| Band History |
It's Not Rocket Science
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In 2003, Xander Rapstine returned to Austin, Texas after finishing school in Michigan and was re-united with his old band-mate, Charlie 3000. The two had spent close to two years separated from one another and good times were had as they reminisced about their days playing music together in It's Not Rocket Science, Climate, Talby, Quetalby and other lesser-known, failed experiments. They decided to form a new group that would create intelligent, challenging music that also appealed to fans of pop and rock. Both would sing and Xander would play guitar and Charlie would play bass.
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Around the same time, Charlie's friend Renee Riddle moved to Austin after finishing school in San Marcos. Charlie knew she could play the piano and sing, so he invited her to practice. She and Xander hit it off, so she went out and bought a keyboard and joined the group. The three christened themselves The Evildoers.
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Renee and Xander
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Charlie, Renee, Joey V and Xander
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After two months of searching for a drummer, Xander discovered his friend Joey V could play the drums but didn't have his own kit. Luckily, Charlie still had his and the four had a few jam sessions and then Joey joined the group (and bought some drums).
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The Evildoers practiced weekly in order to perfect their sound: pop songs showcasing the vocal interplay and harmonizing between Xander, Charlie and Renee with music that reflects their diverse musical tastes from sweet, romantic chamber-pop to throbbing disco beats to hyper-charged punk-inspired rock. In late 2004 (after almost a year of rehearsing), they were ready to start gigging around Austin and started playing shows at Flamingo Cantina, Room 710, Headhunters, Redrum and Carousel Lounge. They also started recording a demo with Eric Friend. The demo turned out so well that they decided to release it as a six song EP, Seven Cliques.
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The Evildoers in 2005
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The Evildoers in 2006
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In June of 2006, Renee decided to leave the group, so Charlie switched from bass to guitar and keyboards and the band started looking for a new bassist/vocalist. They placed ads on myspace and craigslist seeking a female bass player who could also sing lead and harmony vocals. Of all the people who responded (100% of which were men), Angus Barrs was the most energetic and quickest study. They decided to forgo female vocals and started rehearsing. It quickly became apparent that they still needed those sweet, high harmonies that Renee had provided, so they placed more ads looking for a female vocalist. After trying out a few ladies, the group welcomed Amber Weeks into the fold. By August the group had worked up enough material to start playing shows again and made their (2nd) debut at Carousel Lounge. In February of 2007 they began slowly recording their first full-length album with Chico Jones at OHM Recording Facility. In November of 2008 (one year and nine months after beginning the recording process), Pop Fantasy/Rock Empire was released.
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After playing a CD release show at Ruta Maya in December of 2008, the band went on hiatus due to internal friction and external pressures (jobs, relationships, family, etc.). Six months later, Angus, Charlie and Xander regrouped with new drummer Phil Plata. A few months later they added singer/guitarist Kari Kuwamura thus solidifying The Evildoers version 3.0.
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The Evildoers in 2009
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The Evildoers in 2010
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Unfortunately after playing one show in San Antonio, Kari decided to move to New York and the search for another female singer began. After months of auditions, Susan Rossi joined the fold and this new version of The Evildoers headed back to OHM Recording Facility to began work on their newest crop of songs.
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