Columbus Ohio's Denovo is a new effort featuring former members of local favorite
Special Aviation Project. The group reformed in the fall of 2000 with front man
Sean Gardner -also of Kopaz- and began working hard at finding a new sound.
Denovo spent almost a year building this relationship and learning how to play
together as a new unit -- writing and rewriting songs, continually growing and
evolving as a band and a family.
Driven by the simple desire to have fun doing what they love, Denovo has taken
the standard indie rock sound and given it a new edge. They layer catchy,
innovative guitar riffs over smooth bass and drum hooks giving their music an
intricate and angular, yet aggressive feel. Denovo has the ability to turn 4/4 time
signatures into seemingly complex math equations. Combined with a catchy,
sometimes 80s-inspired, pop sensibility, the vocals are addictively melodic and
dynamic, ranging from soft, smooth singing to the occasional emotional scream.
Denovo has a string of influences -- from DC bands such as Jawbox, Shudder To
Think, and Hoover to the late-90s Midwestern sounds of Lincoln and Indian Summer
to some late 70s/early 80s groups like The Police. However, each member definitely
brings his own personal influences to the table and these often convene to form
something truly unique. People also often hear the likes of At the Drive-in,
Q and not U, and Drive like Jehu in Denovo's work.
The group just released a three-song EP on We Want Action and will tour the
east coast in the fall of 2003. Denovo also has tentative plans to record a full length
album in the spring of 2004 with John Congleton of The Paper Chase.
Denovo has performed with:
Les Savy Fav, Pretty Girls Make Graves, The Paperchase, The Red and
The Black, Explosions in the Sky, The Beautiful Mistake, and more.