The Damnwells

The Damnwells are an indie rock band from Brooklyn, New York, who are signed to Zoe/Rounder Records. The band formed in 2001 and has released two full length albums, Air Stereo being their latest. Their first album, "Bastards of the Beat," was recorded in a storage space and in lead singer and songwriter Alex Dezen's bedroom. It was released on Epic Records (Sony/BMG) in April of 2003. The Damnwells' second full length album, "Air Stereo," was recorded at Brooklyn Recording studios in Brooklyn, NY for Epic Records, but was released on Zoe/Rounder Records after the band was let go from their recording contract with Epic in January of 2006. "Air Stereo" was released in stores nationwide on Aug 15, 2006.
The 2008 released motion picture Chaos Theory features four Damnwells songs on its soundtrack. The Damnwells came into media spotlight in 2007, when Chaos Theory lead actor Ryan Reynolds and actress Scarlett Johansson were seen as a couple at a Damnwells concert in Hollywood.
The Damnwells have shared the stage with many superstars over the years, such as The Dixie Chicks, Augustana, Cheap Trick, The Fray, Los Lonely Boys, Blue October and Cary Brothers.
A documentary detailing the Damnwells' struggles has just been completed, entitled "Golden Days." The film was directed and shot by documentary filmmaker Chris Suchorsky, and won Best Documentary at the 2007 Phoenix Film Festival in April of 2007. Suchorsky also directed the music videos for the Damnwells' songs "Kiss Catastrophe" and "Sleepsinging."
On April 4th, 2008, Alex Dezen announced on MySpace that the band would most likely not appear in its original formation anymore. He plans to release a studio album in the summer of 2008 together with drummer Andrew Ratcliffe, bassist Adrian Dickey, pianist/guitarist Freddy Wall, and producer Wes Kidd. On his blog, Dezen states that "The Damnwells has always been about my songs with extremely talented musicians and producers collaborating. The personnel has changed, but the essence [...] remains the same." As of March recording is completed with only mixing and mastering left to do. The record was recorded over the course of seven days and features many new tracks which have been posted on YouTube in acoustic form.
Currently, Alex Dezen is an MFA candidate at the University of Iowa's Iowa Writers' Workshop, where he also teaches Rhetoric.

Original members of the Damnwells were:

Alex Dezen - Lead Vocals, Guitar, Piano
David Chernis - Lead Guitar
Ted Hudson - Bass Guitar
Steven Terry (ex-Whiskeytown) - Drums