The Wrens (band)
| The Wrens | |
|---|---|
| Origin | New Jersey |
| Genres | Indie rock, alternative rock, emo |
| Years active | 1994—present |
| Labels |
Grass Records Saddle Creek Ten 23 No Karma Absolutely Kosher Records LO-MAX Records |
| Website | www.wrens.com |
| Members | Charles Bissell Greg Whelan Kevin Whelan Jerry MacDonald |
The Wrens are an American indie rock band from New Jersey. The group consists of Charles Bissell (guitar/vocals), brothers Greg Whelan (guitar) and Kevin Whelan (bass/vocals), and Jerry MacDonald (drums). They have released three albums so far, although a combination of problems with their former record label and having to fit in writing and recording with the daily pressures of home life and full-time jobs means that only one album has been released since 1996. The band have gained a reputation for their intense live shows - following a gig at the University of London Union in London in March 2006, The Guardian declared that "on this form the Wrens are surely one of the best live bands in the world".
Brothers Greg and Kevin Whelan formed their band in the late '80s, recruiting former high school colleague Charles Bissell in 1989 as a guitarist for a proposed gig supporting The Fixx, which was cancelled in the end. Jerry MacDonald replaced the band's original drummer in 1990 and the quartet moved into a house together in the town of Secaucus, New Jersey to concentrate on their music career. After a number of name changes the group settled on the name Low, and in 1993 they recorded a 7" single with the same name which they sent out to various record companies - one of them, Grass Records, signed the band almost immediately on hearing the record. However, on learning that there was already a slowcore group named Low, the band changed their name to the Wrens in 1994.
By 1996, the Wrens had released two full-length albums, Silver (1994) and Secaucus (1996). Both arrived to critical acclaim and gained a following of fans. In the summer of 1995 Grass Records was bought out by businessman Alan Meltzer, who wanted to refocus the label on scoring more mainstream popularity and hit songs. During their 1996 tour for Secaucus the band was offered a new long-term contract for over a million dollars, on condition that in the future they tailor their songs to a more radio-friendly sound. Fearing loss of independence and a watering down of their music, the band refused to sign the contract. As a result, they were not offered another record deal and all production and promotion of their previous two albums was stopped. Meltzer changed Grass Records' name to Wind-Up Records, eventually scoring the mainstream success he sought with groups such as Creed and Evanescence. The Wrens battled for years afterwards to try and regain the rights to the albums in order to make them available again - in 2006 Wind-Up finally relented and re-released Silver and Secaucus on November 14 of that year, although the label retained the rights to the records.
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