Fairy Bones Is All Business About the Music

What is so satisfying about the level of recognition that local synth-punks Fairy Bones get is that the band has gone about its entire career the "right" way. The foursome is equally about business as it is party, they don't kowtow to local promoters, they work with as many local artists as they possibly can, and they make catchy and fun original tunes.

Is there a better recipe for success than that?

With spunky frontwoman Chelsey Louise Richard, recently named one of the 10 best lead singers in town, leading the charge, Fairy Bones has forced its way into the conversation of who are the best bands not only in Phoenix, but who is the next band to join Andrew Jackson Jihad and Kongos the national stage.

It's hard to believe that a band that couldn't find the right show two years ago is preparing to release one of the most anticipated albums of the year. But it was that willingness to play the wrong shows, just to get the Fairy Bones name out there, that helped the band grow.

The most crucial character trait running through Fairy Bones is the band's willingness to fall flat on its face. Because it was at the empty hip-hop shows they played early in their career that they developed their resilience.

But the advantages of being out of place on usual bills weren't always so meta for the punky four-piece. It was at a mismatched ska show in late 2013 that Fairy Bones met the co-creators of Raw Images, a group of media people they still work with today for videos and photo shoots.

Drummer Matt Foos said that when the band formed, all the members joined without any expectations of the future. "It could have all fallen apart in a few weeks," he says. "You just don't know."

Richard adds: "I always keep my expectations low, so that way I am never disappointed."

But that jokey saying has been paramount to Fairy Bones' success in the Phoenix scene. Because if you don't care how many people are at the show, you are going to give it your all no matter what.

As someone who has seen Fairy Bones play to both an empty room and a packed venue, I can attest that they bring everything they've got every time they play.

But where once their energy could be misguided as they worked out their song structure, genre, and signature sound, they now come off as a well-put-together ensemble with a real feel for each other's style and mannerisms.

Obviously, Richard and guitar/synth player Robert Ciuca had learning curve catching up with their bandmates Foos, and his brother Benjamin. But with them living under one roof at their practice pad/home The Bones Haus, they have been able to develop a killer chemistry.

The album itself is head and shoulders above their work on last year's The Fairy Bones EP, and producer Bob Hoag, whom the band describes as the fifth Fairy Bone, really brought the emotion out of them on the recording of Dramabot, which they will release Saturday, January 31, at the Rogue Bar in Scottsdale.

Hoag will be on hand for the release playing in Gospel Claws, and he will no doubt make a guest appearance during FB's set. The Burning of Rome also is scheduled to perform.

Fairy Bones will release Dramabot at the Rogue Bar in Scottsdale.

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