Christopher Pravdica
| Christopher Pravdica | |
|---|---|
|
Pravdica performing with Swans in 2014 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | Noise rock, experimental rock, post-rock, art rock, indie rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, bartender |
| Instruments | Bass guitar, electronics, guitar, Jew's harp |
| Labels | Young God |
| Associated acts | The Gunga Din, Flux Information Sciences, Services, Swans |
| Notable instruments | |
| Fender Precision Bass[1] | |
Christopher Pravdica is an American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the current bass guitarist of American experimental rock band Swans.
Biography
Pravdica was a member of New York-based indie rock band The Gunga Din, which was founded in 1998. The band released two studio album, Introducing (1999) and Glitterati (2000).[2] He performed with Flux Information Sciences[3] on electronics, alongside fellow The Gunga Gin member Siobhan Duffy. After the break-up of Flux Information Sciences, Pravdica and former member Tristan Bechet founded the band Services, which released its debut album Your Desire Is My Business in 2005.[4] In 2010, Pravdica joined Swans, which reunited that year.[3] After the reunion, Swans released four studio albums with Pravdica: My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky (2010), The Seer (2012), To Be Kind (2014) and The Glowing Man (2016).
Pravdica is also a bartender.[5]
Artistry and equipment
Pravdica's rhythmic bass playing for Swans is characterized for its simple grooves, which takes up an important role in the band's music.[1][6] The minimalist grooves are exemplified on the track "A Little God in My Hands" from To Be Kind, with its 3 note bass line. His basslines are also noted for their "texture and loudness," which cut through the mix.[1] Brice Ezell of PopMatters described bassline of the track “She Loves Us!” (To Be Kind) as a "gut-punch of a bassline" while stating: "Pravdica sounds like he could lead an army in a triumphant battle march." Ezell also similarly categorized the basslines of the tracks "Oxygen" (To Be Kind) and "Jim" (My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky) as "infectious" and "catchy," respectively.[6]
For his live performances for Swans, Pravdica uses a Fender Precision Bass with a pick, accompanied mainly by a distortion pedal and an Ampeg head and cabinet.[1] He also occasionally performed on acoustic guitar and Jew's harp on Swans recordings.[7]
Discography
- With The Gunga Din
- Introducing (1999)
- Glitterati (2000)
- With Services
- Your Desire Is My Business (2005)
- With Swans
- My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky (2011)
- We Rose from Your Bed with the Sun in Our Head (2012)
- The Seer (2012)
- Not Here / Not Now (2013)
- To Be Kind (2014)
- The Gate (2015)
- The Glowing Man (2016)
- Guest contributions
- The Vanity Set – The Vanity Set (2000) – fuzz bass, guitar, banjo, Jew's harp
- The Vanity Set / Sally Norvell – "Jump in the Grave"/"Exit Music (For a Film)" (2001) – guitar
References
- 1 2 3 4 Emiliani, Mike (July 30, 2014). "Anti-funk: How Chris Pravdica brings groove to Swans". Smartbassguitar.com. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
- ↑ Wilson, MacKenzie. "The Gunga Din". Allmusic. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
- 1 2 Bre,han, Tom (January 11, 2010). "Swans to Reunite". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
- ↑ Posell, Alexander (February 2, 2006). "Services: Disruption and Destruction". XLR8R. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
- ↑ Vallis, Alexandra (November 19, 2008). "Christopher Pravdica Gets Dirty at Hank's and Serves Ski Water at Café Select". Grub Street. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
- 1 2 Ezell, Brice (May 14, 2014). "The Seer Guides Us to Be Kind: Ten Great Songs by Swans 2.0". PopMatters. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
- ↑ "Christopher Pravdica". Allmusic. Retrieved September 6, 2014.