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Slow Motion Celebrity

Slow Motion Celebrity is an American Rock band from Los Angeles, California in 2009 by Jon Fisher and John Sher. Over time, the group has seen several line-up changes. The three-piece group currently includes vocalist Mandie Hittleman, guitarist Brian Ruppenkamp, and bassist Brandon Sanborn as well as drummer Anna Crane in some live performances. Slow Motion Celebrity Combines Rock and Pop aspects into their songs to create a unique musical sound.

The band has released a five-song EP, The Skeleton Tree (2012), and a ten track album called Fixable (2014). Presently, the group is working on new music.

History

2009 - 2010: Founding

The band formed in 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Founding members included vocalist Jon Fisher and guitarist John Sher. In response to a craigslist ad, Brian Ruppenkamp applied as the drummer. Brian was quickly accepted and brought with him bassist J Steadman.

2011 - 2012: The Skeleton Tree

In February of 2012, The band released two songs, "Bears On Bikes" and "To the One." Following the release of these songs, Jon Fisher departed from the band. Mandie joined the band as the lead vocalist after responding to a craigslist ad.

In 2012, production was started on their first EP, "The Skeleton Tree." The Skeleton Tree was written and recorded by Brian, J., and Mandie with the assistance of a studio drummer. The band had no drummer in its official lineup and has stated that the EP was created and released, in part, "to get the attention of a drummer." Beau Evans, a personal friend of J and Brian helped write and performed the drum tracks for the EP. The album was produced by Ryan Greene at Validus Recording and later released on June 26, 2012.

Anna Crane joined the band as the drummer shortly after the release of The Skeleton Tree in the Spring of 2012

2013 - 2014: Fixable

February 6, 2013 saw the departure of bassist, J. Steadman. Mentioning, an "unexpected turn of events," Steadman announced he had to leave Los Angeles for an unknown amount of time and would be stepping down as a member of the band. After J left the band, Mike Roberts auditioned as the replacement bassist, but left after six months. Mandie introduced the band to Brandon Sanborn, who was playing bass for a band called Lido Beach at the time. Brandon soon left Lido Beach and joined Slow Motion Celebrity as the bassist.

On March 11 of 2014, the band released their first music video for the song "A Private Little Corner."

On May 19, The band created an Indiegogo campaign to help fund their first tour and offered donators entries into a raffle to win merchandise from the band. Between June 25 and July 8, the band embarked on their first national tour. "The Hometown Tour" lasted 14 days and spanned from Los Angeles to Boston,as suggested by the name, the tour included shows in each of the members' home towns.

In October of 2014 the band performed on Bayfest's Coca Cola stage with acts including AFI, Pop Evil, Foster the People, and Stone Temple Pilots. On October 14, the band released their first full-length album, "Fixable," produced by Ryan Greene.

2015 - Present

The band released the music video for their song "Wasted Words" on September 25, 2015.

In late 2016, the band decided to take a seven month long hiatus. During this time, Anna started work on new projects. She plays live with the band when she is available. Currently, the band consists of Brian, Mandie, and Brandon.

On March 8 2016, the band published a facebook status announcing they had begun working on new music.

On January 16 of 2017, Mandie posted a short video to the band's facebook page teasing a song in production.

Musical Style and Influences

Musical Style

The band's style is primarily Rock with Pop Influences. Slow Motion Celebrity utilizes heavy guitar riffs and drums in the majority of their songs. Mandie self-describes the band as either "Pop Rock or Alt-rock" and claims the song creation process usually happens in one of two ways, but the process is collaborative.

Method One

Brian introduces a riff or chorus idea on guitar. Brandon then works to write the bass for the track. Mandie usually writes melodies and lyrics in the same room for the part that is being worked on, then takes her work home to finish. Mandie may also come up with a melody that her, Brian, and Brandon then work on together.

Method Two

Mandie presents verses, choruses, or bridges of lyrically complete songs to Brian and Brandon who then work out chord progressions. Mandie has stated that, "The majority of Fixable was half Mandie bringing in original pop songs and Brian and Brandon "rockifying" them. And the other half, Brian bringing in an edgy riff or chorus on guitar and writing from the bare bones up."

Influences

The band members cite many other bands that they feel are influential to their sound. Their influences cover genres including Pop, Rock, and Punk. In particular, Brian and Mandie list bands including Jimmy Eat World, Fall Out Boy, No Doubt, Alanis Morissette, The Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Nirvana. Many of these acts feature electric guitars and bass, energetic drums, and catchy melodies, which are staples in Slow Motion Celebrity songs. Bands like Fall Out Boy and Paramore are highly comparable to Slow Motion Celebrity as Mandie's voice and skill with song-writing, matched with Brian and Brandon's talents with their respective instruments, allow the band to create powerful, catchy songs of a high quality. Mandie's lyrics tend to be more approachable and catchy than those found in classic rock songs, which helps the band lean in a more pop direction, despite having a fair amount of rock influence.

Band Members

Former

Jon Fisher - Vocals

John Sher - Guitar (2009-2011)

J. Steadman - Bass (2009 - 2011)

Current

Brian Ruppenkamp - Guitar (2009 - Present)

Mandie Hittleman - Vocals (2011 - Present)

Anna Crane - Drums (2012 - 2016, Live Performances Presently)

Brandon Sanborn - Bass ( 2013 - Present)

Timeline

Discography

The Skeleton Tree (2012)

The Skeleton Tree was recorded at Validus Recording Studio in North Hollywood and produced by Ryan Greene. Brian and J had 7 instrumental tracks, which Mandie wrote lyrics and melodies for. The group then created three additional songs and played them all live for Greene. The band and Ryan narrowed down the 10 songs to five and finalized the EP.

Fixable (2014)

Fixable has been described by Mandie as "the first trues accomplishment for Anna, Brian, Brandon, and Mandie as a full SMC." The band worked together to record, write, and perform the songs on the album. Many songs originally meant for the album were cut and some of the rejected Skeleton Tree songs were revamped and became part of Fixable. After another live session with Ryan Greene, the band and Ryan worked to shape and finally complete the album.