PureVolume

pronunciation

: thuh-roh, thawr-oh, thohr-oh.

If you head over to the Gulf Coast from Tampa and then drive north for a little while, you'll come to the small town of New Port Richey. Although it may look like any other average central Florida town, New Port Richey is home to Thoreau, an introspective hard-rock quartet that is poised to take the national stage.

Frontman Sean McPhee contributes heavily to the lyrics and, at 20, is the oldest member of a band whose talent and polish belie their young age. Daniel Miller (guitar) and Shawn Nichols (drums), along with bassist Dick Relak, provide a fast and complex sonic canvas for the thoughtful and infectious melodies that McPhee belts out. Together, they have won FLARO (the Florida Annual Rock-Off), heavily toured the state - building a large and loyal fan-base throughout the peninsula, and are taking on a tour of the Eastern US in late summer of '07.

Dick and Shawn were classmates in high school; they formed a band with Dan (from a nearby school) and another local friend. Feeling unsatisfied with this project, the three left in order to create a new ensemble. This band was named "Thoreau", after the 19th century philosopher. After auditioning many possible singers without finding one that fit, they were eventually introduced to Sean through a mutual friend. The band clicked right away, and their performances immediately gained a strong local following. McPhee's lyrics examine themes of love, longing, betrayal, and a search for the ideal. Miller's intricate guitar work moves between blazing technical riffs and soaring, anthemic passages. Nichols's pounding drum work has a similar fast, motivated sound with a latticework of rhythms. Relak is not only a talented bassist, but his energetic stage presence nearly matches that of the frontman's.

In 2006, Thoreau signed with Orlando-based Pandora Records (a label coincidentally made up of Port Richey ex-pats), which not only allowed them to further spread their influence, but laid the groundwork for their debut full-length album, "Oneiro". This 12-track LP, whose title is the Greek word for "dream", debuts at the end of July '07. It is already a monster hit with fans, quickly growing the fanbase even before its release.

Thoreau's influence will continue to grow this summer; in addition to the album and national tour, they are filming the video for their first single, "Capillary" - with director Jon Bowen - and will be playing at the To Write Love On Her Arms Show for charity. These young rockers will soon leap from their small home town to become a presence throughout the country, and beyond.


check www.myspace.com/thoreau