Biography
Tickle Me Pink came together in Fort Collins, Colorado, during 2005, though its founding members each arrived with substantial prior experience in music. Sean Kennedy, who handled vocals along with bass and guitar, had already devoted eleven years to performing and had pursued studies in opera and piano while receiving classical training from guitarist Dave Beegle; he also put out an acoustic solo album in 2006. Johnny Schou, responsible for bass, guitar, and vocals, had served as an assistant engineer at the Blasting Room and began collaborating with producer Bill Stevenson at seventeen. After observing Stefan Runstrom win a battle of the bands contest, Kennedy and Schou invited the drummer—who had been playing percussion since the age of twelve—to join them. The trio drew sonic influence from Third Eye Blind, Brand New, and At the Drive-In while performing locally and throughout the region, later adding Steven Beck to complete the lineup following a support slot with Social Distortion. Beck himself brought years of preparation, having begun guitar lessons at six and later instructing students at the Academy of Guitar in Fort Collins. Following the independent release of the EPs If Only We Were Twenty One in 2005 and Up and Half Seas Over in 2006, KTCL in Denver placed one of the band’s tracks into regular rotation, sparking broader attention. Wind-Up Records signed Tickle Me Pink in 2008, and the group delivered its first full-length album, Madeline; the day before its release, Johnny Schou was discovered deceased in his Colorado apartment.
Albums
