As we come full swing into spring of 2009, we find ourselves working diligently towards another full length album. However we decided to make this one even better than the last, welcoming back Thomas into our little group. With his help and alot more time, we hope to create some new songs that you will all enjoy. Thank you for your continued support and please check back often as we are about to start uploading some rough mixes for your listening pleasure.
I.C.C.

Feature:
In Civilian Clothing
The Nite Owl
Dayton, OH
It's 9:15, and my friend Dave and I are hydroplaning our way North to Dayton. Normally the drive would take about 45 minutes, but at this point we have already been on the road for a little over an hour, and we still have quite a way to go. I'm kind of pissed because the main reason I am making the trip is to see In Civilian Clothing who were scheduled to hit the stage at 9:00.

I have been to the Nite Owl before, so I am roughly familiar with the territory. But of course, half the interstate exits are closed, and the ones that are open are unmarked. By the time we get to our destination, it's a little after 10:00. Dave and I unsuccessfully try to navigate our way across the waterlogged street without getting too wet. My canvass shoes are soaking up the nasty slush water like it is their job.

The stage at the Nite Owl is right by the front door, and as we enter I can't help but notice that the stage is completely bare. A sinking feeling sets in, as I wonder if tonight's shows have been cancelled due to the extremely inclement weather. But then I spot Leslea, guitarist extraordinaire for In Civilian Clothing, standing over in the corner by an assortment of rather wet instruments. Clayton spots me and makes his way over to our table, no doubt simply happy that someone made it out to the show. A couple of minutes later, Chris and Troy get back from parking the van. With his pea coat, hat, and his beard (approaching Grizzly Adams length) Chris looks as though he has stepped right off the deck of a whaling ship. Troy, on the other hand, looks like he was dragged behind Chris's ship. His clothes are so wet that he is forced to remove them. Luckily for everyone involved, he brought extra clothes with him.

About this time the opening act takes the stage, nearly three hours behind schedule. Tom Vollman plays an assortment of acoustic songs. His songs sound somewhat similar to each other, but they are catchy and easy to listen to. I have trouble understanding the lyrics on many of them, but that could be the fault of the nearly-nonexistent sound guy. When he was in the booth, he focused his attention on a Game Boy rather than the soundboard.

Tom Vollman finishes his set and In Civilian Clothing make their way to the stage, only to find out the sound guy has yet to get all their stuff hooked up. Clayton takes this as his cue to order another whiskey. Leslea lights another cigarette. Nintendo boy finally gets everything set up and In Civilian Clothing starts their set. Clayton is loose. Between songs, he's thanking people for making it out, dedicating songs, and asking new arrivals what it's like outside. But once they start playing he's all business. They sound great, even though there is no sound coming from one of the keyboards, and one of the mics appears to be off. I glance back at the sound booth. No one is there. I can only imagine the guy is in the bathroom playing with his handheld. Either the sound issues got straightened out, or In Civilian Clothing just rose above them, but they are turning in a great performance. I forgot how much I enjoy watching these guys play.

In Civilian Clothing cut their set short so the final band can start before it gets too late. Yakuza Heart Attack brings some high-octane electronica as the evening's closer. They have a unique sound, like playing Nintendo on acid. (Mom, if you're reading this, I have never done such a thing.) Some girls who had been busy at the pool tables make their way to the edge of the stage, dancing to the frenetic keyboards and pulsing bass. They are quickly joined by the adorable Hanna, a friend of In Civilian Clothing that rode down with the band. Yakuza Heart Attack, four young Daytonians...Daytonites...whatever, really know how to energize a room.

My feet are almost dry, but it's now time to head back outside. Dave and I bid farewell to Hanna, Leslea, and the guys, and wade back across 5th Street to my trusty little car. The roads are clear and we don't hydroplane once on our way back to Cincinnati.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Looking back on this concert, my main complaint doesn't actually involve any of the bands that played. It is leveled directly at Cincinnati's own Peter Adams. A friend of mine had lent me his CD this passed summer, and I really enjoyed it. When the guys from In Civilian Clothing were trying to set up a gig in Cincinnati, I recommended that they contact Adams. I had heard him live, and thought that his sound and theirs would mesh quite well. He was supposed to play that night, right after In Civilian Clothing and before Yakuza Heart Attack.

However, not long before Dave and I arrived at the Nite Owl, Adams had walked in and cancelled his performance. He told the bartender that the rest of his band had made it halfway to Dayton and then decided to turn around because of the weather. He inquired about the nearest liquor store and left.

Now, Tom Vollman had played a gig in Cincinnati the night before, and he made it up to Dayton just fine. In Civilian Clothing came all the way from Detroit. But let's pretend I buy the excuse about his band. Peter Adams plays solo all the time in Cincinnati. Why not do the same in Dayton? Maybe his guitar was with the rest of the band. Well, then Mr. Adams should have sat his ass down, bought himself a drink, and supported the bands who made it a priority to play there that night.

- Carlton Farmer

It is now almost the end of January, Wow has time flown by. We have been busy with all kinds of things reguarding the album "We Made A Killng, We Made A Mess". Having now completed our small East Coast and Midwest tours this past fall and winter, we are now focused on 2007. We did however receive an "out of this world" year end compliment that has us excited and ready to get our album out to more and more people. On Firesideometer.com we were credited with the #3 album of the year along with the #2 single of the year for Current Therapist. How great it is to hear from people who love what we are doing. The drive is there, We just need to get our name out there. If you like our music and haven't picked up our album, Please take the time to grab it. You can purchase "We Made A Killing, We Made A Mess" on any online source that sells music. Pick your favorite music site from bestbuy.com to cdnow.com to itunes.com or anywhere else, then search under our band name or the album title. I think the cheapest I've seen it is fye.com or even our myspace in a good place to purchase. Watch for new show dates coming soon and hope you all have a good start to 2007. Thanks for your support and comments, They really mean alot to us.

Troy,Chris,Leslea,& Clay

check out - in civilian clothing

Name: In Civilian Clothing

Home Base: Flint

Personnel:

Troy McLaughlin, bass/keyboards/piano/trumpet;

Clayton Ross, vocals/guitar;

Leslea Camp, guitar/keyboards;

Chris Drzewiecki, drums

Sounds Like: Tender but taut indie rock, heavy on drone but with plenty of bells and whistles (an e-bow even!) to pretty things up. Think of a rockier version of the Postal Service mixed with a less histrionic incarnation of Sunny Day Real Estate.

Name Game: Local music fans will recognize the four band members as the same lineup that started as the band Porcelain six years ago. The name change came about because as the band grew it learned of an Australian band with the same name that had just signed a record deal, and other Porcelains that were making waves across the country. Rather than go with the clunky Porcelain U.S. moniker, the four made the switch two years ago.

"There were lots we considered and some that were just so, so bad," McLaughlin said. "I was a big fan of Elle Driver from the 'Kill Bill' movies and it was one of the last three, but this is the one that we picked from a couple other finalists and decided if there were problems, we could change it right away. There's a band out there called the Civilians (note: also a name considered for the group that became Audioslave) and a Civilian Clothing fashion line in Texas, but so far no one has turned up with In Civilian Clothing."

Sound Sculpting: Camp and McLaughlin began playing music together 11 years ago in a straightforward pop-rock band, Roots of Resistance, soon picking up Drzewiecki and finally singer/songwriter Clayton, who has probably had the biggest influence on steering the band in an experimental/art rock direction.

"Clay will bring in a song that's pretty much a Ryan Adams guitar pop song, and then we'll all start working on our various parts of it individually, and that's what's given us more of an indie, electronic sound that some people say sounds like (Radiohead frontman) Thom Yorke's new solo CD, or Radiohead's 'Kid A,'" McLaughlin said. "If you saw us live, though, we'd seem like more of a folky rock group because we pretty much reconstruct the songs and drop out things that aren't live instruments. At our record release show, people were telling us that we finally got the live show sound right, and that felt really good."

Love You Live: The band is scheduling dates for an East Coast and Midwest tour in November and has set aside time for a Detroit date at a venue yet to be determined.

For Your Ears: The new "We Made a Killing, We Made a Mess" is out on RightPlace Records and available through Tower Records stores and www.ampcamp.com

Net Works: www.incivilianclothing.com is under construction and will redirect to the band's MySpace page; www.myspace.com/incivilianclothing.

September 2006
CD Review: Latest from In Civilian Clothing
by Jonathan Ettinger


When last we left our heroes, In Civilian Clothing (July 2005 Uncommon Sense), they were on the verge of achieving, but not announcing, the fruition of their decade of ambition. Now it can be told. In Civilian Clothing has signed with Right Place Records , an indy label out of Lewisville, Texas. Do not fret; Right Place has national distribution and so their album will be found in Tower Records stores nationwide and varying indy shops in the Tower-less states (like Michigan).

The album? Some albums are like fine wine and take time to develop and be appreciated. This album is the culmination of a decade-long journey that spawned no fewer than four EPs of varying styles and monikers. The best albums are crafted and definitively set to flow from track to track with no cause or need to skip over any. Not everyone realizes the importance of this. In Civilian Clothing are long-bred students of their game and it shows. From an inviting opener reminiscent in oddity of R.E.Ms later work, with precise ebb and flow from track to track, to a gentle closing door of lament, this truly is an album and not just a collection of songs strewn together. The Sigur Ros ambience of old has given way to stronger paths of rhythm and melody and the music, and band, are better for it. Some tracks hint the influence of Arcade Fire (Current Therapist), others a 70/30 mix of Coldplay and the Cure (Belly Of A Whale), forgotten Suede b-sides (Believe Me Sir) and even a Ryan Adams ballad without the country twang (Dont Worry Like I Do). If you like art and thought in your music, you wont want to miss this. If you prefer numbingly repetitive beats to nowhere, then God take mercy on you and may you never trouble us by breeding. On a scale of one to ten, one being Jessica Simpson and ten being the Beach Boyss Pet Sounds, this is an easy seven. We Made A Killing is in stores starting September 12 followed by a proper album release party with an encyclopedic band performance on the fifteenth at the Loft on Buckham Alley in Downtown Flint. Dont miss it.

We made a killing, we made a mess PRE-SALE
..">
BAND: In Civilian Clothing
RELEASE: Sep 12 2006
LABEL: Right Place
GENRE: Indie Electronic, Indie Rock, Indie Pop,
IDEAL AUDIENCE: Too smart to rock, People Laying Down, Modest Mouse fans
SOUNDS LIKE: Odelay(Beck), The Eraser(Thom Yorke), Nightsongs (Stars)






Indie pop is full of half cocked bands. Groups that can't decide on their sound, especially in the outset and manage to trip and fall trying to figure it out. That is what makes Michigan's own In Civilian Clothing such a rare thing. It seems from the outside they know exactly what they want to accomplish. They don't struggle with polarizing genres hoping to find a fit. They are dedicated to creating soft, enchanting, relaxing pop music led by singer/guitarist Clayton Ross. So that is why on their debut 'We made a killing, we made a mess" that is exactly what you get. The title of the album makes you think you are getting a Fall Out Boy or Underoath record but that is very far from the truth.

What helps keep 'We made a killing, we made a mess" so engrossing is the musical acrobatics of the band. Each member of the band plays a variety of instruments: the normal staples of any band, guitar, bass, drums but they also branch out into foriegn terrian using glockenspiels, syths, omnichord, trumpet ebows, sleigh bells and even a clarinet, that's right and you thought that all those hours learning the clarinet because your mother wanted you to were useless. Well now you can play in an indie pop band. How cool is that? Just another way that through music the dork can become king. Also intresting is the band is not afraid to shake things up from time to time. After five tracks of dark swirling indie pop with little guitar they bulk up on songs like 'In the belly of a whale'. The synths stand out more, the guitar gets a little more behind it and Clayton Ross varies from his whisper crooning into a more standard pop mode. Further changing things they include a wonderful trumpet section in 'Believe me sir' which does wonders for the song. Not only is it well played but it perfectly fits the mood of the song. Horns always add so much to any song, it really is a shame that not that many bands don't use them.

In indie pop affairs with the bulk of the instrumentation being electronic or swirling and some what repeatative the key is vocals. If you can't hold someones attention with a clever lyric or a smooth vocal approach it would be easy to fit the vocals into the drone that can make songs feel overly long. Luckily, for us Singer Clayton Ross, has a very warm and rich voice which translates well for the genre. He doesn't use any effects or any studio tricks to get this voice. He seems like he was meant to do this kind of music. Also, Clayton can really turn a phrase. His lyrics are strong, pretty and dark which is always welcome in this genre. Many people with records like these treat the vocals not as anything distinct but as part of the overall beauty of the record, which is fine but when there is some great work going on you really should pay attention. Why don't you listen to it once for the atmosphere and then again with the cd booklet handy so you can read or even sing along. This is a fantastic record for all of us romantics that stay up late at night thinking big thoughts to no one but the ceiling above us.

At the end of the day "We made a killing, we made a mess" emerges as a standout of an overcrowded scene and genre. The ideas musically and lyrically are engaging enough that will satisfy those who are looking for good atmospheric pop music and those who enjoy good lyrics. In Civilian Clothing sounds like a band on their 3rd album. They are comfortable enough with the genre they have taken on to start putting their own distinct spin on it. They also display a confidence in their music which usually only comes with age. Hopefully In Civilian Clothing will be around for their actual 3rd record but as for now they have a stellar debut to their credit, not a bad way to start a career.

In Civilian Clothing
We Made A Killing, We Made A Mess
(2006, Right Place Records)
Rating: 7.7


The debut work of In Civilian Clothing finds the quartet immersing themselves in synth heavy melancholy pop. Whether the band falls into the electro-pop genre, I'm still not totally sure, but they certainly draw generously from computerized beatworking and synthetic layering. "Current Therapist" shows a band full of quirky playfulness a la The Beta Band, mixing clipped glitches with straightforward popcrafts. The acoustic/organic "Out Of Body" falls into what Beck might aim for musically, yet the vocals of Clayton Ross are always so impassioned. The neo-funk of "Belly Of A Whale" grooves with the soul of Hot Stuff-era Frank Lenz, and is a slight diversion of the band's otherwise post-modern compositions. Morose horns haunt "Believe Me Sir", followed by the synth sustained "To Beat A Dead Horse". "Ends/Means" is In Civilian Clothing rocking out with nice fuzzy distorted guitar(?) weaving through clicks and glitches. The remaining two moody ballads provide enough melodrama to get you depressed twice over; but it's like the perfect medicine for a tired heart. For fans of The Gravity Show, Beck, The Beta Band, Stars, and Thom Yorke (The Eraser).

this guy doesnt even play piano...what a loser.

now this is where it gets good.

The man that makes us sound good.

             

..

we took down some songs and added a few new ones as well as old ones....and the christmas songs will only be up till christmas obviously. and thank you for the nice feed back on them all.  <3

we have some new recordings coming soon. so we will be changing some things around...some of the stuff that was up for awhile will be put back up as well. just trying to switch it up since it has been a LONG while.  more like a very....v...e...r...y...long while. :)

we are slow. I apologize.

love, Leslea, Troy, Chris, and Clay.