The Channel sound is a mix of psychedelic, pop and western tones.
PLEASE NOTE: the official channel site is now: www.thechannelsounds.net (no longer .com)

Hear some new songs at www.myspace.com/thechannel

‘The Channel’ began as a project of brothers Brent and Colby Pennington in the late 90’s when they formed a band with a few of their friends as a means of passing the time. After a short tenure, the group was disbanded and not heard from for close to four years.

Colby continued writing and recording music on his own under the pseudonym ‘Driftin’ Luke and his many Personalities’, and began collaborating with his good friend Joey Vaughan in various bands such as ‘The Mighty Hebrews’ and ‘Ol’ Pioneers’. These outings yielded many recordings that circulated mainly amongst friends and family. While Colby kept busy with his various projects, Brent began playing in an Austin band called ‘The Arthurs.’ After a few homemade recordings and one minor studio effort, ‘The Arthurs’ traveled to Portland, OR to record their debut LP, “Walking in the Sunlight”, with Martyn Leaper of ‘The Minders’. Two small west coast tours ensued, and ‘The Arthurs’ began to die down. It was during this time that Colby and Brent decided to resurrect ‘The Channel’ with two of Brent’s bandmates from ‘The Arthurs’, Andy McAllister and Jamie Reaves.

In 2001, ‘The Channel’ recorded their first full length album entitled “Tones are Falling.” C-Side Records eventually released the album in early 2003, while the band played shows around town to support its release. During this time, Colby and Brent’s sister, Heather, was added to the group. ‘The Channel’ continued to perform around their home state opening for acts such as ‘Of Montreal’ and ‘The Minders.’

Over the course of the next year, ‘The Channel’ recorded a ten song LP entitled “Personalized” with all five members sharing the songwriting and production duties. The recording consists of nine original songs and a Will Oldham cover. The album was mastered by Jeff Saltzman at Superdigital in Portland, OR. Released in late 2004, the record received many glowing reviews and was a hit on college radio, peaking at #74 on the CMJ 200.

'The Channel' continued to lay down new tracks, and began to form two distinct collections of songs. As Jamie drifted in and out of seclusion, he quickly put together "Sibylline Machine", a collection of tunes and lyrics as strange and oracular as the man himself and the title he gave them. Meanwhile, Colby formed the idea behind "Tales from the Two Hill Heart", mostly from 'Driftin' Luke' demos and other songs buried deep within the recesses of his mind. As these two ideas took shape, it was clear that they were divergent entities, which gave way to the concept of releasing them as seperate pieces of music, albeit in one package. And so this brings us to the new double album, "Tales of the Two Hill Heart / Sibylline Machine", due to be released on August 8th, 2006. There's certainly something here for everyone.

Click album titles to download free mp3's and view lyrics.

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