Biography
Athens, GA psych-folk collective Summer Hymns originated in 1997 when singer/guitarist Zach Gresham and drummer Philip Brown, veterans of Joe Christmas, decided to launch the project. Masters of the Hemisphere guitarist Bren Mead rounded out the initial trio, after which Of Montreal’s Derek Almstead took over bass duties and Dottie Alexander added keyboards. Multi-instrumentalist Adrian Finch, another Masters of the Hemisphere alumnus, came aboard before the band issued its debut single, “Half Sick of Shadows,” on the Made in Mexico label. The first album, Voice Brother and Sister, appeared in 2000. Their second Misra release, Celebratory Arm Gesture, surfaced in spring 2001. By the following year the group had slimmed to a quartet comprising Gresham, Brown, Matt Dawson on bass, banjo, mandolin, and keyboards, and Matt Stoessel handling pedal steel and guitar. This revised lineup collaborated with Lambchop’s Mark Nevers to record the third album, Clemency, whose glossy country cheer reached stores in mid-summer 2003; U.S. concerts sustained visibility through December. In between shows Gresham stockpiled fresh material that became the 2004 EP Value Series, Vol. 1: Fools Gold. After another round of personnel adjustments, Summer Hymns returned in 2006 with Backward Masks, which introduced ex-Pine State bassist Chris Riser.
Albums
