Terra Cotta Army
Terra Cotta Army
Carrboro, NC
Rock / Americana / Experimental
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About
A great force was unearthed from some dynasty long dead and buried in a tomb deep beneath the belly of the earth. When the seal was broken, all things good and bad, evil and kind, violent and peaceful poured out into the light and into the world again. The stone soldiers stood in their thousands, brandishing broken swords, and staring from eyes long robbed of their sight, as the men of this time moved among them with wonder. They stood once to defend things now long forgotten; but in their stead, they hold now at their ranks the emissary of some great integrity. In this transitory age, this age of trying, of hollow efforts done for their own sake; in this our place in the history of the world, we can only hope to be a vessel into the light. The Terra Cotta Army welcomes you.
Established in April 2007 in the indy hotbed of Chapel Hill, NC, the music of Terra Cotta Army began in the mind of songwriter Riley Valenti. Born into a life of music and art in Eugene, OR, Riley was destined to become a composer and a poet. In his youth he played sax, drums, guitar, contrabass, piano and other instruments; and he has been writing poetry and prose furiously since childhood. Riley started writing songs in the difficult winter of 2005, and has written more than 40 in that year-and-a-half. But Riley waited until he honed his craft with the help of prolific songwriter Django Haskins (The Old Ceremony) into a collection of songs suitable for the public. "I have more ideas than I know what to do with. But there's a big difference between a good song idea and a good song. The difference is hard work and developing your craft."
The music is dark rock/pop, with progressive folk undertones. It will take the listener through both dark and light, and leaves no subject matter unexplored. The songs are narratives, centered around people, places, and circumstances that contain basic human elements that everyone can relate to.
"My biggest influences lyrically are Lou Reed, Nick Cave, Elvis Costello, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, T.S. Eliot, Alan Ginsberg, Charles Bukowski, guys like that." Musically, Riley is influenced by those same people, plus some more modern experimental bands like My Bloody Valentine, Built to Spill, Smashing Pumpkins, Mogwai, Godspeed you Black Emperor, Peter Gabriel, Radiohead, and Sigur Ros, to name a few. These songs are ready for exposure, and Riley knew he had to surround himself with top-quality musicians who could supplement the music and give life and scope far beyond what one man can do.
Enter David Krusch (drums), Grayson Rich (Guitar), and Casey Toll (Bass). David brings to TCA a life's devotion to percussion. From marching band to jazz and funk, formal training at UNC School of Music and extensive live experience, including artists like Eric Sommer, The Atomics and The Tell, he was an instant fit for TCA. Casey Toll rounds out the rhythm section with some of the sharpest and coolest bass lines around. Trained at UNC's school of music in jazz, with a deep love for roots rock and great live experience, he was also a perfect fit. Grayson and Riley met during a production of Pink Floyd's "The Wall" for which Grayson played guitar. Grayson's amazing ears and technical ability add great color and atmosphere to the songs.
