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Biography
Dablink|This article is about the music group from Denver. For the New York punk band, see The Devotchkas .Infobox musical artist| name = DeVotchKa| image =DeVotchKaSpaceland-NickSings.jpg| caption = Nick Urata (with Jeanie Schroder)| background = group_or_band| origin = Denver , Colorado , United States|U.S. | genre = Gypsy Punk Indie Folk | years_active = 1997–present| label = Dago Records Cicero Recordings, Ltd. Ace Fu Records ANTI- | website = http://devotchka.net/ Devotchka.net| current_members = Nick Urata Tom Hagerman Jeanie Schroder Shawn King DeVotchKa is a four-piece multi-instrumental and vocal ensemble. They take their name from the Russian language|Russian word devochka (???????), meaning "girl". Based in Denver , Colorado , the quartet is made up of Nick Urata, who sings and plays theremin , guitar , bouzouki , piano , and trumpet ; Tom Hagerman, who plays violin , accordion , and piano; Jeanie Schroder, who sings and plays sousaphone , double bass , and flute ; and Shawn King, who plays percussion and trumpet.
Originally a backing band for American burlesque|burlesque shows, in their early years DeVotchKa also toured with fetish model Dita von Teese . Numerous nationwide tours in support of self-released records earned the band an underground following. Their song "How It Ends" introduced the band to a wider audience after being featured in the trailer for Everything Is Illuminated (film)|Everything Is Illuminated , in a Gears of War 2 trailer called "The Last Day", and in an episode of Everwood (Season 4). Their performance at the 2006 Bonnaroo music festival was considered a breakout event. Citation needed|date=September 2009 In between tours, the band was picked by first time film directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris to score Little Miss Sunshine ,cite web |url= http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0449059/soundtrack |title=Little Miss Sunshine (2006)& nbsp;– Soundtrack |publisher=imdb.com |accessdate=2010-05-03 a 2006 in film|2006 film that would go on to garner four Academy Award nominations. DeVotchKa, along with composer Mychael Danna , composed and performed the majority of the music for the film's Little Miss Sunshine (soundtrack)|soundtrack and were nominated for a Grammy Awards of 2007|2006 Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack. The main song, "The Winner Is", was also used in a commercial by the French-based environment and energy company Suez (company)|Suez and the Dutch pension fund PGGM .
Arcade Fire singer Win Butler suggested to DeVotchKa that they cover the Siouxsie and the Banshees song " Peepshow (album)|The Last Beat of My Heart ". The musicians found the idea interesting and they recorded that song for the now critically acclaimed Curse Your Little Heart EP.cite web |url= http://www.laphil.com/philpedia/artist-detail.cfm? id=3144 |title=DeVotchka |work=laphil.com |date=April 2007 |accessdate=1 December 2011 |quote=The Curse Your Little Heart EP showcases the band's versatility, reinterpreting tracks by the Velvet Underground, Frank Sinatra, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and others, in addition to taking on one of their own older songs. Could the band itself even have predicted what would transpire from the Arcade Fire's Win Butler's suggestion to the band that they take on 'Last Beat of My Heart? ' The end result is the center-piece of the EP, a grand and soaring take on the song; a testament to the band's true unique ability to transform nearly anything via a sound only DeVotchka can create, and perhaps a look at the epic nature of where the band's own recordings may move in the future. The band did a world tour in support of their previous album, A Mad & Faithful Telling (released March, 2008). The album reached #9 on the Billboard magazine|Billboard Heatseekers chart and #29 on the Top Independent Albums chart.Allmusic|class=artist|id=p552582/charts-awards|pure_url=yes Billboard, Allmusic "New World" and "Head Honcho" were featured in a season 4 episode of the Showtime (TV network)|Showtime television show Weeds (tv series)|Weeds .cite web |url= http://www.sho.com/site/weeds/music.do |title=Weeds Music |work=sho.com |accessdate=2010-05-03
DeVotchKa's latest studio album, 100 Lovers ,cite web |url= http://frontpsych.com/2011/02/21/devotchka-embraces-the-world-a-review-of-100-lovers/ |title=DeVotchKa Embraces The World – A Review of 100 Lovers |publisher=Frontier Psychiatrist |accessdate=2011-02-21 was released in March 2011.
In 2008, Boston newspaper The Phoenix (newspaper)|The Phoenix named them the Best New Band from Colorado. http://thephoenix.com/Supplements/2008/50States/ 50 Bands, 50 States, The Phoenix (newspaper)|The Phoenix . Published July 4, 2008. "How It Ends" reached Number 101 in the UK Singles Charts.cite web |url= http://www.ukchartsplus.co.uk/UKChartsPlus383.pdf |title=Official singles chart |date=2008-12-27 |publisher=ukchartsplus.co.uk |format=PDF |accessdate=2010-05-03
The band supported Muse (band)|Muse at the Stade de France on June 12, 2010, playing to over 80,000 people.
Members
Nick Urata – singing|vocals , guitar s, piano , trumpet , theremin , bouzouki
Tom Hagerman – violin , accordion , piano , Melodica
Little Miss Sunshine (soundtrack)| Little Miss Sunshine (soundtrack) (2006)
A Mad & Faithful Telling (2008) #29 Independent Albums Chart/ #9 Heatseakers (Billboard U.S.)
I Love You, Philip Morris#Soundtrack|I Love You, Philip Morris motion picture soundtrack (2009)
100 Lovers (2011) #74 U.S.
Other album appearances
Nightmare Revisited - "Overture" (2008)
Live at KEXP Vol.5 - "How It Ends" (2009)
''Starbuck's Sweetheart - "Hot Burrito #1" (2009)
"Songs From The Point !" - Harry Nilsson cover album (2009)
References
reflist
External links
http://devotchka.net/ Official site
http://www.acefu.com/artist.php? bid=302 DeVotchKa at Ace Fu Records
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2006/11/30/devotchka/ DeVotchka interview, and performance with Urata and Hagerman, for The Current
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php? storyId=4503539 Mikel Jollett of Filter magazine reviews the CD How It Ends on NPR's "All Things Considered"
http://soundcrank.com/Interview.aspx? interviewid=1040 Soundcrank Podcast Hosted by Shawn King
http://www.billboardenespanol.com/musica/content_display/artistas/artista-destacado/e3ia0a20baccca40a596dcda180b42f4eb7 Devotchka, Artistas Destacados - Billboard En Español
Portal|Alternative rock DEFAULTSORT:Devotchka Category:American indie rock groups Category:Music of Denver, Colorado Category:Musical groups from Colorado Category:Dark cabaret musicians
