Proud Simon

Brooklyn, NY-based Proud Simon has taken multiple forms over the years, shifting between a solo endeavor, a compact folk-rock group, an expansive collective incorporating horns, woodwinds, and strings, and, in its latest version, a five-piece rock outfit. At its core the project centers on the songwriting and vocals of Brian Keenan, who assembles whichever musical collaborators are available at any given time. His focus on chamber pop Americana, paired with a natural gift for arrangement, yields a distinctive, richly textured, and evocative sonic identity that nonetheless retains a sense of familiarity.

The project first took shape in Rochester, NY, during 2003, when Keenan and Charlie Monteverde began rehearsing together in a garage. That partnership led to the 2004 release of the EP Leaving alongside the ten-song album Sometimes a Stranger. After growing into a five-piece unit, the band issued its second EP, Victory March Through the Brandenburg Gate, in 2005, at which point the lineup dissolved. Keenan then relocated to the Brooklyn area, where he reassembled the group from scratch and put out the Bryce Hackford-produced Shoestring Universe in 2006, with Night of Criminals appearing two years later.