Windsor Airlift
OriginOwatonna, Minnesota, United States
Genres
Years active2001–present
Members
  • Andy Johnson
  • Tony Johnson
Past members
  • Adam Young
  • Michael DeMars

Windsor Airlift is an American ambient post-rock band formed by brothers Andy Johnson and Tony Johnson, and Adam Young. The band, to date, has released eight studio albums, eight extended plays, one live album, and six singles.

History

The band was formed in Owatonna, Minnesota,[1] and started out as Left Lane in 2001. Andy Johnson used his uncle's Washburn electric guitar, which he hasn't stopped using since, while his brother Tony, picked up the bass guitar. They had a drum set which Adam Young would use every time he joined the Johnsons at their house.[2] The group wrote parody songs and recorded them on a PC mic, as well as selling their CDs from their lockers.[3] In fall of 2002, the band regrouped as Windsor Airlift.[4] On April 25, 2003, they released their first EP, The Basement EP,[5] as well as played their very first show.[6] Between the release of The Basement EP and mid-2003, they played at several shows including Sunshine Festival, Bethel Church,[7] and Ironwood Springs. The group also performed shows at local churches and while they were in high school.[8][2]

After playing at Steele County's Battle of the Bands in 2003,[9] the band made a major change in genre direction. Abandoning nearly every aspect of pop/punk, they began writing music influenced by Unwed Sailor,[2] and quickly released Selections for a Fallen Soldier. During late 2003, the band began work on Selections for a Fallen Soldier, Vol. II, while performing at events on the weekends. Selections for a Fallen Soldier, Vol. II, was released in 2004.[10] The band also began creating short films to be played with their songs on old televisions at their concerts.[1] They released their album, Moonfish Parachutist in 2004.[11]

In the early 2005, the band released a four-song EP, Hotels.[12] Along with the release of the EP, they also released the album, Qiu!.[4] Many of these albums were recorded in Young's basement.[4] Throughout 2005 and 2006, they continued to play at shows and write music with an additional member, and long-time friend to the group, Michael DeMars.[13][14] In late 2006, the band released Ocean City Park.[15] Young and Andy collaborated on a project via the internet, and released the album Beneath The Crystal Waves.[16]

In 2007, the band slowed down as Young's electronia project, Owl City, began to rise in popularity.[4] In 2009, Young departed the group to focus on Owl City.[4][17] Before his departure, the group released the album We Rule!. In October 2010, Windsor Airlift released the album Flight.[18] Some unreleased recording bits the band did before Adam Young's departure were merged into the album as well.[19] Around the same time of the album's release, the group decided to release a compilation album that contained the EPs, Ocean City Park and Beneath The Crystal Waves.[20]

On December 22, 2011, Windsor Airlift started an album art contest for an upcoming album entitled The Meadow.[21] On January 20, 2012, the album was officially released.[22] Tony Johnson stated that the idea for The Meadow, started in June 2010.[23] Some songs from the album were written for Tony Johnson's then fiance Emily Jane, most notably the track, "Snowfall".[24] In April 2012, the band performed four shows to raise money for the Clean Water Movement.[4] On April 28, Windsor Airlift returned to its origin home of Owatonna, Minnesota for a homecoming concert, performing alongside Cabin of Love and Carinthia.[4] Former touring member, Michael DeMars joined them on the stage for the concert.[4] They also played a show with Carinthia and Swimming With Dolphins at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the neighborhood of Dinkytown. Shortly after, on May 25, the band released a live album titled, Live at the Varsity Theater, which was recorded during the concert.[25]

On May 30, 2013 the group made a YouTube video revealing that they were working on a new album titled: Moonfish Parachutist 2.[26] The video is a music video for a song on the album called Silhouette Harbor. The album is still in production and the song was later put on the album Music instead.

In September 2013, Windsor Airlift revealed that they were raising money to create physical CD formats of their new album: Music. They also had an album artwork contest (as with their previous release The Meadow).[27][28] The album was released on September 34, 2013.[29][30] Windsor Airlift announced the next day that Music was number No. 84 on the iTunes electronic charts.[31] On October 13, the Johnson brothers did an interview with Flux9.com about the release and Windsor Airlift in general.[32]

Around the time of the release of Music, on September 22, Windsor Airlift also released a three-song EP entitled The Forest Sings to Distant Shores.[33]

On December 31, 2013, the band released a single entitled "December".[34][35] The track, as of March 31, 2014 is available for free for a limited time only.[36]

On April 6, 2014, the band released a small snippet to a track they were working on, via Instagram.[37] A little over a week later, the band announced the song was entitled "Beginnings".[38]

On August 10, 2014, Windsor Airlift re-released their debut album Moonfish Parachutist to the public for free download via DropBox.[39]

On August 30, 2014, Windsor Airlift performed a show at the Vaudeville Mews in Des Moines, Iowa alongside Unwed Sailor.[40] Once again, former member Michael DeMars joined the band on guitar for the performance. The band uploaded a piece live footage from the performance on September 2, 2014.[41]

On December 3, 2014, the band released a five-song Christmas EP entitled Music for Christmas.[42]

On April 15, 2015, Windsor Airlift released a two-song EP, From the Archives.[43]

On March 14, 2016, Windsor Airlift released The Moon's House.

Members

Current members

  • Andy Johnson – guitar, laptop, keyboard, drums (2002–present)
  • Tony Johnson – bass (2002–present)

Former members

  • Adam Young – drums (2002–2009)
  • Michael DeMars – guitar (2004–2005)

Touring musicians

  • Emily Johnson – keyboard (2012–2013)
  • Scott Gratton – guitar (2012–2013)
  • Daniel Johnson – drums (2012–2013)
  • Daniel Jorgensen – drums, keyboard (2014)

Musical style and influence

Windsor Airlift brings a mixture of guitar, bass, piano, electronic keyboard, synthesizers, and drums. Since the band is instrumentally-based, they have no vocals (though some of their songs do have snippets from movies or famous speeches).[44] This has given the band their signature, as they play with their backs turned to the audience in an attempt to take the attention off themselves and onto the music.[45][46][47][48]

When the group first started and was originally a pop punk band,[49] they were influenced by Christian bands such as Relient K, Philmore, and Ace Troubleshooter.[50] The band's current ambient post-rock[49] musical style is heavily drawn off Unwed Sailor. The group is also influenced by their Christian faith and worldview.[51] An example of this is the song "Owl" (which features some audio snippets from the film Cast Away) off their 2005 EP, Hotels.[52]

"We are an instrumental post rock band. We love Jesus Christ. We love music. We love you." – Windsor Airlift[53]

Tony Johnson stated in a Windsor Airlift documentary that in the early years, when the band need inspiration, they used to smash things.[54] This, in turn, explains the multiple YouTube videos the band has posted of them throwing and wrecking old television sets and speakers.[55][56][57][58]

Discography

Studio albums

  • Selections for a Fallen Soldier (2003)
  • Moonfish Parachutist (2004)
  • Selections for a Fallen Soldier Vol. 2 (2004)
  • Qui! (2005)
  • Flight (2010-10-30)
  • The Meadow (2012-01-20)
  • Music (2013-09-23)
  • The Moon's House (2016-03-14)

EPs

  • The Basement EP (2003)
  • Hotels (2005) (Release date on their Bandcamp page is stated as 2007-10-15,[59] though this conflicts with most other sources)
  • Ocean City Park (2006) (Release date on their Bandcamp page is stated as 2013-09-21, though this conflicts with most other sources and can't be correct, as Adam Young is credited on this EP, yet he left the band in 2009)
  • Beneath the Crystal Waves (2008-06-13) (EP originally released under the Dolphin Park project)
  • We Rule! (2009)
  • The Forest Sings to Distant Shores (2013-09-22) (Very clearly a re-release of old songs due to the quality not being lossless and the style being indicative of their early days. It is unknown when this was originally recorded.)
  • Songs for Christmas (2014-12-03)
  • From the Archives (2015-04-15) (Two re-released songs from the band's early days, recording dates unknown.)

Live albums

  • Live at the Varsity Theater (2012-05-25) (recorded at The Varsity Theater in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the neighborhood of Dinkytown on April 30, 2012)

Compilations

  • Ocean City Park and Beneath the Crystal Waves (2010)

Unreleased

  • Moonfish Parachutist 2 (Currently cancelled)

Singles

  • December (2013-12-31) (Also known as "Winter" depending on where you purchase it)
  • Dream (2015-09-16)
  • Midnight Snowfall (2015-12-04)
  • Winters in The Midwest (2017-12-15)
  • Thankfulness (2019-12-21)
  • Your Best Day Ever (2020-11-19)

Other Songs

  • White Shores (Unknown)
  • Seaboards (2008)
  • Camera Blizzard (2010)
  • Basketball Abridged (Unknown)
  • You Mess with Kurt and You Go in the Grinder (Unknown)
  • I Am Hercules (Unknown)
  • Hallogen (2010)

Other projects

The Atlantic/Glacier Island

In 2004, Andy Johnson, Tony Johnson, and Adam Young created an electronic project called The Atlantic.[60][61] They released a few songs before the band went dormant for a number of years.

In 2010, Andy and Tony Johnson resurrected and reformed the project under the name Glacier Island.[62][63][64] Since then, the group has released two studio albums entitled From Pelican Shores (2010)[65][66] and The Campfire Lullabies (2012).[67][68][69] Both albums were released on August 16, exactly two years apart.[70]

Glacier Island's song "Boat" (off From Pelican Shores) echos back to the track "Boat" from Windsor Airlift's first release, The Basement EP, with a totally different sound and genre.[71][72]

On May 2, 2013, an official music video for the song "Nostalgia" (off The Campfire Lullabies) was released via YouTube.[73]

On May 10, 2013, Glacier Island played a show at Wooly's in Des Moines, Iowa. For this show, vocals were performed by Andy Johnson. Live footage from the show was published to YouTube by Johnson over the next few days.[74][75][76][77]

On June 1, 2018, Glacier Island released a new single entitled, "Arrows".[78] This coincided with the release of Owl City's album Cinematic.

The Perfect Theory

In 2006, Andy Johnson and Tony Johnson created a side project entitled The Perfect Theory.[79] A good deal of the songs produced, centered around Waldorf College, the school that Andy and Anthony Johnson attended.[80] Adam Young was featured in the project's songs "Prom Night" and "Without You Baby". The project ran until 2009.

Dolphin Park

In 2007, Andy Johnson, Tony Johnson, and Adam Young created the ambient instrumental project, Dolphin Park.[81] The project released four songs which were later re-released as Windsor Airlift's 2008 EP, Beneath The Crystal Waves. Windsor Airlift's recurring song, "The Theme for Moonglow", also originated from the project.

Other

Andy Johnson, Tony Johnson, and Adam Young also did many more side projects throughout 2005 to 2007.

In 2007, Andy and Tony Johnson created a minor one-song project entitled Casey's Pizza.[82] The project's genre was intentionally bad rap.

In early 2012, Andy Johnson released a solo worship album entitled Love Songs.[83][84]

In late 2012, Andy Johnson created the project entitled Lantern Music.[85][86] The goal of the project is to make Bible memorization easier and more fun for children.

From time to time, Andy Johnson will do a cover of an Owl City song.[87][88]

References

  1. 1 2 "Windsor Airlift on The Music Bed". The Music Bed. Archived from the original on April 15, 2014. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 Skov (October 31, 2013). "Interview: Windsor Airlift Discusses "Music" LP". flux9ine.com. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  3. ↑ @windsorairlift (October 27, 2020). "Before Windsor Airlift we were Left Lane. 2001-2002. We wrote parody songs and recorded them on a PC mic. We saved up, bought a burner and sold cds out of our lockers. We documented our life as a band on this vhs tape. It's absolutely ridiculous and a glimpse into our early days" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Derek Sullivan (April 18, 2012). "Announcement of Windsor Airlift's April homecoming concert". SouthernMinn.com. Faribault Daily News. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  5. ↑ "Throwback picture of The Basement EP CD". Instagram. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  6. ↑ "April 25, 2003. First Windsor Airlift show". Facebook. Retrieved May 7, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Windsor Airlift's 1st Show". YouTube. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  8. ↑ Chris Riemenschneider (October 31, 2010). "Owl City goes back to school for Halloween". Star Tribune. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  9. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Live at the Steele County Free Fair". YouTube. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Windsor Airlift - Selections for a Fallen Soldier, Vol. II". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  11. ↑ "Windsor Airlift - Moonfish Parachutist". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Hotels EP on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  13. ↑ ""Another One Bites the Dust" (2005)". YouTube. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  14. ↑ ""Bruce Willis Takes a Walk" (2005)". YouTube. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Ocean City Park on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  16. ↑ "Beneath The Crystal Waves on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  17. ↑ Jill Menze (August 4, 2009). "Electro-Pop Act Owl City Takes Off With 'Fireflies'". Billboard. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  18. ↑ "Flight - Album by Windsor Airlift". Spotify. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  19. ↑ "Windsor Update pt.2". YouTube. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  20. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Album(s) Released!". YouTube. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  21. ↑ "The Meadow album artwork contest". Facebook. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  22. ↑ "The Meadow - Album by Windsor Airlift". Spotify. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  23. ↑ "The Meadow – Behind The Trees – Pt. 1: Inspiration for the album". Tumblr. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  24. ↑ "Snowfall – Behind the Trees – Part 2: Inspiration for the album". Tumblr. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Live at the Varsity Theater - Album by Windsor Airlift". Spotify. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  26. ↑ ""Silhouette Harbor" Official Music Video on YouTube". YouTube. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  27. ↑ "Music album artwork contest". Facebook. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  28. ↑ "Music album artwork contest entries". Facebook. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  29. ↑ "Music by Windsor Airlift on iTunes". iTunes. 23 September 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  30. ↑ "Music by Windsor Airlift on Bandcamp". Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  31. ↑ "Windsor Airlift announces Music is #84 on the iTunes electronic charts". Facebook. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  32. ↑ "Windsor Airlift interview with Flux9". Flux9.com. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  33. ↑ "The Forest Sings to Distant Shores on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  34. ↑ ""December" on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  35. ↑ ""December" on Soundcloud". SoundCloud. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  36. ↑ "Windsor Airlift announces "December" single will be free for a limited time". Facebook. Retrieved May 5, 2014.
  37. ↑ ""Beginnings" preview". Instagram. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  38. ↑ "Announcement of the single "Beginnings"". Facebook. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  39. ↑ "Moonfish Parachutist Facebook announcement". Facebook. Retrieved August 10, 2014.
  40. ↑ "Windsor Airlift announces their August show". Facebook. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  41. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Live – Spring". YouTube. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
  42. ↑ "Music for Christmas on BandCamp". BandCamp. December 3, 2014. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
  43. ↑ "From The Archives on BandCamp". BandCamp. April 15, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
  44. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Live at the OCC (2005)". YouTube. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  45. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Live in Downtown Owatonna (2005)". YouTube. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  46. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Live at the OCC 2 (2005)". YouTube. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  47. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Live at the OCC 3 (2005)". YouTube. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  48. ↑ "Windsor Airlift Live at the North Iowa Free Fair". YouTube. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  49. 1 2 Andrew Chin (May 8, 2015). "Interview with Owl City's Adam Young". That's Mags. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  50. ↑ "SE 101 – Ace Troubleshooter Live at the Aquarium". YouTube. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  51. ↑ ""Sunrise (Live)" music video". YouTube. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  52. ↑ ""Owl" on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  53. ↑ "Windsor Airlift on Storenvy". Storenvy. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 21, 2014.
  54. ↑ "Windsor Airlift: Ep. 1 – Musical Inspiration". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  55. ↑ "Boy Smashing Speaker Off Van – Owl City". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  56. ↑ "Owl City TV Smash". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  57. ↑ "Windsor Airlift's Smashing Glass". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  58. ↑ "Boy Smashes Tv". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  59. ↑ "Hotels, by Windsor Airlift". Windsor Airlift. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
  60. ↑ "The Atlantic on PureVolume". PureVolume. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
  61. ↑ "From Pelican Shores album by The Atlantic (Glacier Island)". Grooveshark. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
  62. ↑ "Glacier Island on MySpace". MySpace. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  63. ↑ "Glacier Island on SoundCloud". SoundCloud. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  64. ↑ "Glacier Island on PureVolume". PureVolume. Retrieved May 2, 2014.
  65. ↑ "From Pelican Shores on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  66. ↑ "From Pelican Shores on BandCamp". BandCamp. August 17, 2010. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
  67. ↑ "The Campfire Lullabies on iTunes". iTunes. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  68. ↑ "The Campfire Lullabies on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved March 25, 2014.
  69. ↑ "Hard copies of The Campfire Lullabies on Windsor Airlift's Official Store". Storenvy.com. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  70. ↑ "The Campfire Lullabies Vlog". YouTube. Retrieved April 28, 2014.
  71. ↑ ""Boat" by Windsor Airlift". YouTube. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
  72. ↑ ""Boat" by Glacier Island". YouTube. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
  73. ↑ ""Nostalgia" Official Music Video on YouTube". YouTube. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
  74. ↑ "Glacier Island Live – Something That I Read". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  75. ↑ "Glacier Island Live – Night Drive". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  76. ↑ "Glacier Island Live – Nostalgia". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  77. ↑ "Glacier Island Live – I Hate Goodbyes". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  78. ↑ "Glacier Island – "Arrows"". SoundCloud. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  79. ↑ "The Perfect Theory on MySpace". MySpace. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  80. ↑ "Comm's World". YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  81. ↑ "Dolphin Park on MySpace". MySpace. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  82. ↑ "Casey's Pizza on MySpace". MySpace. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  83. ↑ "Love Songs on Bandcamp". Bandcamp. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  84. ↑ "Physical copies of Love Songs on Windsor Airlift's official store". Storenvy.com. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  85. ↑ "Lantern Music official site". LanternMusic.org. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  86. ↑ "Lantern Music on Facebook". Facebook. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
  87. ↑ "Owl City's "Sky Diver" Cover – Andy Johnson". YouTube. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
  88. ↑ "Owl City – Metropolis Acoustic Cover – Andy Johnson". YouTube. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.