David Berman (musician)
| David Berman | |
|---|---|
Berman at the Watkins Institute in 2008
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | David Berman |
| Born |
January 4, 1967 Williamsburg, Virginia |
| Genres | Rock, indie rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, poet, cartoonist |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1989(?)–present |
| Labels | Drag City, Domino |
| Associated acts | Silver Jews, Pavement, Ectoslavia, New Radiant Storm King |
| Website | www.silverjews.net(bad link) |
David Berman (born January 4, 1967) is an American poet, cartoonist, and singer-songwriter best known for his work with indie-rock band the Silver Jews.
David Berman was born January 4, 1967 in Williamsburg, Virginia. He attended high school at Greenhill School in Addison, Texas, before matriculating at the University of Virginia. While in Charlottesville, Virginia, Berman began writing and performing songs (often left on friends' voice message machines) with his loose band, Ectoslavia, primarily composed of UVA classmates Stephen Malkmus and Bob Nastanovich.
Upon graduation from the University of Virginia, the trio moved to Hoboken, New Jersey, where they shared an apartment and adopted the moniker Silver Jews.
Before moving to Hoboken, Malkmus had also founded another band, Pavement, with his childhood friend Scott Kannberg. As Pavement's acclaim and visibility grew, the notion arose that the Silver Jews were a "Pavement side-project," despite the fact that Berman's writing, singing, and guitar playing led the band's music, and, of course, the Silver Jews preceded Pavement. On the band's early recordings, Berman even tried to protect the Jews' individuality by listing Malkmus and Nastanovich under aliases, but it backfired when people learned who "Hazel Figurine" and "Bobby N." really were.
Not long after the success of Pavement's debut album, Slanted and Enchanted (which was named after a cartoon Berman had created), Dan Koretzky, founder of the Chicago-based indie label Drag City, met Berman at a Pavement show. When he heard of the Jews' tapes, Koretzky offered to release them. On their first single and EP for the label, 1992's "Dime Map of the Reef" and 1993's The Arizona Record, respectively, the band held to their ultra lo-fi aesthetic and recorded the majority of both on a Walkman.
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