American Beauties is an indie folk-rock band whose sound is reminiscent of the west coast folk-rock bands of the late 1960s and early 1970s. With rich guitar driven melodies, layered harmony vocals, and songs that ring nostalgic while conveying modern sounds and themes, American Beauties has been likened to CSNY, The Shins, Tom Petty, The Jayhawks, and Wilco.
American Beauties sophomore release Sound of Mind was released to college and public radio on June 6, 2023 and was added for airplay on over 70 stations across the US and Canada. The album charted in the top 25 on five stations, top 10 on three stations, and reached No. 1 at WVIA in Pittstown, PA, which included an album-of-the week review show by the legendary George Graham. The record charted as a self-release for over 17 weeks on the College Radio Charts website reaching No. 143 (out of 1,000 tracked releases) on September 27, 2023.
The band was featured as an OnThe Rise Artist in the Oct-Nov 2023 issue of Relix Magazine. Their song Shining Stars was included on the Artist Sampler CD and playlists included with the issue. The record continues to receive airplay on radio stations around the US and has been added to several additional stations across New England.
The album was recorded at Ice Station Zebra in Medford, MA by three-time Grammy Award winning engineer Ducky Carlisle (Buddy Guy) and independently Produced by Michael Gray and Carlisle. The album was mastered by Nate Wood of Kerseboom Mastering in Brooklyn, NY (Felice Brothers, Esperanza Spaulding).
The album is available for streaming and downloads on digital music platforms worldwide.
http://americanbeauties.hearnow.com/sound-of-mind
American Beauties have opened for national recording artists Amy Ray (Indigo Girls), Radney Foster (Foster and Lloyd), and Ari Hest (Birds of Paradise) and have performed on festival stages at the Black Potatoe Music Festival (2015, 2016, and 2018), MOVE Music Festival, and International Pop Overthrow. The band has also shared live bills with notable New England acts When Particles Collide, Emily Grogan Band, Sarah Levecque Band, Blue Light Bandits, and Grace Morrison.
Their debut full-length album Too Worn to Mend (2012) was recorded by Ducky Carlisle and mastered by Roger Siebel (Decemberists, Death Cab for Cutie). The record charted in the College Media Journal (CMJ) top 30 on 10 stations and received airplay on over 160 college and independent radio stations in the US, Canada, and the UK.
Live Band:
Michael Gray - Guitar, harmonica, vocals
Chris Faris - Guitar
Justin Kolack - Bass
Jeff Allison - Drums, percussion
Chris Faris - Guitar
