Equally indebted to
the Shins,
Brian Wilson, and
John Lennon,
the Morning Benders mix sunny pop songcraft with jangling guitars, double-tracked vocals, and collegiate wit. Frontman
Chris Chu launched the group as a solo project in 2005, using a single microphone and laptop to record his early songs. The
Loose Change EP arrived in September 2006, and
Chu subsequently opened
the Benders' doors to several of his UC Berkeley classmates, including drummer
Julian Harmon, bassist
Tim Or, and guitarist/organist
Joe Ferrell. A second EP,
Boarded Doors, appeared in early 2007 and was well received by such Bay Area publications as The SF Weekly, prompting
Chu to take a part-time job as a studio engineer in order to finance an additional record. Largely produced, engineered, and mixed by
Chu himself, the full-length
Talking Through Tin Cans arrived in May 2008 on the newly minted +1 Records label. ~ Andrew Leahey, All Music Guide