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Over the Rhine (band)

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Over the Rhine
Over the Rhine (band)
Over the Rhine playing in Charlotte, NC in October 2007
Background information
OriginCincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
GenresFolk, Americana
Years active1989 (1989)–present
LabelsI.R.S. Records, Back Porch, Great Speckled Dog
Members
  • Linford Detweiler
  • Karin Bergquist
  • Brad Meinerding
Past members
  • Ric Hordinski
  • Brian Kelley
Websiteovertherhine.com

Over the Rhine is an American, Cincinnati-based folk music band, the core of which is the husband-and-wife team of pianist/guitarist/bassist Linford Detweiler and vocalist/guitarist Karin Bergquist. The band began as a quartet with guitarist Ric Hordinski and drummer Brian Kelley. Hordinski left the band in December 1996, and Kelley continued to play into 1997 before departing. The original foursome reunited in December 2008 at The Taft Theatre (in Cincinnati) to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the formation of the band, and again in the summer of 2010 at Ric's studio, "the Monastery", to play the album Good Dog Bad Dog live, in its entirety.

The band's namesake and place of origin is the Cincinnati, Ohio neighborhood Over-the-Rhine.[1] Karin attended school in Barnesville, Ohio and graduated from Barnesville High School in 1984.[2] She then went to Malone University, located in Canton, Ohio, where she met Linford. Karin and Linford were married in the fall of 1996 in Cincinnati and several years ago relocated to a pre-Civil War farmhouse, which they named "The Nowhere Farm", near Martinsville, Ohio.

Over the Rhine is now primarily Bergquist (vocals, acoustic guitar, piano) and Detweiler (keyboards, electric bass, vocals) accompanied by complementary musicians on albums and tours. Over the years, they have toured and recorded in many variations. They have shared the stage with Bob Dylan, John Prine, Adrian Belew, Squeeze, Ani DiFranco, My Morning Jacket, Hem, and toured as "adjunct" members of Cowboy Junkies.

History

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Formation and 1990s

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Over the Rhine formed in the spring of 1989,[1] at a time when Detweiler, Hordinski, and Kelley were also touring as part of the final incarnation of Servant.[3] Over the Rhine independently released their first two albums,Till We Have Faces, in 1991 (named for the C. S. Lewis book of the same title) and Patience in 1992. Later in 1992, Over the Rhine signed with label giant I.R.S. Records, and both Till We Have Faces and Patience were re-issued. In 1994, I.R.S. fully funded the band's third LP, Eve, which was released to rave reviews.

When I.R.S. records was bought out in 1996, Over the Rhine was released from their five-album contract and went on to independently release Good Dog, Bad Dog and The Darkest Night of the Year, both of which outsold the three previous I.R.S. releases combined.

2000s

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In 2001, Over the Rhine signed with Virgin Records/Back Porch and released Films for Radio to near universal acclaim before releasing double album Ohio in 2003.[4][5] Paste magazine granted one of its first five-star reviews to Ohio.

Between 1999 and 2004, Linford recorded and released three solo projects composed of home-recorded acoustic, piano-based music.

Over the Rhine's next album, Drunkard's Prayer, was released on March 29, 2005.

A limited edition live album titled Live From Nowhere, Volume 1 was released in April 2006. A second limited edition live album, Live From Nowhere, Volume 2 was released in March 2007, just over a month after Discount Fireworks.

In 2007, Over the Rhine started their own independent label, Great Speckled Dog (named after their Great Dane, Elroy[1]).The Trumpet Child and the "Live From Nowhere" series have been released on Great Speckled Dog.

In January 2008, Paste's video podcast interviewed Over the Rhine and featured a live performance.[6]

2010s

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Over the Rhine's album The Long Surrender was released nationally on February 8, 2011, on the band's own Great Speckled Dog label. It was recorded in California with producer Joe Henry, and contains a duet with Lucinda Williams on "Undamned" and two songs co-written with Joe Henry. Paste named Over the Rhine's The Long Surrender one of the Top 50 Best Records of the year.[7]

Over the Rhine's album Meet Me at the Edge of the World is a double album that was produced by Joe Henry. The songs were recorded in two sessions at The Garfield House in South Pasadena in 2013: disc one, Sacred Ground, March 28–30 and disc two, Blue Jean Sky, April 1–3. Aimee Mann appears as a special guest vocalist on the song "Don't Let The Bastards Get You Down".[8] The album was released nationally on September 3, 2013. In their review, the Los Angeles Times rated the album 3.5 out of 4 stars and stated: "Over the Rhine seems to inhabit another time, one that sounds awfully appealing here."[9]

On March 15, 2019, Over the Rhine released Love & Revelation, on their own Great Speckled Dog Record label. The album was produced by the band and recorded and mixed by Ryan Freeland. The first single from the album, the title track, was premiered by Paste almost two months earlier.[10] The album premiered on Rolling Stone along with a brief article about the album and the duo's creative process.[11] The album was met with critical acclaim from sources including No Depression and Associated Press, who wrote "Love & Revelation is a subdued but lovely celebration...It won't surprise longtime fans that the topics are often sad and the tempos mostly slow, all the better to showcase Bergquist's warm, wise, honest alto. She sounds better than ever, with a depth and richness that makes her voice resonate like a prayer."[12]

2020s

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In 2020, Cincinnati Pops Orchestra featured Over the Rhine in their special July 4 livestream alongside Melinda Doolittle.[13]

In 2024, Over the Rhine released two albums on their website. Hymn Time in the Land of Abandon is a collection of hymns, and Ten Songs without Words is a solo piano album by Detweiler.[14][15]

Nowhere Else Festival

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On Memorial Day weekend of 2016, Over the Rhine hosted and curated the first "Nowhere Else Festival" on their farmland about 50 miles away from Cincinnati, Ohio. The festival was an annual event on the same weekend each year[16] until COVID-19 forced the festival to take a hiatus for the 2020 edition. For 2021, due to COVID-19, the festival was moved to Labor Day weekend. In 2022, Over the Rhine announced the move to September was permanent.

Discography

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Studio albums

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Live albums

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Compilations

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  • 1997 - Besides (Imaginary Records; demos, alternate takes, mixes, and unreleased material from 1991 to 1997)
  • 2000 - Roaring Lambs (Squint Entertainment) Over the Rhine contributed the song "Goodbye" for this compilation album.[17]
  • 2002 - The Cutting Room Floor (demos, outtakes and other material from the Films For Radio era)
  • 2002 - Hidden Treasures: Cincinnati's Tribute to King Records' Legacy Over the Rhine contributed the song "Fever" for this compilation album.
  • 2006 - The Message: Psalms Over the Rhine contributed the song "Flown Free" based on Psalm 124 & Psalm 129 for this compilation album.
  • 2007 - Discount Fireworks (Back Porch Records; career-spanning compilation plus one unreleased song)
  • 2007 - For The Kids Three! Over the Rhine contributed an original tune titled "The Poopsmith Song" for this compilation.
  • 2009 - Notes from the Monastery (Over the Rhine contributed the cover of "Hard Times (Come Again No More)" and a new version of "Flown Free" which was a digital only bonus track)
  • 2011 - Paint it Black: An Alt-Country Tribute to the Rolling Stones Over the Rhine contributed the Rolling Stones cover "Waiting On a Friend"

Special releases

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  • 1994 - Serpents and Gloves (VHS-only video/documentary release; IRS Records)
  • 2006 - Snow Angels (Karin's Acoustic Sketches) (digital-only bonus)
  • 2010 - "OTR 2010 Demos" (A digital gift of 12 demos given to those fans who pre-ordered/funded The Long Surrender "Let's Make a Record")
  • 2012 - "OtR 2012 Demos" (A digital gift of 12 demos given to those fans who pre-ordered/funded The Farm "Let's Make a Record" which became Meet Me At The Edge Of The World)
  • 2013 - Five Good Reasons To Meet Me (Noisetrade.com Exclusive compilation of tracks from "Meet Me At The Edge Of The World".)[18]
  • 2014 - "Even The Snow Turns Blue" (An Over the Rhine Christmas compilation, Digital only download for Noisetrade.com featuring selections from all three holiday records by the band.)[19]

Solo albums by Linford Detweiler

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  • 1999 - Solo Piano: I Don't Think There's No Need to Bring Nothin' (Music for First Kind Sight) (What Reindeer and Grey Ghost Records)
  • 2001 - Grey Ghost Stories (Grey Ghost Records)
  • 2004 - Unspoken Requests (Grey Ghost Records)
  • 2024 - Ten Songs without Words

Albums by Ric Hordinski, solo and as Monk

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  • 1997 - Quiver
  • 1998 - Hush
  • 1999 - Blink
  • 2000 - "O" (EP)
  • 2001 - How Like a Winter (holiday album)
  • 2003 - When I Consider How My Light Is Spent (as Ric Hordinski)
  • 2005 - 12/05 (EP, CDR)
  • 2007 - The Silence of Everything Yearned For
  • 2009 - Notes from the Monastery (various artists produced by Hordinski)

References

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  1. ^ a b c Over the Rhine FAQ, http://www.overtherhine.com/faq.php Archived August 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Stanley, Cathryn. "Barnesville native touring to support critically-acclaimed new album". Barnesville Enterprise. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
  3. ^ "Servant | Reflections". Servantband.com. Retrieved April 1, 2012.
  4. ^ Cater, Darryl. "Over the Rhine Biography". Artist Direct. Relativity Media. Retrieved December 16, 2013.
  5. ^ Edwards, Rose. "Over The Rhine: Ohio's art-pop, Americana, folk, jazz duo". Cross Rhythms. Retrieved December 16, 2013.
  6. ^ [1] Archived March 7, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ Jackson, Josh (November 29, 2011). "The Best Albums of 2011". Paste Magazine.
  8. ^ Chambers, Scott (August 30, 2013). "Going 2-on-1 With Over the Rhine's Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist". No Depression.
  9. ^ Lewis, Randy (September 3, 2013). "Album review: Over the Rhine's 'Meet Me at the Edge of the World'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
  10. ^ "Exclusive: Over The Rhine Share Title Track from New Album Love & Revelation". pastemagazine.com. January 23, 2019. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
  11. ^ Hudak, Joseph (March 11, 2019). "Stream Americana Duo Over the Rhine's New Album 'Love & Revelation'". Rolling Stone.
  12. ^ Wine, Steven (March 11, 2019). "Review: New album celebrates Over the Rhine's milestone". Associated Press.
  13. ^ "StackPath". www.citybeat.com. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  14. ^ "LIVE REVIEWS". Lonesome Highway. September 23, 2024. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
  15. ^ "Over the Rhine – Love & Revelation". Archived from the original on September 20, 2024. Retrieved September 26, 2024.
  16. ^ "Over The Rhine Announces Line Up For Fourth Annual Nowhere Else Festival On May 24–26" (Press release). April 11, 2019. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  17. ^ Courtesy of Virgin/Backporch Records; www.overtherhine.com
  18. ^ "Over the Rhine - Five Good Reasons to Meet Me - on NoiseTrade".
  19. ^ "Over the Rhine - Even the Snow Turns Blue: An over the Rhine Christmas Compilation - on NoiseTrade".
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