Burnt Ones

Bay Area trio Burnt Ones formed at the end of the 2000s as part of a growing scene of garage rock revivalists in the San Francisco/Oakland area. Composed of vocalist/guitarist Mark Tester, Brian Allen on bass, and drummer Amy Crouch bashing away on an extremely spare two-piece kit, the band's earliest sounds drew influence from Jesus and Mary Chain's feedback-heavy pop, the rawness of the Gories, and classic melodic hooks lifted from girl groups. The band's first recorded work came in the form of the All Night Long 7", followed shortly by the debut full-length album Black Teeth & Golden Tongues, both released in 2010 on Roaring Colonel Records. The group would tour extensively, release multiple smaller-scale 7"s and cassettes, and develop their sound over the next few years, appearing at the South by Southwest festival numerous times and contributing a version of "Heroin" to a Velvet Underground tribute compilation that included Ty Segal, Thee Oh Sees, and other scene luminaries. By the time their sophomore album, You'll Never Walk Alone, arrived on Burger Records in 2013, Burnt Ones had incorporated elements of glam rock and '60s Texas psych into their sound. After taking a six-month break from performing live and working hard to expand their approach to include new sounds, the group's next album, Gift, was issued in the spring of 2014 on Castle Face.
© Fred Thomas /TiVo