Lungs of a Giant

Lungs of a Giant was formed in New York CIty by Paul Watling, Ted Harrison, Chris Belz and Hannah Cabell in the year 2000. Paul (originally from Illinois) met Ted (a New Jersey native) in Ireland at the Burren College of Art in the mid-'90s. There they found they shared a fondness for The Pixies, Pavement, and Guided by Voices. A few years later Paul made his way East where he joined up with Ted (on drums) to play bass for post-punk classic rock outfit American Pragmatists. After a handful of shows and one EP, AP disbanded and left Paul and Ted to start afresh.

With Ted on drums and Paul on guitar, they soon recruited Ted's high school friend Chris Belz to play keyboards and (recently transplanted from New Hampshire) Hannah Cabell on vocals. In November of 2000 they played their first show at the album cover art party for their self-released, self-titled six song EP. Recorded by Paul to 4-track, their sound was open and amorphous. Band members would take turns at the reigns, often switching instruments. Songs would range from the outer space rock instrumental of "Ecoutez et Repetez" to the melancholy, love-lorn lullaby of "Madame Lafont's Advice".
The band soon swelled to six members when Ted's two brothers joined the outfit: Greg Harrison played bass and Andy Harrison worked with keyboards and sampling. Three self-released singles followed, all recorded by Paul at his workspace ("The Hall of Ancient Robots"). "Sleepy Fields", "3-Song Demo (Star Pepper Moon)", and "Higher Planes", as well as a split seven-inch with fellow NYC band La Pieta, were all released between 2001 and 2003. By the time "3-Song Demo" was made, Andy had moved on, Hannah had added a second guitar to the mix and Paul had taken the lead as front man and songwriter. As Paul found his voice, the songs became more assertive while sporting sharper corners. After "Higher Planes" in 2003, Ted and Hannah both left for other pursuits. Greg switched to playing drums and longtime New Jersey ally Erin Finnerty joined in on bass for what is now the current line-up. In 2004 "Smokin' Kitty , a compilation of selected tracks of their work to date, was released. With the new line-up came the single "The Valley" in 2004, and in 2006 they recorded outside of "The Hall of Ancient Robots" for their first full-length album "Headfirst Handshakes".
Besides the song "Xmas Xing" on the My Pal God compilation "A Sense of Where We Are", Lungs of a Giant have yet to be represented by a label. They continue to write and produce new music as well as perform in and around New York City.