Strand of Oaks to Play Ypsilanti...

Strand of Oaks will be playing The Elbow Room in Ypsilanti with Chris Bathgate & White Pines on Wednesday, February 17th.

Bio from Strand of Oaks Website:
Strand of Oaks is Timothy Showalter, an Indiana Mennonite turned Pennsylvania Hebrew Dayschool teacher who even drives the school bus for extra cash (and has sing-alongs with the pupils as they ease on down the road). It's like a scene from "Behind the Music" if the weed-soaked Tom Petty was your busdriver, and in this case the metaphors, spread throughout nine tracks, are to be taken quite literally.

Leave Ruin is Strand of Oaks' hometown deathbed-confession hymnal, the soundtrack of an Exodus. It's been back roads and parenthetical side streets for Showalter since he left his ruin of small town America. As a Hoosier transplant, he landed in the fertile musical soil of Northeastern Pennsylvania with a few key twists of fate that would turn his tragedy into trajectory.

While escaping a relationship gone worse, Showalter returned home to a house burned down, leaving all of his earthly possessions charred in flames. Spending nights in downtown hotels and on park benches with a borrowed guitar, he began to face the proverbial demons. Like any good roller coaster ride there came an upside, as inspiration grew like weeds within the rubble; songs led to shows, which led to tours of the US and UK with Jason Anderson and Kimya Dawson. Leave Ruin took shape shortly thereafter while touring and collaborating with Lou Rogai (Lewis & Clarke).

Taking cues from such luminaries as Neil Young (On the Beach era) and a burgeoning Springsteen, Showalter extends his musical gesture and searches to find modesty in the midst of confusion, addressing insecurities and settling existential debt with a simple and beautiful delivery. The personification of a Midwestern Grandfather's advice, his songs smack with hard truth and poignant severity, from child-like naivete to heart worn wisdom... sparse guitar, hammond, rhodes and wooden instruments support an atmosphere that is tender and raw, at times uncomfortable, shockingly candid, and unforgettable.

Tour Dates:
2/16/10 - North Manchester, IN @ The Firehouse w/ White Pines
2/17/10 - Ypsilanti, MI @ The Elbow Room w/ White Pines, Chris Bathgate
2/18/10 - Grand Rapids, MI @ The DAAC w/ White Pines
2/19/10 - Madison, WI @ High Noon Saloon w/ White Pines, Juniper Tar, Common Loon
2/20/10 - Milwuakee, WI @ Cactus Club w/ White Pines, & more
2/21/10 - Chicago, IL @ Halfway Lounge w/ White Pines, Mako Sica
2/24/10 - Bloomington, IN @ The Bishop w/ White Pines & more
2/25/10 - Akron, OH @ The Manitee w/ White Pines
2/26/10 - Columbus, OH @ Skylab w/ White Pines, The Black Swans
2/27/10 - Millheim, PA @ Elk Creek Tavern w/ White Pines, Chicken Tractor
2/28/10 - Frostburg, MD @ House Show w/ White Pines
3/01/10 - Baltimore, MD @ The Wind Up Space w/ White Pines
3/02/10 - Kutztown, PA @ Eckhaus Gallery w/ White Pines, Bad Temple
3/03/10 - Brooklyn, NY @ Zebulon w/ White Pines
3/04/10 - Stroudsburg, PA @ Main St. Jukebox w/ White Pines
3/05/10 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Fire w/ White Pines, Hezekiah Jones