Swiss Auto Club

Formed in the relatively obscure and modest Watchung Mountains of suburban New Jersey rather than the legendary and majestic Alps of Switzerland, as their name may imply, Swiss Auto Club have reached a musical summit with the release of If Armies Fought Like the Winter Sun that surprises no one. Even in their formative days, playing under a different moniker (and with a frontman who has long since departed), their sounds and their performances hinted at the band and music to be.

Even in their formative days, playing under a different moniker (and with a frontman who has long since departed), their sounds and their performances hinted at the band and music to be. Only then it was spiked with a boyish sense of exploration that found them trying Britpop, power pop and introspective indie rock balladry on for size. But after singer Jason Snell left, principal song-writer John Bonaventura took on the vocal duties while allocating a share of the lead guitar responsibilities to his friend since childhood, Jack Hoopingarner. Eager to find themselves and make an immediate impression, the revamped band changed their name and recorded an eight-song CD called Esplosione after a mere few months of togetherness.

It was during the process of promoting the release and writing new material that the joy of exploration evolved into the thrill of discovery the thrill of finding their sound. That sound would soon become their next project. Fan reaction to the new material at various NYC venues, as well as on a mini-tour to Georgia and back, excited the band enough to embark on recording the material right away.

The manifestation of that excitement, If Armies Fought Like the Winter Sun, is a soul-stirring labor of love. These six songs were recorded and re-recorded between the summer of 2003 and the spring of 2004 with Bonaventura and Hoopingarner at the helm. The triumphant sound of Winter Sun, released by indie upstart Bailey Park Records in cooperation with Backlight Records, is accentuated for those in the know by the memory of technological tragedies, collegiate commitments and waylaid plans. The final product though is a blistering, soaring testament to the boys who wouldn't quit and the music that wouldn't let them quit.

In October of 2004, the band celebrated the release by playing to a sold out audience at New York's Knitting Factory Tap Room. Now, after a brief hiatus, the band is recording new material and again bringing their epic live show to fans new and old.