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Emits Showers of Sparks is in record stores everywhere. Run out and grab it today!

The band is hitting the road with the Jesus and Mary Chain and Trail of Dead! Here are those tour dates you've been looking for.

Sixteen Deluxe are the loudest band in Austin, Texas. (Trust me. One time I saw a guy leave Emo's with bleeding ears after one of their shows.) They released their first album, Backfeedmagnetbabe (seen here), on Trance Syndicate Records in 1995, and have also released The Pilot Knob EP, on Genius Records. They've criscrossed the country on a few tours opening for all your favorite bands, including Stereolab, Mercury Rev, Medicine, 7 Year Bitch, Luna and Sebadoh. Spin gave them the #7 single of 1995 for the Idea b/w Honey 7", and have also reviewed their last 7", Reactive b/w Kids In America.

After seeing them live 40+ times, I've grown to love this band more than almost any other. I own all but one of the songs that I know they've released, and I've managed to figure out how to play several of their songs on the guitar. The best way to describe them is to imagine putting Big Star, The Flaming Lips and My Bloody Valentine into an orbital blender, adding a few more effects pedals, beaming the result in from space and serving hot. According to some it's derivative, but it's best just to throw those opinions out the window, turn off all the lights, close your eyes and fly out to space with the band...

The band's major label debut, Emits Showers of Sparks, came out January 13th, 1998, on Warner Bros. Records.. It's filled with the same sonic-explosion, candy-sweet sounds as Backfeedmagnetbabe and The Pilot Knob EP, but with the vocals turned up to an audible level. No more puzzling to figure out what Carrie and Frenchy are saying! John Croslin produced the album, which the band recorded in San Francisco last year. It's without a doubt their best effort to date - "Mexico Train" will knock you out of your seat; "Honey" is an even better version than the original B-side to "Idea"; "Captain Kirk's Z-Man House of Fun" is a quiet-to-loud masterpiece complete with background guitar noise and Carrie's oh-so-sweet vocals; "Sniffy Woe" has it all - dead-on drumming, mental-home guitar noise, and a catchy-as-hell lead guitar reminiscent of "Oh Sherry".

Their version of "Kanga Roo" by Big Star will drop your jaw - I think I like it even better than the original. It's one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've ever heard. "Babyheadrush" is another brilliant piece - it's 4 minutes of pure bliss - but this time an original. In my honest opinion it's their best song. (And that's picking from a collection of material where not one is a throwaway...)

A few links for your browsing pleasure:

The Warner Bros. Sixteen Deluxe page is up and running now. Click here.

Here's a discography I've put together.

I've put together a page with lyrics.

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This page was last updated May 30th, 1998.

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