...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead


...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead are an American alternative rock band from Austin, Texas, formed in 1994. The chief members of the band are Jason Reece and Conrad Keely. The two alternate between drumming, guitar and lead vocals, both on recordings and live shows. The band is known for their wild, energetic concerts. Their tenth studio album, , was released on January 17, 2020.

History

Formation

Keely and Reece have been friends since their youth, and originally in Hawaii. They each formed their first bands in Olympia, Washington, where Keely studied at The Evergreen State College. Keely, a songwriter and bassist named James Olsen and a guitarist started a band in the early 1990s. The band was called varied things before settling on "Benedict Gehlen". That went on in various names and forms until 1993. Soon after, Keely became involved in a group called Nancyville, while Reece went on to play drums with Honeybucket and then queercore band Mukilteo Fairies. Eventually, Keely and Reece moved to Austin, Texas. The two started playing as a duo under the moniker "You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead." The band expanded eventually to include guitarist Kevin Allen and bassist Neil Busch. They then officially lengthened their name to...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. Conrad's girlfriend from Olympia, Deanne Rowley, briefly played with them as a live back-up guitarist.
According to the band's website, their name is taken from an ancient Mayan ritual chant, which shows a striking similarity to an ancient Egyptian chant. They have also stated, however, that this is merely a joke, like another one, that they were choirboys.

Rise and success (1995–2006)

In 1995 they issued their first release, a song titled "Novena Without Faith" on a cassette-only compilation titled Austin Live Houses, followed by another self-titled four-song cassette on Golden Hour. In January 1998 they released a self-titled full-length on Trance Syndicate.
Trail of Dead soon moved on to Merge Records after the Trance label folded. The band released Madonna on Merge in late 1999, and toured the U.S. opening for labelmates Superchunk to promote it. They signed to Interscope Records and released the Relative Ways EP in 2001.
In early 2002, the Trail of Dead released Source Tags & Codes, which received wide acclaim, including a 10/10 rating from Pitchfork Media, later saying it is "one of indie rock's truly epic albums". Their following tour was chronicled by Rolling Stone, with Andrew Dansby commenting on their group dynamic as a "post-punk Voltron, that just might be the most exciting unit working today."
A follow-up EP to Source Tags & Codes was released in April 2003, titled The Secret of Elena's Tomb. The EP contained the electronic track "Intelligence" which featured, and was co-written by, Tyler Jacobson from A Roman Scandal, Reece's other band.
In July 2004, it was announced that Neil Busch had been removed from the band and Danny Wood would be taking his place on bass. Second drummer/percussionist Doni Schroader also joined the band around this time. Trail of Dead released Worlds Apart on January 25, 2005. Music videos were filmed for singles "And the Rest Will Follow" and "Caterwaul". The band also added live keyboardist David Longoria to their touring lineup. Now a six-piece, the band toured heavily on the album, with its trademark explosive live performances and a two-drummer attack. Opening for part of this tour was Longoria's band The Black, which featured Longoria on vocals and guitarist Alan Schaefer, with the rest of TOD filling out the group. The band's fifth album, So Divided, was released on November 14, 2006. Clay Morris replaced Longoria as live keyboardist, and eventually became a full-time member.

Post-Interscope era (2007–present)

In late summer of 2007, the Trail of Dead once again toured Europe, this time with drummer Aaron Ford replacing Doni Schroader. Danny Wood was absent from these performances, having quietly left the band. He would eventually be replaced by Jay Leo Phillips. The band provided the soundtrack to the 2007 film Hell on Wheels, a documentary about the formation of Roller Derby in Austin, Texas. After their overseas tour ended on March 15, 2007, the Trail of Dead returned to the studio to begin recording their sixth record. In October they supported the virtual band Dethklok on an Adult Swim college tour. In that same month, the band became independent, having left Interscope Records after lack of support.
In early 2008, Trail of Dead went back into the studio, without a record contract. Using their own capital, they filmed their recording experiences and released them on YouTube. On October 21, they released an EP, resembling an "album teaser", titled Festival Thyme on Richter Scale Records. On February 17, 2009, a 13-track album, The Century of Self was released. In September 2010, Conrad Keely posted news of an upcoming album 2011 release, produced by Chris "Frenchie" Smith, with an accompanying comic book. Frenchie Smith is also set to re-mix their debut eponymous album. On November 10, 2010, it was announced that their seventh album, Tao of the Dead, would be released in North America on February 8, 2011. It was also revealed that the band had stripped down to a core four-piece, and that Jay Phillips, Clay Morris and longtime guitarist Kevin Allen had been removed from the lineup. Circumstances of these departures are currently unknown. Aaron Ford recorded all of the drums for Tao of the Dead, but has left the band. The band performed live on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on February 7, 2011, debuting bassist Autry Fulbright II and drummer/guitarist Jamie Miller, of the band theSTART. On February 17, 2011, it was announced that Jason Reece would guest host Toby Ryan's radio show on Austin's KROX-FM.
In 2012, the band recorded material for a new album in Hanover, Germany with producer, Chris "Frenchie" Smith and engineer Mirko Hofmann. On August 22 the band announced their eighth studio album, Lost Songs, and released song entitled "Up To Infinity", which is dedicated to Pussy Riot. Cover art was revealed on September 6, 2012. On September 25, they released "Catatonic" through Spotify.
In May 2013, the band announced a forthcoming EP Tao of the Dead Part III via Twitter. Using PledgeMusic, they are taking pre-orders for special editions of the EP. In February 2014, the band announced a limited U.S. tour focused on playing music from Source Tags and Codes and plans to record their next album, a sequel to Tao of the Dead, in the spring and summer of 2014. In April 2014, the album Live at Rockpalast 2009 was released. In August 2014, the band announced their ninth album, IX, using an online jigsaw puzzle. Pitchfork suggested 'the arrival at a crossroads' for the band with the album. After a subsequent tour the band, Keely moved to Cambodia and released the album Original Machines in 2016. In November 2017 the band announced a European tour to celebrate the 20 year anniversary of the release of their debut album, Madonna, performing the album in full.
On November 14, 2019, the band released "Don't Look Down," the first single from their tenth album, . The second single, 'The Godless Void' was released on December 6, 2019. Tour supporting the album starts January 14 in Austin, Texas and continues up and down the West Coast. It moves over for a month long tour in the UK and across Europe.

Musical style and influences

The band cites their influences to include Fugazi, Melvins, Bikini Kill, KARP, Unwound, Sonic Youth, Led Zeppelin, Rush, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Public Enemy, Yes, J.S. Bach and Vivaldi.

Personnel

;Current
;Former

Discography

;Studio albums
YearAlbumUK
USGER
Label
1998...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead–––Trance Syndicate
1999Madonna–––Merge Records
2002Source Tags & Codes73–64Interscope Records
2005Worlds Apart9288Interscope Records
2006So Divided190188Interscope Records
2009The Century of Self–16938Richter Scale/Justice Records
2011Tao of the DeadNANA18Richter Scale/Superball Music
2012Lost SongsRichter Scale/Superball Music
2014IX––Richter Scale/Superball Music
2020'––19Richter Scale/Dine Alone Records

;Singles
;EPs
;Split EPs
;Other appearances
"Let It Dive" from Worlds Apart was featured on EA Sports' MVP Baseball 2005

Music videos