Last Friday, Brooklyn Vegan posted a letter written by Pela announcing that the band's no longer together. We at Brassland thought we'd re-post the letter, taken from Pela's website:
Thank you, and good night.....
It is with great sadness that we write you today. Pela's collective journey has come to an end.
Over the past 2 years we've faced tremendous obstacles. We recorded an album twice, had a falling out/legal battle with our old label, fired 2 managers, had a big record deal fall through, and Billy had a hand injury followed by a foot injury.
We've worked tirelessly to get our music out of ourselves and into your ears. We wo...
As previously reported, Pela was forced to cancel the remainder of their tour following singer/guitarist Billy McCarthy's hand injury.
Well, everyone's happy to say that Billy's surgery went well and that he and the band are now in the process of a little R & R. In May, the band will hit the road again to make up the canceled shows. See the new tour dates on our shows page (click on the "Artist" column heading in order to sort dates by Brassland artist).
Pela guitarist/singer Billy McCarthy was injured at the band's February 29th show in Chicago. According to Pela's website, he fell off stage, landing on a broken pint glass and, in the process, sliced some tendons in his pinky finger. As a result, the rest of Pela's tour has been canceled as Billy undergoes surgery and recovers. Apologies to those who had bought tickets to upcoming shows. The band fully intends to make up the missed dates, and as soon as they're announced, we'll post them.
Pela are celebrating the completion of their debut album with a residency at New York's Delancy. They will be playing the club every Monday in April.
Pela embarked on their first US tour in July traveling from Brooklyn to Chicago and back again, and recording an amazing live session for our favorite internet radio station WOXY. Unfortunately, lead singer Billy Swanson blew his voice out in Dayton, and bassist Eric Sanderson blew his knee out the next day in Cincinnati, forcing the band to cancel about half the dates. They may tour again before the year ends and are planning on recording some new tracks this winter for later release. For now, you'll have to be tided over by Pela's CMJ gig at Bowery Ballroom with Devendra Banhart, The Cribs, and King of France, and a Cambridge appearance with The National. See our tour page for deta...
First off hello to Entertainment Weekly readers that have ended up here looking for Pela's exclusive "Download This" track.
As an additional gift from us, here is a photo Pela's guitarist, Nate Martinez (with rock face) and The National's drummer, Bryan Devendorf (in towel), in front of a European castle.
The good news does not end there. Pela's debut EP, All in Time, was released last month, and the great reviews have started to come in. Salon.com writes "The latest from the consistently excellent Brassland label is All in Time, the debut EP by Brooklyn, N.Y., band Pela. I get a really good feeling about this band - long on skills and passion, short on pos...
We write to encourage your attendence at three fine events celebrating the release of Pela's 5-song debut, All in Time. First of all:
9pm-11pm, Wednesday May 4th
"First Taste" listening party
Hi-Fi, 169 Avenue A, NYC 10009
Ph: 212.420.8392
This event is free, open to the public, and you can get $2 IPAs, Brooklyn Lager, and Pilsner from 9-11pm. To see a full-size flyer.
Later this month, the band will open up for British Sea Power & Feist at their sold out Bowery Ballroom show on May 14th; they will celebrate the release of All in Time four days later with a show at Mercury Lounge. Deets and links on our tour page. (Unfortunately we will not be posti...
We are proud to announce our latest signing, Pela. They are from the Red Hook section of Brooklyn and their music might just change your life. We've posted a bio, some music samples, and other info in the near future. For now, take a look at their site, PelaMusic.com.