The Shenanigans and the Chaos of Amy Lynn & The Gunshow

Amy Lynn & the Gunshow are a seven-piece neo-soul outfit, based out of NYC, led by Amy Lynn Hamlin, a chanteuse classically (and thoroughly) trained in sass.  Last month...

Amy Lynn & the Gunshow are a seven-piece neo-soul outfit, based out of NYC, led by Amy Lynn Hamlin, a chanteuse classically (and thoroughly) trained in sass.  Last month saw the release of their debut LP, the brilliantly titled, Don’t Trip on the Glitter.  I recently got a chance to chat with Amy Lynn about how the band came to be and just where the amazing title of their latest record came from.  Amy Lynn laughs and tells me that the album’s title track was inspired by an ex who didn’t think that pursuing music was her best option: “It was inspired by this asshole, who thought that music was a waste of time and would tell me that and the idea of him tripping out the fucking door and saying to him, ‘Don’t trip on my success.’”

And while they’re not yet each stars in their own right, the six gents who comprise the Gunshow have quite impressive resumes, having played with the likes of Duffy, St. Vincent, and You La Tengo, among others.  Although it all began with Amy Lynn’s first encounter with her husband, Alex Hamlin, the band’s baritone saxophonist:

“Well, my husband and I met in Switzerland. We were both living in Brooklyn at the time, but we met there. It really came from the two of us meeting together. We were doing gigs and traveling around separately, with different musical projects at the time, but this was a way for us to be together – so that’s really where it all started.”

[youtube http://youtu.be/IuGPEVgFlZQ]

The recording of Don’t Trip on the Glitter, despite taking place over the course of only four days, seems to have brought the band much closer together.  The experience saw the band leaving the city to record at The Clubhouse in Rhinebeck, NY, which Amy Lynn tells me seemed to represent a new chapter of sorts for the group: “Recording was pretty awesome.  We were in a country setting, despite living in the city, and it was a really cool bonding experience and a really cool way for us to gel.”  The band has already played a handful of live dates in support of the album, but this Thursday, May15th, will kick off another short string that take them through Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York, and they have a number of summer dates that you can check out here. And in our recent chat Amy Lynn emphasized that live is the way that Amy Lynn & the Gunshow needs to be experienced: “I have a background in theater and it’s a lot of improvisation. The CD is a good representation of the band, but it’s all in the live performance.  It’s all about the shenanigans and the chaos of a live show.”

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Band InterviewsMusic

During the day Izzy Cihak teaches transgression, subversion, and revolution at Temple University. At night he haunts Philthy's best venues to cover worthwhile acts for Philthy Mag. Morrissey is everything to him and, in their own heads, all of his friends see themselves as Zooey Deschanel.

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