the robber barons
The Ballad of The Robber Barons
(Where we learn of the musical embalming of our Heroes)
The Robber Barons came together in 2000 as a vehicle for songwriters Nik Edwards and Kevin Johnson to record a few original tunes together. After releasing a self-recorded e.p. “Watch It Burn” later that year, the duo decided to put a full band together and do some live shows to capitalize on the buzz that the e.p. had unwittingly generated. The boys soon began incorporating lap and pedal steel, fiddles, accordion, banjos and other rootsy instruments into their songs, many of them played by multi-instrumentalist Edwards. Johnson and Edwards share lead vocal duties while Johnson pounds out freight train rhythms on his acoustic guitar.
After a number of well received live shows in California (Johnson hails from NY, Edwards from Texas), they recorded their debut full-length cd “Dragging The River” at Closer Studios in San Francisco, co-producing with Dylan Magierek (Innocence Mission, My Morning Jacket). The boys then added fulltime members Jeff Kingman on drums and Alex Holderness on standup bass. The band honed its alt-country flavored tunes while playing dates up and down the west coast.
In 2006, they recorded their second full-length cd with Michael Wilson (Paula Frazier). That release, “Kerosene Communion” immediately gained critical success and put the boys over the top, gaining radio play around the country and Europe for the singles, “Cold Wind Suddenly” and “Still”. Lufthansa airlines made the latter single part of their in-flight programming for a good part of the year. The band continues to tour and record on their own in strictly DIY fashion and recently added pedal steel guru Jody Clarke to the lineup.
The Robber Barons are:
Jeff Kingman: Drums
Nik Edwards: vocals, guitar, accordian, banjo
Kevin Johnson: vocals, guitar
Jody Clarke: pedal steel
Alex Holderness: King Doublebass