Biography
Ester Drang came together as a melancholy post-rock group in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma during 1995. Bryce Chambers, James McAlister, Sterling Williams, and Kyle Winner, who shared an affinity for Echo & the Bunnymen, My Bloody Valentine, and Mogwai, shaped a lush, bittersweet aesthetic for the band. Their first release, That Is When He Turns Us Golden, appeared on Red Crown Record Empire in 1999. David Motter joined the lineup for the follow-up, Goldenwest, which Burnt Toast Vinyl issued in 2002; the album drew strong notice from indie listeners and secured opening slots alongside the Get Up Kids, Wheat, and the Starlight Mints.
The group then signed with Jade Tree, where the 2003 album Infinite Keys presented Chambers, McAlister, Winner, and Jeff Shoop as its core quartet. Burnt Toast next put out the 2004 EP The Pleasure Themes and Get Rich Schemes, which included contributions from the Flaming Lips’ Steven Drozd. Winner’s departure left a trio that tracked the 2006 album Rocinate at San Francisco’s Tiny Telephone studio.
After that fourth LP, Ester Drang entered a lengthy recording break. During the interim McAlister issued electronic material under the name 900X, served as a regular touring and studio drummer for Sufjan Stevens, and added his playing to records by the National and David Bazan. Chambers launched Native Lights alongside Johnathon Ford of Pedro the Lion and Unwed Sailor, while Shoop collaborated with Unwed Sailor and his wife, singer/songwriter Rosie Thomas. Occasional performances of Ester Drang continued in Oklahoma under Chambers’ direction.
In 2016 and 2017 the original pair of Chambers and Winner accepted an offer to support Echo & the Bunnymen on the North American portions of the latter’s world tour. That summer they issued the track “The Union” on a tour-only CD-R.
The group then signed with Jade Tree, where the 2003 album Infinite Keys presented Chambers, McAlister, Winner, and Jeff Shoop as its core quartet. Burnt Toast next put out the 2004 EP The Pleasure Themes and Get Rich Schemes, which included contributions from the Flaming Lips’ Steven Drozd. Winner’s departure left a trio that tracked the 2006 album Rocinate at San Francisco’s Tiny Telephone studio.
After that fourth LP, Ester Drang entered a lengthy recording break. During the interim McAlister issued electronic material under the name 900X, served as a regular touring and studio drummer for Sufjan Stevens, and added his playing to records by the National and David Bazan. Chambers launched Native Lights alongside Johnathon Ford of Pedro the Lion and Unwed Sailor, while Shoop collaborated with Unwed Sailor and his wife, singer/songwriter Rosie Thomas. Occasional performances of Ester Drang continued in Oklahoma under Chambers’ direction.
In 2016 and 2017 the original pair of Chambers and Winner accepted an offer to support Echo & the Bunnymen on the North American portions of the latter’s world tour. That summer they issued the track “The Union” on a tour-only CD-R.
Albums
