Biography

Brooklyn lo-fi pop group Slam Donahue were formed in Wolcott, Connecticut in 2009 by singer/guitarist David Otto and bassist Thomas Sommerville. The two self-taught musicians met in their younger days and came together over a shared ravenous interest in the history of pop music. Early on, the duo bonded over their love of the '70s glam and pop records in their parents' collections and developed a type of friendly competition in their songwriting, each crafting demos and trying to better the other's hooks, melodies, or sonic energy. The group went through various members before the original duo moved to Brooklyn in 2010 and began playing out regularly and working on lo-fi demos for their earliest songs. Following their move, the core members were joined by drummer Keenan Mitchell and spent countless hours recording and writing new material. The results included the online mixtape of under-produced songs Big House Nice Dreams in spring of 2012 and the Hemlock Tea EP in August of the same year. The band continued work on a full-length debut, scheduled for release sometime in 2013. ~ Fred Thomas, Rovi