High Ceiling is: JOEL BLACK-Bass, Vocals / TRAIL BLACK-Guitar, Vocals / FRANK FOX-Drums / GABE OLSON-Percussion / BRAD SCHRANDT-Keyboards, Saxophone, Flute, Vocals
“Easy flowing reggae escapades that ascend into effervescent jams and rootsy rock anthems. Fundamentally joyful, High Ceiling lyrically takes time to delve into socio/political topics of relevance.” says Andrew Frey (Maximum Ink Music Magazine). All of this infused with improvisation, defines the band’s unique presence in the Northwest music and eclectic arts scenes.
Always uplifting… conscious… adventurous… this five piece layers heavy doses of deep bass, percussive reggae grooves, live dub, danceable flute, keys, sax rhythms with epic guitar, resulting in palpable energy climaxes.
Northwest music scene favorites since 2004, High Ceiling has logged nearly 500 shows with tours of the West Coast, performing at some of the finest venues and festivals. International buzz about the band began in 2009 with their second studio release, “Illusions”. “Illusions” received airplay on hundreds of college/community radio stations across the U.S. and reached #14 on the jambands.com radio charts.
High Ceiling was awarded Reggae artist of the year for 2010 at Somojo Magazine and Radio. The group’s song, “High and Lifted” from the “Illusions” album was the #1 reggae song on somojo.net reggae charts for 2010.
In 2011 High Ceiling began working with UK based Deuce Management, leading to the band’s music receiving FM airplay in Australia, Netherlands, Scotland, England and looking forward to spreading the positive vibrations abroad and onward.
High Ceiling won awards in two categories at the 2012 Olympia Music awards; High Ceiling’s song “Illusions” received the top award for song of the year and the group also won Reggae artist of the year for 2012.
High Ceiling has also performed as the backing band for “Reggae Legend” Norma Fraser at multiple festival appearances.
On November 25th, 2017 the band released their 3rd album, “Easy”.
Through years of touring and creating conscious music with reverence for unity, love, compassion, and growth; High Ceiling has built a loyal spirited fan base.
—Below is a Nov. 24, 2017 article written by Molly Gilmore and published in THE OLYMPIAN newspaper—
“When they’re not making ice cream, Trail and Joel Black are making jams.
The brothers from Shelton — who work at their parents’ Olympic Mountain Ice Cream — are the heart of the reggae-fusion jam band High Ceiling, playing Saturday at the Capitol Theater.
“Our band is finally at a point where we can play at the Capitol Theater and get a big enough crowd out that it’s going to be high energy,” Trail Black said in a phone interview.
The show, celebrating the release of the band’s third album, “Easy,” will offer spectacle as well as sound, with a light show and an elaborate video backdrop projected on the theater’s big screen.
This album — the band’s first in eight years — is worthy of celebrating, said Black, who sings and plays guitar.
“In the last five years, we’ve had a group of people in the band who are just stellar musicians,” he said. Along with Joel Black on bass and vocals, the current lineup includes Gabe Olson, also a founding member, on percussion; Frank Fox on drums; and Brad Schrandt on keyboards, saxophone and more. Guitarist Chris Stephanile, who played on “Easy,” has since left both the state and the band.
“This album is definitely our best work and our most complete work,” Trail Black said. “I feel like it’s going to stand the test of time as our High Ceiling legacy.”
Black said the band, which plays at many local and regional festivals, is still going strong after 14 years.
The Blacks started the band in 2004, not long after they began jamming together at home.
They’d grown up with music, with their mom, Bev, encouraging piano lessons and dad, Karl, sharing stories from his days playing bass with The Poverty Five, a Beatles-esque band that opened for both The Doors and The Grateful Dead.
High Ceiling’s early songs came out of jam sessions, taking inspiration from the energy of such bands as Phish and The String Cheese Incident. The band broke with traditional song structures, played in rarely used keys, and mixed songs into one another freely.
The band’s style has since evolved. The Blacks write most of the songs, which combine elements of reggae, rock, funk and more.
But the guys are still jamming, making space within songs for improvisation.
“We want every performance to be different,” Trail Black said. “Every time I go into a guitar solo, I’m thinking, ‘What can I do differently?’ I know that’s what inspires our audience.”
The visuals for Saturday’s concert will be improvised, too, with video projections created during the show by Sean Bonsell of Olympia. Bonsell mixes live performance footage with other video and special effects.
“It’s a flowing, organic montage,” Bonsell said in a phone interview. “I’m pretty much jamming with the band.”
The backdrop and the band’s computerized light show mean the visual is an important part of the concert, which will include a performance of the entire new album plus other songs.
“When it’s on a giant screen behind the band, the video is all-encompassing for the audience,” Black said. “Transcendent, trippy things happen.””
SOURCE: Official Bio
LINKS:
http://www.highceilingmusic.com
https://www.facebook.com/highceiling
https://twitter.com/high_ceiling
