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“I share with complete strangers my most personal of pleasures," sings Jarrod Gorbel on "Frame By Frame," the opening track from Anything Else But The Truth, the debut full-length from Brooklyn-based band The Honorary Title. It’s true. Gorbel bares his soul using his soaring voice and intricately worded narrative, while bassist/multi-instrumentalist Aaron Kamstra augments the melodies using an assortment of synths, organ and piano parts. Drawing on an eclectic range of influences that includes Elvis Costello, Bright Eyes and Jeff Buckley, The Honorary Title combines raw emotion with pop hooks and remarkably poetic lyrics to write songs that defy simple genre classifications. The band’s indie sensibility is fleshed out on the richly orchestrated Anything Else But the Truth, released in June of 2004. The album was recorded during the Fall of 2003 in New York and Nashville, with the help of producer Roger Moutenot, known for his work with Yo la Tengo, Guster, and Josh Rouse. The Honorary Title’s live show reveals that they never take themselves too seriously. Onstage, Gorbel is a ball of nervous energy, directing his hilariously lewd banter at himself, his bandmates and even members of the audience.
Gorbel grew up amid the suburban sprawl of Long Island, New York. He started playing guitar when he was thirteen and, after he got over his hair metal phase, he turned to folk music. After attending college in upstate New York, he began regular performances at downtown spots like The Mercury Lounge, Brownies, CBGBs and the Knitting Factory. Shortly after he recruited Indiana-native Kamstra and rechristened the project The Honorary Title, things started heating up. In fall of 2002, the band played a series of dates opening for Dashboard Confessional, having been hand-picked by Chris Carrabba as a warm-up act. In the following months, the band fielded offers from several labels, but ultimately decided on the independent Doghouse Records, which is where both the Get-Up Kids and, more recently, the All American Rejects got their start.
Since the June 2004 release of ANYTHING ELSE BUT THE TRUTH, The Honorary Title has toured relentlessly, sharing the stage with the likes of Taking Back Sunday, Secret Machines, AC Newman, From Autumn to Ashes and The French Kicks, and getting the chance to perform at several high-profile festivals, including SXSW and the Austin City Limits Festival. This Fall, the band went on their first full national tour with Switchfoot and The Format, playing sold out shows at such venues as LA’s Wiltern Theatre, New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom and Chicago’s Riviera Theatre. From these shows alone, The band’s album sales, and fanbase, nearly quadrupled.
The Honorary Title has also been seen and heard on TV. Their first video, for single “Bridge and Tunnel” had solid rotation on FUSE’s The Dive and Daily Download. In addition, The WB’s hit show One Tree Hill featured “Bridge and Tunnel” twice in two months. The song could be heard on WB’s Studio 7 as well.
The Honorary Title ended their summer on a high note, having been a long list nominee for the 2004 Shortlist Music Prize. - Bio courtesy of Big Hassle
Brooklyn-based duo the Honorary Title formed around vocalist/lyricist/guitarist Jarrod Gorbel and bassist/multi-instrumentalist Aaron Kamstra circa 2002. Taking the soul-baring narrative quality of bands like Dashboard Confessional, the two presented it on an indie rock canvas of gentle acoustics and often-dark humor. Gorbel began playing guitar at 13, while growing up in the suburbs of Long Island, NY. Following college, he began playing solo gigs around downtown spots like the Knitting Factory, the Mercury Lounge, and CBGBs before hooking up with Kamstra, an N.Y.C. transplant from Indiana, and christening themselves the Honorary Title. Combining influences that include Elvis Costello, Jeff Buckley, and Bright Eyes, their melodic hooks containing Kamstra's piano parts and Gorbel's compelling voice soon caught the attention of Dashboard Confessional's Chris Carrabba; he personally chose them as openers for his band on a series of dates in the fall of 2002. Before long, the warm-up slot had sparked label interest, and the band eventually signed with the Ohio-based indie Doghouse Records in September 2003. A self-titled EP featuring only Gorbel appeared in late 2003, but they issued their debut album, Anything Else But the Truth, as a duo the next summer. The Honorary Title joined the Format for a fall tour supporting Switchfoot before hooking up with Lucero the next summer. The band also shared stages over time with a range of acts including From Autumn to Ashes, Straylight Run, Secret Machines, and Taking Back Sunday. A brief headlining tour in February 2006 with Limbeck led up to the reissue of their debut (with five bonus tracks and two music videos) later that month. The group also features touring members Jon Wiley (keyboards/guitar) and Adam Boyd (drums). After signing to major label Reprise Records (under the Warner umbrella) the Honorary Title issued a short EP, Untouched & Intact, which contained two B-sides and two new tracks, in anticipation of their upcoming release Scream and Light Up the Sky. Corey Apar, All Music Guide
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