Chris McFarland

Chris will be heading out on the road again in the Southeast so be on the lookout. More news &  photos soon !!

Thanks to everyone who came out to shows on the west coast trip. Here's to great shows and making it home safe. Ed Royal ran like a champ and didn't roll once. 

The East Coast/Midwest tour is well on its way to being booked, so check the tour page for more details.

SXSW brought great bands to Austin this past month, but by far our new fave is fellow In Music We Trust band Knievel. They are a great group of musicians and an all-around fantastic set of people. They flew in from thier native Australia to tour the US and spent a week with Chris and company in Austin. We have to say they are the toughest  band we have ever met, Aussies or no. Lead guitarist/singer Wayne made jokes moments after a stray guitar from a SXSW stage split his head open (requiring a 3a.m. run to the hospital and 4 stitches). Check out their stuff at the Knievel site.

Chris is working on several overseas tours and will have more info soon.

so spring is upon us and album news is coming your way, Due to some scheduling conflicts there was a brief break in sessions during Feb & March - but all is underway. The Bridge Studio is again the spot where the magic is happening, and the rough mixes are sounding great.  Chris will be doing a handful of local shows breaking in some of the new material so check the tour page for the latest performance updates.

a new music magazine has raised its head in Texas and Chris was selected for an interview and photo shoot. check out www.thefineline.net for more details - the article and pictures should be available for online viewing soon.

Tour. Chris will be spending Febuary on the road. Chris will leave Texas in the newest addition to the McFarland entourage, Ed Royal. Pictures to come. This beauty of a conversion van will take Chris through AZ, CO, CA, OR, UT, ID, WA... hopefully even home this time. Check the tour page for the dates and locations. As always, please check with the venue or local papers to confirm the show before heading out.

Top Ten. As 2001 rolled to a close, everyone shuffled papers and released their top picks of the year. No matter how obligatory the activity, Chris was happy to squeeze onto a few rosters. Citizen Snob gave Chris a slot on their current faves list. Read the review on their site or visit the reviews link above

Delusions of Adequacy likes Chris, too. Visit them to read the list with raves.

Chris appears on a compilation for RAINN. The song "Twang" from As If To Lay To Rest appears on Sqish Me Down Records' compilation to benefit the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. The comp features 18 northwest artists and proceeds go straight to RAINN. (Chris gets grandfathered in to the NW locals thanks to the In Music We Trust HQ in Portland). The record is available from Squish Me Down Records. It's a great cause so pick one up.

About RAINN

RAINN is a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., operating America's only national hotline for victims of sexual assault. The hotline-800.656.HOPE-offers free, confidential counseling and support 24 hours a day, from anywhere in the country.

RAINN was founded on music: the organization was started using donations from Warner Music and Atlantic Records. The organization gained widespread buzz when high-profile artist and rape activist Tori Amos featured RAINN booths at her shows. RAINN has also seen celebrity support from Sarah McLachlan, R.E.M., Natalie Merchant, Jewel, Sheryl Crow, The Dave Matthews Band, U2, Ani DiFranco, Paul Shaffer, Jennifer Aniston, Jennie Garth, Jamie Walters and Michael J. Fox.

To read more about RAINN, please visit  For charitable donations to support RAINN check out their site, for purchasing more stuff benefiting RAINN, click on the "Buy RAINN Gear" link.

Tour in early 2002 It's that time again. Chris will shrug off the jinx of the last tour and hit the road again in Febuary. The tour is not completely booked, but the skeleton is definitely there, and confirmed dates are posted on the tour page.

Chris will leave Texas and head west again, with stops along the great desert, west coast, into the northwest and Canada. Keep checking back with the tour page, as the dates will be posted as we get them. If you want to get in touch and book a show in a northwest town near you, please contact Chris' booking agent at EMAIL.

'Distance Sold Out' The first pressing of Chris' first full length, Distance For Departure is temporarily sold out. In Music We Trust Records has plans to re-press the record, but no date has been set as of yet. Will let you know more...

In Music We Trust  Online Zine Gets It

Chris' label is also home to one of the best online music zines for every type of music you could ever want. The latest from the IMWT front is that thieves can't keep a good thing down... but they can try to sell it. Overseas hackers loved the IMWT zine site so much they tried to steal it for themselves and make a profit off the hardworking IMWT folks. The problems have been reconciled, although the perpetrators have not yet been captured or flogged. Must be that sexy new site design! At any rate, IMWT posts some great interviews (they somehow manage to get their hands on everyone), reviews, etc. Well worth a stoppin' by if you haven't been in a while. This month features Solex, The Strokes, Bell & Sebastian, and those awesome guys in Flickerstic. Cool free stuff for the month: The Strokes. Try it, you'll like it. In Music We Trust

Reviews Page Coming Sooner Than Later To save from the news page becoming as unweilding and long as Crystal Gail's hair, we will be moving all the alblum and show reviews to their own page. For now the only way to get to the reviews page will be with the REVIEWS link at the top of this page. Yee Haw

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO EMAILED, CALLED OR HELPED IN ANY WAY. WE ARE ALL HOME SAFE AND ARE RESTING UP. SORRY FOR THE DELAY IN NEWS, IT HAS BEEN A ROUGH MONTH. THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR SUPPORT.  -CHRIS

The Willamette Week Online music column "Hiss & Vinegar" put it best so here you go:

THE STANDARD STEPS UP BIG-TIME

The life of a touring musician is never an easy one--and that's before the van tips over.

Every road warrior's worst nightmare unfolded for Austin singer/songwriter Chris McFarland and his band last Wednesday, as they rolled their van on I-205 while en route to Seattle. McFarland and company are in the Northwest to support As If To Lay To Rest, his new album on Portland label In Music We Trust. 

No one died. The damage was bad enough, though. McFarland sustained a concussion and was rushed to an emergency room from the scene of the crash. Also bound for Clooneyland was drummer Jonathan Ribble, who spent a day and a half hooked to a respirator with a collapsed lung. 

Meanwhile, though weak, in pain and disoriented by the concussion, Valium and anti-swelling meds, McFarland displayed the guts of a true performer and carried on. He and bassist Josh Bandy, who sustained only minor injuries in the smash-up, played their gig scheduled for that Friday at Dante's. 

The group's van was totaled in the wreck, leaving Bandy and McFarland no way to return to Austin. So the duo and IMWT prez Alex Steininger decided to take up a collection at the show. Enter The Standard, the buzz-heavy Portland indie band that shared the bill with McFarland's truncated outfit. The quartet ponied up its entire share of the club's cover charge to help out their stranded brethren. Unable to fly because of his respiratory injury, Ribble must return to Texas via Amtrak.

In other news:

Delusions of Adequacy online music zine posts interview with Chris.

Chris spoke with interviewer Jeff while on the ill-fated tour. They discuss on-the-road therapy, performing live, how a song is born and more...

Chris, Jonathan and Josh were in a serious car accident in Portland on Wednesday, August 29th. Chris and Jonathan were taken by ambulance to University Hospital and released late August 30th. All of them are in a lot of pain, but doing a bit better and resting up with friends in Portland. The Beast (Chris' pimp van), suffered from severe airborn and ground rotation. Her flattened and crumpled remains will be layed to rest in a nearby Portland wrecker yard. She saved the guy's life and will be missed.

Stubbornly (they cannot be talked out of it), Chris and Josh will do their best to play the Portland record release show at Dante's on Friday the 31st.

Jonathan will not be able to play due to his injuries. No. 2 and The Standard are still on the bill. Donations will also accepted to try and get the guys home as well as help with the mounting medical bills. 

The remainder of the tour will be canceled, although Chris will return home and try to recouperate for the Austin shows on the 11th and 18th.

So, in trying to have a sense of humor about the whole thing, we ask: What band is really a band without a good wreck under their belt? As long as they stay away from airplanes...

If you are in the Portland area, please head out to the record release, every bit of support counts.