Biography
Arizona-based power pop outfit the Resonars locked into their signature approach once guitarist, vocalist, and producer Matt Rendon abandoned efforts to collaborate with others and instead committed to solitary sessions on an aging 4-track recorder. Working in isolation, he forged a hybrid that merged the crisp hooks of the British Invasion with the driving force of mod groups such as the Who, then layered on garage-rock attitude and committed the results to tape in unadorned, lightly fuzzed arrangements. The band’s debut, 1997’s The Resonars, established the blueprint that every subsequent release followed with little deviation. Through releases on Get Hip, Trouble in Mind, and Burger Records—the last of which hosted their strongest 2010s work—the group occupied a niche where garage, power pop, psychedelia, and mod converged without friction.
Rendon originally conceived the project as a comic-book premise centered on a fictional 1960s folk-rock band called the Resonars that somehow surfaces in the 1990s; the name itself honored an actual Tucson, Arizona group that had once included his older brother, Rick Rendon. Although the comic never materialized, the band briefly did. In 1991 rhythm guitarist Rendon was joined by Mario Cordova on bass, Dustin “OJ” Moyer on drums, and Eric Royer on lead guitar and vocals. That quartet cut a four-song demo in 1992 (issued two years later) before splitting in 1993 amid growing musical disagreements.
Rendon spent a short time in Sudus Point, New York, then returned to Tucson in early 1994 and revived the Resonars with Forest Dunn added on bass. The new lineup recorded the cassette-only full-length Tripping in Your Coffin in 1995; they disbanded by the end of 1996. Rendon attempted another reunion with Cordova and Moyer, yet the absence of a suitable lead singer prompted another quick dissolution.
Retaining the Resonars name, Rendon now concentrated on developing a sound that drew from prime garage-rock songcraft, the kinetic drive of mod bands like the Who, and the punchy tunefulness of power pop. In 1998 the self-titled album appeared on Tucson’s Star Time Records; Rendon performed and four-tracked every instrument and vocal, while the remaining “members” credited were names originally invented for his comic-book story. Get Hip issued the follow-up, Bright and Dark, in 1999. Although Rendon had long planned to assemble a live unit, he never followed through and retired the Resonars name in October 2000. He continued performing locally with Al Perry & the Cattle, then relocated to Seattle and joined the Vultures under the alias Mickey Finch. By 2001 he was back in Tucson, where he played with the garage-punk band the Knockout Pills alongside members of the Weird Lovemakers and Los Federales. In 2002 he revived the Resonars moniker for the Get Hip release Lunar Kit, which delivered a harder-edged sound and also included both sides of the 2000 single “Floor Lamp Eyes.”
Most of his time was consumed by the Knockout Pills until that band dissolved in 2006, at which point Rendon refocused on the Resonars. Still working entirely alone on his dependable 4-track, he delivered the 2008 Get Hip album Nonetheless Blue.
Moving to the California label Burger Records, the Resonars maintained the same sonic template. That Evil Drone appeared in 2008 and Crummy Desert Sound followed in 2011. Trouble in Mind released the 2012 EP Long Long Thoughts, then compiled The Greatest Songs of the Resonars, drawing material from all prior albums. Around the same period Rendon finally assembled a live incarnation featuring guitarist Isaac Reyes of Lenguas Largas, bassist Jeremy Schliewe from the Knockout Pills, and drummer James Peters of the Jons. He also constructed a permanent backyard studio, completed in 2014, and began recording other artists full-time. A bout of writer’s block halted new Resonars material for several years, though he still managed to complete a heavily psychedelic album in 2015 under the name the Butterscotch Cathedral. In 2018 he resumed work on a Resonars record, enlisting current live-band members drummer Johnnie Rinehart and bassist Ricky Shimo; he also handed lead vocals on one track to former Knockout Pills colleague Travis Spillers. The resulting 2019 album No Exit preserved the group’s longstanding core sound while upholding the songwriting standard fans had come to expect across the decades.
Rendon originally conceived the project as a comic-book premise centered on a fictional 1960s folk-rock band called the Resonars that somehow surfaces in the 1990s; the name itself honored an actual Tucson, Arizona group that had once included his older brother, Rick Rendon. Although the comic never materialized, the band briefly did. In 1991 rhythm guitarist Rendon was joined by Mario Cordova on bass, Dustin “OJ” Moyer on drums, and Eric Royer on lead guitar and vocals. That quartet cut a four-song demo in 1992 (issued two years later) before splitting in 1993 amid growing musical disagreements.
Rendon spent a short time in Sudus Point, New York, then returned to Tucson in early 1994 and revived the Resonars with Forest Dunn added on bass. The new lineup recorded the cassette-only full-length Tripping in Your Coffin in 1995; they disbanded by the end of 1996. Rendon attempted another reunion with Cordova and Moyer, yet the absence of a suitable lead singer prompted another quick dissolution.
Retaining the Resonars name, Rendon now concentrated on developing a sound that drew from prime garage-rock songcraft, the kinetic drive of mod bands like the Who, and the punchy tunefulness of power pop. In 1998 the self-titled album appeared on Tucson’s Star Time Records; Rendon performed and four-tracked every instrument and vocal, while the remaining “members” credited were names originally invented for his comic-book story. Get Hip issued the follow-up, Bright and Dark, in 1999. Although Rendon had long planned to assemble a live unit, he never followed through and retired the Resonars name in October 2000. He continued performing locally with Al Perry & the Cattle, then relocated to Seattle and joined the Vultures under the alias Mickey Finch. By 2001 he was back in Tucson, where he played with the garage-punk band the Knockout Pills alongside members of the Weird Lovemakers and Los Federales. In 2002 he revived the Resonars moniker for the Get Hip release Lunar Kit, which delivered a harder-edged sound and also included both sides of the 2000 single “Floor Lamp Eyes.”
Most of his time was consumed by the Knockout Pills until that band dissolved in 2006, at which point Rendon refocused on the Resonars. Still working entirely alone on his dependable 4-track, he delivered the 2008 Get Hip album Nonetheless Blue.
Moving to the California label Burger Records, the Resonars maintained the same sonic template. That Evil Drone appeared in 2008 and Crummy Desert Sound followed in 2011. Trouble in Mind released the 2012 EP Long Long Thoughts, then compiled The Greatest Songs of the Resonars, drawing material from all prior albums. Around the same period Rendon finally assembled a live incarnation featuring guitarist Isaac Reyes of Lenguas Largas, bassist Jeremy Schliewe from the Knockout Pills, and drummer James Peters of the Jons. He also constructed a permanent backyard studio, completed in 2014, and began recording other artists full-time. A bout of writer’s block halted new Resonars material for several years, though he still managed to complete a heavily psychedelic album in 2015 under the name the Butterscotch Cathedral. In 2018 he resumed work on a Resonars record, enlisting current live-band members drummer Johnnie Rinehart and bassist Ricky Shimo; he also handed lead vocals on one track to former Knockout Pills colleague Travis Spillers. The resulting 2019 album No Exit preserved the group’s longstanding core sound while upholding the songwriting standard fans had come to expect across the decades.
Albums
