Biography

The Mendoza Line was formed in Athens, Georgia in 1996, in the midst of a buoyant music community that included Neutral Milk Hotel, Vic Chestnut, Of Montreal, and Olivia Tremor Control and many others. Some of their earliest recordings were produced by Patterson Hood of the Drive By Truckers. They released two albums and an EP on Kindercore Records, songwriters Peter Hoffman and Timothy Bracy conjured a compelling hybrid of punk, country and electrified folk. In 1999, legendary label Bar-None Records (They Might Be Giants and Yo La Tengo) offered the band a contract. This coincided with a move to New York City and the addition of songwriter Shannon McArdle. They released acclaimed records between 1999 and 2003 including "We're All in This Alone", "Lost In Revelry" and "Fortune”. They earned a national and international following as well as licensing deals in England and Japan. Drawing comparisons to everything from Elvis Costello to Fleetwood Mac, the band received laudatory coverage from Spin, Pitchfork, NPR and Uncut. Extensive touring began to take its toll, and the groups final official LP "Full of Light and Full of Fire" was released in 2005. It was wistful tone signaling the end of the group's long road. A final EP entitled "30 Year Low" was released in 2007. In the Spring of 2020, Bar-None announced plans to reissue "We're All in This Alone" on its 20th anniversary with the three bonus tracks. It is expected to be the first in a series of reissues.