentiment with eccentric indie rock songcraft. The album finished on year-end “best of” lists with writers at No Depression, Blurt, Jambase and Glide Magazine. In addition, Sirius XM U has kept “Shoulda Shut It” in regular rotation since early Fall. On the performance front, Backyard Tire Fire toured relentlessly playing both headline dates and opening slots with Reverend Horton Heat, Rose Hill Drive and Squirrel Nut Zippers among others. In February, they’ll join JJ Grey & Mofro for a run of shows in the midwest and in March they’ll tape their debut appearance on the nationally-syndicated radio show Mountain Stage. Currently, Backyard Tire Fire are featured as PasteMagazine.com’s “Band Of The Week.”
Get stripped-down previews of two tracks to be featured on Backyard Tire Fire’s next album that were recorded during their 2008 Daytrotter session: “Food For Thought” / “Ready Or Not”
Upcoming Backyard Tire Fire tour dates are:
March 13 / Chicago Street / Joliet, IL
March 15 / Mountain Stage / Charleston, WV
March 19 / 40 Watt Club / Athens, GA**
March 20 / Emerald Lounge / Asheville, NC**
March 21 / Gottrocks / Greenville, SC**
April 2 / Locals Only / Indianapolis, IN***
April 3 / Southgate House / Cincinnati, OH
April 4 / Barley’s Taproom / Knoxville, TN
April 10 / Mojo’s / Columbia, MO
April 11 / Off Broadway / St. Louis, MO****
April 14 / Wisconsin Public TV / Madison, WI
April 16 / Gerstle’s / Louisville, KY**
April 17 / Hangar 9 / Carbondale, IL**
April 18 / Double Door / Chicago, IL**
April 23 / 7th Street / Minneapolis, MN
April 24 / High Noon Saloon / Madison, WI
April 25 / Green Room / Sheboygan, WI
April 26 / Brown Baer / Elkhart Lake, WI
April 30 / Redstone Room / Davenport, IA
May 1 / Nutty’s North / Sioux Falls, SD
May 2 / Vaudeville Mews / Des Moines, IA
* Supporting JJ Grey & Mofro
** Co-bill with Bloodkin
***Co-bill with Steepwater Band
****Co-bill with Pokey LaFarge