Thin Cities is:
Paul Karner- Guitar/Vocals
Tim Mortensen- Bass/Keys
Jay Warner- Drums/Headphones

In 1972, Italian author Italo Calvino re-imagined
conversations between an energetic Marco Polo and an
aging Kublai Khan, in which the two discuss the idea
of how perspective can interject new hope and
understanding into a corrupt world. The book was
written in a series of poetic entries, and was titled
"Invisible Cities".

In 2006, a small band from Illinois was served a cease
and desist order, ending a five year run with name
Braille. This news came after 3 independently booked
U.S. tours, their first nationally distributed full
length record and hundreds of shows, many with bands
that held their admiration, like Pedro the Lion,
Elliott and Denali. Rather than taking this situation
as a tragedy, the band decided to take a more
optimistic perspective and look at this as a chance to
begin a new chapter in the progression of their music.

To champion this, the name Thin Cities was adopted
from one of Calvino’s entries and their orchestration
grew beyond their three-piece format of bass, drums
and guitar to include extensive layers and textures.
The songwriting process would now include string
arrangements and programmed loops, while still heavily
under the influence of artists like Sunny Day Real
Estate, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sigur Ros and Steve
Reich.