MULTIMAGIC is an indie dream-pop band featuring singer/guitarist Coran Stetter, keyboardist Brian Davis, bassist Trent Russelburg, and drummer Chris Cox. The band came together in Cincinnati, Ohio in early 2014, where they recorded their first single “Let Go” with producer Eric Tuffandsam in March.
With an uptempo four on the floor beat and melodic guitar and synth lines, “Let Go” is an attempt to convey the sense of urgency found in the lyrics. The single, released on May 13th, celebrates the bands hometown Cincinnati area code. “Let Go” is now available on all digital outlets including Spotify and iTunes!
Go Grab the single on iTunes HERE or on Spotify HERE!
MULTIMAGIC will be on tour this summer promoting “Let Go” with shows in Cincinnati, Louisville, Indianapolis, Chicago, Nashville, Columbus, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and New York.
We sat down with Coran Stetter of MULTIMAGIC to talk about Siri, our local scene and what is next for this amazing band!
Give us some background on MULTIMAGIC…
I met Brian (Davis, keyboards) Summer 2012 while he was playing for several different projects. Around that time, I was invited to perform at a music festival in New York called CMJ. I didn't have a band so Brian programmed drumbeats and backing tracks and we made the most of it. When we came back, he was still involved with other bands but I was inspired to form a new group so I started searching online musician postings. Eventually, I came across Trent (Russelburg, bass) on Louisville's Craigslist. We hit it off and started driving back and forth working on new demos. Then Chris (Cox, drums) responded to a post I had made so the three of us got together. We started writing and after a few months I invited Brian to join the band. We spent about 6 months really figuring out what band we wanted to be and at the beginning of the year decided to start fresh with a new name and release new music. The culmination of that first goal is the recording of “Let Go” which we are extremely excited for people to hear.
I feel the naming of a band to be so important. Tell us how you chose your band name…
Naming a band can be the worst. It is really important so either you over think it or you are stuck with a name you regret. I actually woke up one night because Siri was screaming MULTIMAGIC! MULTMAGIC! I had fallen asleep on my iPhone and still have no idea what I pressed, but I thought it fit the music we were writing and sort of felt like the decision had been made for us. I mean, Siri named our band. I think that's pretty awesome.
What can one expect to see at a MULTIMAGIC show?
You know we are in the middle of rehearsing for our first string of shows this Summer. We are playing a lot of smaller places right now so we are trying to focus on giving a high energy performance that moves people. And by that I mean we want people to dance, but we also hope to have compelling moments as well. Actually, we will be announcing a bunch of shows really soon so people should come see for themselves.
If I had to sum it up in one run-on sentence it would be lots of singing, dancing and foot stomping filled with falling over, head-to-head guitar swirling in and out drenched in reverb, keyboards everywhere, thumping low end and you may or may not find the love of your life but you'll definitely have a good time.
Give us some insight on your writing process. Who does what?
Generally I'll start with the bones of the song which I often record as a demo in my bedroom to give the guys an idea of what I'm going for. Then they take their instruments and make it their own. That's when it gets really interesting. We spent about 6 months just becoming really good friends and sharing our love for music with each other and that makes it easier to write together once we learned to speak the same language. Going forward, we are trying to get out of our comfort zones and really challenge each other. If there is a song that we aren't completely happy with, we try to deconstruct it and build it back up. Its an ongoing process.
When choosing what outlets to release “Let Go” to what did you consider?
We wanted to start local because we love Cincinnati and the music scene here. The majority of the bands Ive been into lately are Cincinnati bands and many are people I can call my friends. Indigo Wild, Tweens, Young Heirlooms, Bad Veins, Sacred Spirits, and many, many more. We have such a talented scene of bands and song writers including Mia Carruthers, Jane Decker and Molly Sullivan. There are so many music lovers in the community who help promote these artists.
I really appreciate what CincyMusic.com has done by highlighting local talent on the same tier as national acts when they come through. CincyMusic.com with Venomous Valdez have their radio shows that really expose bands to an audience beyond their social media reach and circle of friends.
I think Mike Breen at City Beat has the most trusted ear in the city. Dan McCabe, Ian Bolender, Brian Penick and Bill Donadebian take huge risks putting on events that have taken Cincinnati from a market that in the past would get overlooked by bands on tour to a market that is highly sought after.
All the local music shops we have - Rock, Paper, Scissors, Black Plastic, Shake It, and Everybody's promote local music like crazy. This is the kind of self-promotion you don't normally see in a city of our size. Its really exciting to be a small part of that.
With all of that said, we decided to give the song away free on Bandcamp and share the song locally on CincyMusic.com as a free download a month before the national release date to Spotify, iTunes, etc... We wanted our hometown to have the first chance at hearing our first release. For the time being, we're sticking to digital singles, but we do plan on pressing vinyl and any other physical format once that makes sense.
What is next for MULTIMAGIC?
In the immediate future, we have shows booked throughout the Midwest as well as some dates in Brooklyn / New York later this Summer. We'll be announcing our first local show soon, as well as our regional dates, filming some music videos, and then continue to record our debut album...and whatever else Siri tells us to do next.
