Travis Morrison

Travis Morrison
Travis Morrison performing with The Dismemberment Plan at The Black Cat in Washington, D.C. on January 21, 2011
Background information
Born	(1972-12-16) December 16, 1972 (age 44)
Genres	Indie Rock
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instruments	vocals, guitar, keyboards
Years active	1993–2009, 2011-Present
Labels	Barsuk Records, DeSoto Records
Associated acts	The Dismemberment Plan, Travis Morrison Hellfighters
Website	http://www.travismorrison.com

Travis Morrison (born December 16, 1972) is an American musician and web developer from the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., United States. He is best known as leader of indie-rock band The Dismemberment Plan and as a solo artist.

After picking up various instruments around age 12, Morrison stuck with guitar and began forming bands throughout his high school days at Lake Braddock Secondary School in Fairfax County, Virginia. The problem he kept running into with his high school bands was keeping a drummer. It didn't help that his mother didn't want him to ever play the drums due to all the noise it would make in the house. He was on Lake Braddock's Math Team and claimed to be "pathetically happy" upon defeating the math team of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology one year.

After "getting out of Fairfax" he attended The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia for three years before dropping out to pursue a band. He worked at the campus radio station WCWM, which he claimed was "worth tuition right there." At WCWM he became well versed in many types of music, "from John Coltrane to German art rock." He continues to have wide ranging musical taste to this very day, having claimed to enjoy everything from Britney Spears, Gladys Knight, XTC, Fugazi, Ludacris and Go-go. He finds additional inspiration in the music of Harry Nilsson, which he often listens to before a concert.

In 1993, Morrison formed The Dismemberment Plan with old Lake Braddock friends. Despite his mother's initial reluctance, the band practiced in bassist Eric Axelson's basement frequently and began playing shows. By 1995 they released their debut album ! on D.C. based DeSoto Records. After original drummer Steve Cummings left the band, he was replaced by Joe Easley and the band's lineup would remain that way throughout their existence. Morrison was the guitarist and vocalist for The Plan from their formation in 1993 to their final show at the 9:30 Club in D.C in 2003. The band released four LPs and two EPs and gained a large following for their energetic live show, mostly due to Morrison's "booty-shaking" moves onstage. Their final two studio albums Emergency & I and Change were some of the most revered rock albums in the late-90s and early-2000s . Despite this, the band continued to work freelance jobs on the side to support themselves, Morrison taking up various computer and graphic design jobs.