Biography
16 Horsepower formed in Denver as an alternative country outfit centered on the singular songwriting and vocals of David Eugene Edwards. The group built its reputation through songs that fused rural backwoods kitsch with jagged, off-kilter country-rock textures. In the earliest configuration, Edwards worked alongside drummer Jean-Yves Tola and bassist Pascal Humbert; after the band moved from California to Denver, Humbert departed and Keven Soll took his place. Their self-titled debut EP came out on A&M Records in 1995, and the following year the full-length Sackcloth 'n' Ashes appeared, featuring a fiddle cameo by Gordon Gano of Violent Femmes.
Soll later exited, yet Humbert rejoined in 1997 together with guitarist Jeffrey Paul Norlander. John Parish, known for his work with PJ Harvey, was enlisted to produce the next album, Low Estate, which surfaced in early 1998. Secret South followed in 2000 and preceded a deliberate pause in studio activity. By then guitarist Steve Taylor had entered the lineup, his arrival aligning with Norlander’s departure. The live album Hoarse, issued in spring 2001, became the band’s first release of the new decade.
A year afterward the original trio reunited with Taylor to write and record Folklore, which Jet Set, the New York indie label, released that summer. In 2003 the same imprint put out Olden, a set comprising twelve previously unheard demo and alternate takes of 16 Horsepower songs, six live recordings from a 1994 Denver performance, and two band interviews. January 2011 brought Yours Truly, a twenty-five-track overview that paired twelve fan-selected “popular favorites” gathered through an online poll with a second disc of thirteen B-sides and rarities.
Soll later exited, yet Humbert rejoined in 1997 together with guitarist Jeffrey Paul Norlander. John Parish, known for his work with PJ Harvey, was enlisted to produce the next album, Low Estate, which surfaced in early 1998. Secret South followed in 2000 and preceded a deliberate pause in studio activity. By then guitarist Steve Taylor had entered the lineup, his arrival aligning with Norlander’s departure. The live album Hoarse, issued in spring 2001, became the band’s first release of the new decade.
A year afterward the original trio reunited with Taylor to write and record Folklore, which Jet Set, the New York indie label, released that summer. In 2003 the same imprint put out Olden, a set comprising twelve previously unheard demo and alternate takes of 16 Horsepower songs, six live recordings from a 1994 Denver performance, and two band interviews. January 2011 brought Yours Truly, a twenty-five-track overview that paired twelve fan-selected “popular favorites” gathered through an online poll with a second disc of thirteen B-sides and rarities.
Albums
Singles
