Artist Biography

Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears like things big. While they are, first and foremost, a pop band, the Brooklynbased quintet leaves no stone unturned, mixing elements of psychedelia, classic rock, indie, and prog into their sonic stew. The group has earned glowing comparisons to legendary iconsThe Beatles, The Kinks, The Move/ELO, Queen, XTC, Yes, and Frank Zappa, amongst othersas well as contemporary starsincluding The Flaming Lips, Ben Folds, and Of Montrealall within its first year of existence. Combining classic pop melodies, inventive chord structures, elaborate vocal harmonies, dazzling musicianship, and a quirky lyrical concoction of clever wordplay and outlandish thirdperson narratives, Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears are poised to claim their own spot in the rich lineage of pop music.

The group consists of Mike Acreman (keyboards/vocals), Brian Bauer (drums/percussion), Graham Norwood (guitar/vocals), David Ostrem (bass/vocals), and Bryan Scary (vocals/keyboards/songwriting). Beginning with their first live show, Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears have attracted a rabid fanbase thanks to their wildly energetic, propandcostumefilled performances. Indeed, FILTER Magazine called the bands October 31st, 2006 live concert debut 'one of the most impressive live performances weve seen in quite awhile,' and Scary and the Tears have continued to pile up impressive accolades for their highly theatrical and somewhat deranged live act. BUST Magazine called the bands August 2007 performance at Union Pool in Brooklyn 'the best live show weve ever seen,' and the group drew raves for its appearance on the popular Daytrotter.com. Over the course of their first 12 months together, Bryan and the Tears have played shows spanning every corner of the continental United States. Their resume to date includes headlining two national tours (presented by PureVolume and FILTER Magazine), showcasing at the CMJ Music Marathon, and playing during the South by Southwest Festival. Early 2008 will see the boys supporting a major national tour, bringing their genrehopping, mindbending live spectacle to new fans throughout the country.

Prior to the formation of The Shredding Tears ensemble, Bryan Scary began his recording career as a oneman band, playing every instrument but drums on his debut solo record, The Shredding Tears. The album quickly spread through college/satellite radio as well as the blogosphere, receiving rave reviews from sites such as Pitchforkmedia.com (who gave the song 'The Ceiling on the Wall' a 4star review) and Popmatters.com (who called The Shredding Tears 'one of the best records released in the last couple of yearsa masterpiece'). Scarys debut even came to the attention of famed celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, who called Scary 'incredibly talented' and predicted 'hes going to do very well.'

Bryan Scary & The Shredding Tears recently released the followup to this muchcelebrated debut. The record is entitled Flight of the Knife, and hit shelves on April 1st, 2008. Like its predecessor, the new album is chock full of infectiously catchy hooks and intricate vocal harmonies. A skyborne song cycle, the record expands upon the original sound, adding the frenetic rock and roll energy of the bands live show to the mix. In May, the record became the thirdever iTunes Editors Choice selection; it reached #24 on iTunes overall chart, and #6 on the rock chart. Moreover, Flight of The Knife was #30 on Billboards Heatseekers chart. Sales success was only outshined by the bands increasingly positive critical reception from media such as Spin, Nights with Alice Cooper, and MTV. The groups musicianship, songcraft, and singular eccentricity will surely earn the attention of an even wider national and international fanbase going forward.