Somewhere between memory and echo lie the stories and sounds of Amateur Radio Operator, living in the silence between the big parts - the reverb after sharp, tense sound… the propagation of entropy. They chase the ghost stories of work, old dogs, broken radios, industrial rivers, rust, and death, by knocking on the tops old guitars and decaying snare drums or forcibly colliding walls of overdrive with the upper temporal-limits of delay.
With a faraway voice, Amateur Radio Operator makes a rich, cinematic sound, blending the stories and characters of sepia-toned places with dynamics, volume, and variation while bridging the gap between rock and alt. country.
Created by a dense, multi-talented cohort of contributors, ARO’s debut album Sirens of Titan is due at the end of 2007. Harkening the haunting old-time aura of the Louvin brothers, Doc Boggs, and the Carter Family, the music tells stories in the modern vein of weary travelers and forlorn dreamers, lonesome, wondering, wandering.

Band Members

Mike Bayer – drums, backing vocals
Chris Early – bass
Mark Johnson – guitar, vocals
Kevin Suggs – pedal steel, engineering

Guest Musicians

Jenna Conrad – cello (currently performing with Damien Jurado)
John Faryar – guitar (currently performing with Kelli Hanson)

Press

“No Depression readers hear plenty of Alt. Country, but nothing like this!” - The Big Takeover

“ARO’s world is an empty, dilapidated cityscape but with hope and care they seek to find meaning through musical connections mined from the rusty metal and broken cement of the modern world.” - Stereo Subversion

“Amateur Radio Operator might make you look-over-your-shoulder edgy. It’s tense, dark, vaguely sinister” - Seattle Times

“Feel good album of the year? Maybe not, but it’s the first album you’ll want to reach for this winter on a cold rainy day.” - Mish-Mash

“Haunted, dark and beautiful.” - Left Hip

“…an addicting mix of musical depth.” - The Celebrity Café