Buckets Celebrates Debut LP, Buckets.
It had been a while since Tanner Houghton had listened to the lyrics he sings on his band’s debut, self-titled album, Buckets.
Listen to Buckets on Bandcamp
“Wow, I was really going through it,” he said, reflecting. “I mean, everyone will always experience anxiety until they die… But it’s about learning to be okay with yourself.”
The band formed in 2019, and after a year of roadblocks and red tape relating to the pandemic, Buckets is now with cause to celebrate: The 9-track album was released on April 23 and represents a commitment made by its four members to create a record that is genuinely itself.
Meet Buckets:
Photo by Tom’s One Hour Photo
Top to bottom: Mitch, Tanner, Hiram, Sasha.
Tanner Houghton: Vocals, guitars, producer. A self-described airhead that writes in his journal all day.
Sasha Massey: His band mates refer to him as the “Shredder” on guitar who is into math rocky,shoe-gazey, jazzy kinda stuff. He sings too.
Mitch Rossiter: Bassist. Organizer. PR. Mitch is the band’s adopted member and they love him very much.
Hiram Sevilla: Drummer extraordinaire. Discovered by Tanner and Sasha via Craigslist.
For Houghton, the new release has been a long time coming, and rewarding in that it was the first time he tried producing anything. He compares the process to hitting the gym every day for a year straight.
“You look in the mirror and you’re like, ‘woah, it’s working!’”
And it did work. Listening to the record’s nine songs feels like watching a short film about a young person’s encounter with love and the outcome of heartache. The stories are told with shouts and whispers, with voice recordings and engaging production elements sprinkled in. Each track has a moment where the listener may be transported to a time in their life where they felt something of similar substance.
“If it makes me feel something, if it gives you chills, that’s what is valuable to me,” said Houghton. “I want to get that frisson happening…but it can be easy to play that out and over-do it.”
Photo by Max Look
One thing that stands out about Buckets, once you get to know them, is the fact that each member shares the same level of enthusiasm and belief in the success of their work. Of course, ‘believe in your art,’ is criteria for any successful artist, but this group wears it on their collective sleeve.
Even their manager, Savannah Fuss, is invested with a full heart and nothing but confidence in the band’s success. It’s nice to see in a town full of bands that may seem like the real deal, but may not be as tight as they sound.
Now that the record is out, Buckets wants to get their drummer back. Sevilla has been stuck at home working out his visa and hoping to get back to L.A. to continue work with his band. Sevilla’s rock and punk influence played a big part in shaping the band’s sound when they first formed. Sevilla had decided to pivot from working as a hired gun in the Latin rock community to join Buckets full time. He says he wanted something that felt real, and Buckets brings that for him. Last November, the other three members took a long weekend to visit Sevilla in Mexico, where they worked on some live recordings and just hung out as a band.
Despite this hurdle, they’re already working on a new EP, Zoom meetings and all.
“Everyone is willing to take Zoom calls and work on stuff while our normal lives are adjusting,” Rossiter said.
——>Listen to Buckets on Spotify
——>Buckets Online
Note:
I first met Tanner Houghton at Habitat Coffee in Glassell Park where he used to work behind the counter. I lived in the neighborhood and would see him there often; we’d sometimes chat. One day I invited him to a house show we were having at the place I was renting and we officially became pals. Coincidentally enough, that house show is where Tanner met Mitch Rossiter, and the rest is history. At that point, Tanner had been assembling the beginnings of what would soon become Buckets. So, I think it’s pretty clear who we have to thank for the creation of this wonderful band—it’s the coffee-crazed patron who happened to think the guy serving him his beverage seemed cool and nice enough to invite into his home. You’re welcome, world!
- Charlie
