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by Candace Parker-Dickerson
With their beautifully haunting, lush stylings, captivating melodies, and reflective lyrics, Sleeping Bulls have created a unique, folk-infused sound with an allure all its own. Originating in Oxford, the band is made up of Mark Adamec (vocals, guitar), Lyon Chadwick (violin, guitar), and David Gilmore (piano, vocals). After the three crossed paths in the Oxford music scene and through mutual friends, the band’s sound came together in quite a simple and organic way.
“I had some songs and we slapped them together and made the first Sleeping Bulls record,” Adamec explains.
That record was their self-titled debut album, released in 2009, which was followed by their 2012 sophomore release, The Least Banquets. These albums have earned the band critical acclaim and garnered comparisons to bands like The National.
After several years of playing together as a band and releasing two albums, the growth and development of the band is apparent throughout all of their songs. When asked about how he felt the band had evolved, Adamec said: “I think that we have more of a style now than we had before. We didn’t know if we had any kind of style when we made the first record, we just recorded it. And with the second record we put our brains together and figured out that we did have a style. It kind of crystallized into the Sleeping Bulls sound. So more than changing, it became what it is. We can’t really play music that doesn’t sound like us. It’s impossible.”
And though Sleeping Bulls have developed their own style and operate as a modest three piece band, they are known for their collaborative efforts as well, pulling from the Oxford music scene to work with artists like Jesse Coppenbarger of El Obo and Sean Kirkpatrick of Greater Pyrenees. Adamec elaborated on how these collaborations came about, saying “Jesse has always been a good friend and he is such an extraordinary talent, as well as Sean who has an amazing voice. They were willing, so we got them to sing on some stuff. I like musicians that have a very dramatic, full, rich voices. I think they made it better.”
The band is currently working on a new record, and though a release date is not yet available, fans can get a sample of what the album will sound like during their performance at Proud Larry’s on May 7th.
“It’s a pretty upbeat record and hopefully mysterious. I think it’s sounding really good,” Adamec explained. “We’re going to play about four new songs from the new record during our live show, mixing in some older stuff, as well as some songs from The Least Banquets.”
Furthermore, Adamec describes Sleeping Bulls’ live show as “more energetic than the record.” He also notes that one of the band’s goals during shows is to “at least try to make it look like we’re having a good time singing sad songs.”
To be the judge of that, be sure to stop by Proud Larry’s on May 7 at 9pm to see their performance. Greater Pyrenees will headline the show.
