Sixteen Deluxe

Sixteen Deluxe were a psychedelic pop band hailing from Austin, TX. Austin, TX-based noise-pop band Sixteen Deluxe formed in April 1994 from the ashes of the local acts Swingset and Warm Jets; originally comprising singers/guitarists Carrie Clark and Chris Smith, bassist Jeff Copas and drummer Lyman Hardy, within a year the group was hailed as the loudest on the Austin scene, attracting a rabid following with their decidedly psychedelic live sets. Early notable gigs included the infamous Chances (a now-defunct lesbian bar, presently home to Club DeVille), a two-song opening slot for Stereolab at Emo’s, and a series of guerilla-style invasions of Austin house parties. King Coffey’s Trance Syndicate took notice, and sent the band into the studio in August of 1994 to record their debut 7" for the legendary label: "Idea" b/w "Honey". After Hardy left the group to focus his energy on his other band, Ed Hall, drummer Bryan Bowden signed on to record Sixteen Deluxe’s sole LP for the label (distributed by Touch and Go), Backfeedmagnetbabe, during Christmas of ‘94; Released in the spring of 1995, Backfeedmagnetbabe was met with near-hysterical critical praise, and the buzz game was officially on for the young band. Bowden was replaced by the rock-solid and reliable K.C. Rhodes in summer 1995, and after Walton Rowell’s video for "Idea" began to get rotation on MTV’s "120 Minutes" (aided by the single’s heavy airplay on Gibby Hayne’s brief but brilliant 101X radio show), attention reached critical mass, and the band left Austin to spend most of 1995 on tour, in support slots and headlining club dates, capped off by a memorable U. S. tour supporting L. A. noisemeisters Medicine. 1995 also saw the release of the Trance compilation, Cinco Anos, with the band contributing hastily-recorded versions of two live favorites, "Giver" and "Daisy Haze", to a stellar lineup that included Cherubs, Butthole Surfers, and Roky Erickson. The band returned to Austin to record the EP Pilot Knob with Trance labelmates Crust (eventually released by the L. A. indie Genius), with Hardy returning to the fold once again to play on the recording. After too much hype, and under increasing internal pressure, in October 1996 the band passed over several lucrative offers to sign with Warner Bros., and Steven T. Hall assumed drumming duties full-time. Recorded in San Francisco in 1997 with Austin indie legend John Croslin (The Reivers), major label debut Emits Showers of Sparks would be their only release for the label, besides the radio-only EP of demos Easy With the Sideways. Despite touring with Luna, Swervedriver, and Jesus and Mary Chain throughout 1997 and ‘98, and positive critical and fan response, Sixteen Deluxe’s Warner stay proved extremely brief, and they asked to be let out of their contract in late 1998. WB assented, and thanks to a well-written contract, the band set about building their home studio, The Bubble. They jumped to indie label Sugar Fix for the follow-up EP, The Moonman Is Blue, produced by Mike McCarthy (Spoon, Trail of Dead). The band spent much of 1999 in the Bubble recording material for a new album, and toured extensively again in the fall in support of the EP. Near the end of recording the album, in November 1999, Copas left the band, and his duties were assumed by Hall, with Kliph Scurlock (Flaming Lips) taking over the drum seat. The album, Vision Take Me, Make Me, Never Forsake Me, the band’s final and self-produced full length, was then released to much critical acclaim in June of 2000. In July of that year Carrie Clark left the band, resulting in the end of Sixteen Deluxe. Listen at Last.fm