Biography
The Slip launched their trajectory deeply rooted in the jam band circuit, yet shifting personnel and evolving internal preferences gradually steered them toward a guitar-driven indie rock identity. The group coalesced in the early 1990s at Tabor Academy, the New England boarding school, initially operating as a classic rock cover outfit that united the Barr brothers—Brad Barr handling guitar and vocals alongside Andrew Barr on drums and percussion—with guitarist Jon Myers. Following Brad’s 1995 graduation, Andrew connected with bassist Marc Friedman through one of the institution’s jazz ensembles. Upon Brad’s return from Colorado the subsequent year, he joined Myers, Friedman, and Andrew for performances; after Myers departed, the remaining trio matriculated at Boston’s Berklee School of Music but soon withdrew to focus on a professional career. Their self-released debut, From the Gecko, emerged in 1996 and drew inspiration from Miles Davis’s Bitches Brew.
Butch Trucks, drummer for the Allman Brothers Band, caught the band live in spring 1999 and enlisted them for his fledgling Flying Frog Records label, which issued Does in 2000. The following year the Slip signed with Rykodisc and delivered Angels Come on Time—captured inside Phish’s barn—in summer 2002. Over the ensuing period their musical compass swung sharply, absorbing currents from Can and U2 through Built to Spill and the Postal Service. A 2003 live companion on their own 216 Records paired Aliveacoustic with Alivelectric to document this transition, while extended sessions in their home studio further distanced the trio from its origins in favor of an indie-rock palette.
Work on the fourth studio album commenced in March 2005 alongside co-producer Mark Ellard, and its lead track, “Even Rats,” appeared in the PlayStation 2 title Guitar Hero. That spring the musicians also performed under the Surprise Me Mr. Davis banner with Nathan Moore contributing vocals and guitar, occasionally mounting dual bills with Apollo Sunshine while retaining the Slip moniker. Live at Lupo’s, drawn from a summer 2004 Rhode Island concert, surfaced in January 2005; the following year Eisenhower arrived via Bar/None Records in fall 2006.
Butch Trucks, drummer for the Allman Brothers Band, caught the band live in spring 1999 and enlisted them for his fledgling Flying Frog Records label, which issued Does in 2000. The following year the Slip signed with Rykodisc and delivered Angels Come on Time—captured inside Phish’s barn—in summer 2002. Over the ensuing period their musical compass swung sharply, absorbing currents from Can and U2 through Built to Spill and the Postal Service. A 2003 live companion on their own 216 Records paired Aliveacoustic with Alivelectric to document this transition, while extended sessions in their home studio further distanced the trio from its origins in favor of an indie-rock palette.
Work on the fourth studio album commenced in March 2005 alongside co-producer Mark Ellard, and its lead track, “Even Rats,” appeared in the PlayStation 2 title Guitar Hero. That spring the musicians also performed under the Surprise Me Mr. Davis banner with Nathan Moore contributing vocals and guitar, occasionally mounting dual bills with Apollo Sunshine while retaining the Slip moniker. Live at Lupo’s, drawn from a summer 2004 Rhode Island concert, surfaced in January 2005; the following year Eisenhower arrived via Bar/None Records in fall 2006.
Albums
Singles
