The Ultrasounds

The Winona foursome known as The Ultrasounds formed in the summer of 2011 when Megan Hanson, former front woman of Winona’s punk-rock titans, Thumbelina and the Tangerine Fists of Justice, was introduced to Amber Fletcher, Courtney Guenveur, and Kelly Mason. The three were students at Winona State University sharing a similar vision of starting an all girl band and had sought out Megan based on her previous music, Winona street cred, and "scary myspace profile". Fletcher was a multi-instrumentalist and quite a large fury behind the drum set compared to her diminutive stature. Courtney joined in on bass. Kelly Mason, who was playing with various local bands at the time and jazz, took on the role of guitarist, trumpet player, and even drums when Amber stepped away from the set to play and sing the songs she had written. The band started to make waves locally almost instantly. They got to open for Minneapolis act Venus de Mars and All The Pretty Horses for their very first show. Shortly after, they started playing regularly at various local venues and bars and were even featured on local radio station KQAL's live feed program. Everything seemed fine and dandy. But then unexpectedly, Mason moved across the country to pursue other musical endeavors. The remaining members of The Ultrasounds were saddled with filling her void to continue when they realized they did not want to function as a three-piece, which they had experimented with. What started out as an all girl band had come to an end when Todd Hanson, Megan's husband and bandmate in My Private Eye, joined the band. Bringing along his sludgy, overdriven guitar sounds and noise, the group started to take on a louder and heavier direction. And after some positive show reviews at Mid West Music Fest from Minneapolis music press like City Pages and The Current, it seemed as though things were back on track and headed in the right direction. The Ultrasounds released their debut recording, the "Lost My Mind EP" March 7, 2014. Packed tightly into their unreliable, yet beloved, 2000 Chrysler mom-van (Ol' Whitey), they stumbled across the upper Midwest into cities such as Minneapolis, Chicago, Milwaukee, and Dubuque in support of the album. They brought their sludgy garage-pop to dive bars, hookah lounges, and Motel 6s alike. With an upcoming Summer tour, they're set to trudge even deeper into the Midwestern heartland. To infinity and beyond. PRESS: "The winsome quartet delivered a guitar heavy, drum-driven set filled with distorted dream-pop that commanded the attention of the packed (and well-lubricated) bar. Frontwoman Megan Hanson's dulcet vocals provided a nice counterbalance to her and Todd Hanson's grungy, sludgy guitars, while Amber Fletcher's insistent, quick-fire drums drove the pulsing songs forward." - City Pages "The Ultrasounds provided me with my second chance to see husband and wife duo Megan and Todd Hanson in action during MWMF, having seen them early in the evening on Thursday night when they performed as My Private Eye. While My Private Eye found them dabbling in driving, New Wave inspired power pop that occasionally reminded me of BNLX, the Ultrasounds was a more straightforward rock band and came equipped with a secret weapon: ferocious drummer Amber Fletcher (pictured), who ditched the kit about eight songs in and picked up a guitar. Fletcher moved between the two instruments with ease and was also an engaging singer, leading the band through their catchiest songs." - The Current "The Ultrasounds is a four-piece band formed out of Winona, MN, fronted by dreamy vocals, with distorted guitars that weave nostalgic harmonies around pop hooks, with a solid foundation of ever present, ever forward pushing drumming. With tried and true influences like Nirvana, Built To Spill and Fugazi simmering to the top in shifts and fading back into parts unknown, The Ultrasounds are actively carving their own notch in the ever growing, ever gritty Midwest garage pop scene." - Dubuque365 “The Ultrasounds’ Lost My Mind EP is a solid debut recording that leans heavy on deft distorted guitar work — just like their raucous live performances.” - Adam Wiltgen (All Lights Off Radio, The Noisy Neighbor) Beach Goths living on the Mississippi.