Biography
Secret Machines craft an ambitious, darkly ethereal sonic palette shaped by vintage Krautrock, psychedelia, and '90s shoegaze influences. Initial buzz arrived with their 2004 debut Now Here Is Nowhere, followed by wider recognition through 2006's Ten Silver Drops and 2008's Secret Machines. After a lengthy hiatus the group resurfaced in 2020 with Awake in the Brain Chamber. They also completed and issued a long-shelved 2010 project as 2023's The Moth, The Lizard, and the Secret Machines.
The Dallas, Texas-based outfit originally comprised Benjamin Curtis on guitar and vocals, his brother Brandon Curtis on bass and vocals, and Josh Garza on drums. Before forming the band the musicians had played together in several punk and psych groups including UFOFU and Captain Audio. Only after relocating to New York in 2002 did they begin performing under the Secret Machines name. That year they issued the EP September 000, tracked in Chicago with engineer Brian Deck. Following extensive touring the trio returned to New York and recorded their debut full-length, the Jeff Blenkinsopp-produced Now Here Is Nowhere. Released on Reprise in 2004, the album drew online praise from fans and critics and was succeeded by the 2005 EP The Road Leads Where It's Led. Also that year they gained further exposure opening several European dates for Oasis and co-headlining a tour with Kings of Leon.
Their sophomore album Ten Silver Drops appeared in April 2006 on Reprise. Although it circulated online months earlier, the record still reached the Top 50 on the U.K. album charts and entered the Billboard 200. Additional high-profile touring included opening slots for U2. Around the same time guitarist Benjamin Curtis departed to focus on School of Seven Bells.
Phil Karnats, formerly of Tripping Daisy, replaced him on guitar. That summer the band began work on a third album, issuing the self-titled Secret Machines on their own TSM Recordings in 2008. The album embraced a larger, more anthemic stadium-sized sound. Label and managerial complications soon left the group largely independent, prompting them to start a planned fourth album before ultimately abandoning the sessions.
Although they never formally disbanded, Secret Machines remained largely inactive for the next decade. In 2013 Brandon and Benjamin Curtis began developing their psych rock side project Cosmicide when Benjamin was diagnosed with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma. He underwent chemotherapy yet died later that year at age 35. In the aftermath Brandon continued working and eventually joined Interpol as touring keyboardist. Garza stayed active collaborating with singer/songwriter Diego Garcia, former Monster Magnet and Wellwater Conspiracy guitarist John McBain, the Warlocks, and others.
By 2016 Brandon Curtis revisited his Cosmicide material, playing shows and posting songs online. At one such performance he reconnected with Garza, inviting him onstage for several Secret Machines numbers. The reunion held, resulting in the 2020 release of their fourth album Awake in the Brain Chamber. Additional contributors included Bryan Bisordi, Chris Kyle, and Sarah Pedinotti of Lip Talk/Okkervil River. The set featured several Curtis Cosmicide songs, among them "Everything Starts," which incorporated production and guitar work from Benjamin Curtis recorded prior to his death. After the album's release the band also returned to their abandoned 2010 recordings to finish the tracks, issuing the completed effort as The Moth, The Lizard, and the Secret Machines in 2023. More experimental in tone, the album served as an aesthetic bridge between 2008's Secret Machines and 2020's Awake in the Brain Chamber.
The Dallas, Texas-based outfit originally comprised Benjamin Curtis on guitar and vocals, his brother Brandon Curtis on bass and vocals, and Josh Garza on drums. Before forming the band the musicians had played together in several punk and psych groups including UFOFU and Captain Audio. Only after relocating to New York in 2002 did they begin performing under the Secret Machines name. That year they issued the EP September 000, tracked in Chicago with engineer Brian Deck. Following extensive touring the trio returned to New York and recorded their debut full-length, the Jeff Blenkinsopp-produced Now Here Is Nowhere. Released on Reprise in 2004, the album drew online praise from fans and critics and was succeeded by the 2005 EP The Road Leads Where It's Led. Also that year they gained further exposure opening several European dates for Oasis and co-headlining a tour with Kings of Leon.
Their sophomore album Ten Silver Drops appeared in April 2006 on Reprise. Although it circulated online months earlier, the record still reached the Top 50 on the U.K. album charts and entered the Billboard 200. Additional high-profile touring included opening slots for U2. Around the same time guitarist Benjamin Curtis departed to focus on School of Seven Bells.
Phil Karnats, formerly of Tripping Daisy, replaced him on guitar. That summer the band began work on a third album, issuing the self-titled Secret Machines on their own TSM Recordings in 2008. The album embraced a larger, more anthemic stadium-sized sound. Label and managerial complications soon left the group largely independent, prompting them to start a planned fourth album before ultimately abandoning the sessions.
Although they never formally disbanded, Secret Machines remained largely inactive for the next decade. In 2013 Brandon and Benjamin Curtis began developing their psych rock side project Cosmicide when Benjamin was diagnosed with T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma. He underwent chemotherapy yet died later that year at age 35. In the aftermath Brandon continued working and eventually joined Interpol as touring keyboardist. Garza stayed active collaborating with singer/songwriter Diego Garcia, former Monster Magnet and Wellwater Conspiracy guitarist John McBain, the Warlocks, and others.
By 2016 Brandon Curtis revisited his Cosmicide material, playing shows and posting songs online. At one such performance he reconnected with Garza, inviting him onstage for several Secret Machines numbers. The reunion held, resulting in the 2020 release of their fourth album Awake in the Brain Chamber. Additional contributors included Bryan Bisordi, Chris Kyle, and Sarah Pedinotti of Lip Talk/Okkervil River. The set featured several Curtis Cosmicide songs, among them "Everything Starts," which incorporated production and guitar work from Benjamin Curtis recorded prior to his death. After the album's release the band also returned to their abandoned 2010 recordings to finish the tracks, issuing the completed effort as The Moth, The Lizard, and the Secret Machines in 2023. More experimental in tone, the album served as an aesthetic bridge between 2008's Secret Machines and 2020's Awake in the Brain Chamber.
Albums