Supporting Acts: Grabass Charlestons, Bartender Brian Chris Wollard & the Ship Thieves To begin, you’ve got Chris - known primarily for his melodic howl and furious guitar riffage in Hot Water Music but also with a hand in lesser-known exploits The Draft, Rumbleseat, The Blacktop Cadence, and Cro(w)s. He’s been working on these songs for over five years, long before Hot Water called it quits or The Draft was even a twinkle in his eye. They weren’t written for a specific purpose, the re was no real plan to release a record, no plan to form a band. Chris writes songs because he’s a musician. You can’t really call it a job and it’s much more than a hobby. Some people were just meant to write songs. Originally laid down on an acoustic guitar, these tunes were brought to life in the studio with a fantastic cast of characters. Ben Lovett got his hands on them first, bringing the same experienced touch that brought Matt Skiba’s HEAVENS to life along with a host of film scores. And while Chris and Ben were tracking now and then in California, pretty soon, back home in Florida, long-time friend Addison Burns (The Enablers, Quit) entered the fold. Chris and Addison had started tracking their own “guerilla style” recordings wherever and whenever possible. The songs took shape from there, with Crescendo Sound Studios production wizards Derron and Addison leaving their usual spots behind the mixing board and returning to the Live Room beside HWM drum maestro George Rebelo. Chris’s songs sprung to life, with layers upon layers of instrumentation creating an atmospheric, ethereal record full of eclectic masterpieces. From mid-tempo rockers to somber acoustic tunes, haunting vocals and perfectly placed production, “Chris Wollard & the Ship Thieves” is exactly what a studio album should be. $7.00