The Western Civilization

The Western Civilization is an Indie Rock band from Austin, TX led by song writing duo Reggie O’Farrell and Rachel Hansbro. Chemistry is the key driving force of all great bands, and for The Western Civilization, that creative connection has inspired them to get past odds that would seem insurmountable to most. Reggie O’Farrell and Rachel Hasbro met while in different bands, and a strong friendship developed between the two. Their creative partnership would go on to produce two albums, multiple festival appearances including the Vans Warped Tour, SXSW and Halifax Pop Explosion and most importantly, a lasting artistic union that would survive the two living in separate cities.

The Western Civilization’s first album Letters of Resignation was aptly described by The Houston Chronicle as “Equal parts chaos and craft” and “noisy indie-pop that aches with longing, anger and frustration, each song spilling over with elegantly wrought emotion.” The forthcoming album Fractions of A Whole reveals a new maturity to their music with a more lush sounding production style and a focus on cohesive, graceful songcraft over the endearingly quirky elements that dominated their earlier work. At It’s core, the band has always been a collaborative project that they are the musical directors of and Fractions is no exception. It’s a rotating cast of characters/collaborators that orbit around them where the final sum always somehow seems to be more than the whole of It’s parts.
Originally started as a recording side project for songwriters Reggie O’Farrell and Rachel Hansbro, The Western Civilization quickly became the main focus of the duo as they started to realize the undeniable quality of their studio pet project. The distinctly different vocal qualities of Rachel, Reggie, and then resident multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Gretchen Schmaltz as well as widely different musical influences across the board lead to a poppy/folky/noisy sound that was lovingly described by Houston Chronicle entertainment writer Sara Cress as “equal parts chaos and craft”. The band’s debut album, Letters of Resignation, was released in 2007 and a notable amount of praise from the press shortly followed. Following the release the band began playing with national acts and playing regionally around Texas and then embarked on their first national tour in late 2007. Touring in support of Letters continued and during 2008 landing The Western Civilization on stage with Tilly and the Wall, Maria Taylor, Pony Up, The Appleseed Cast, Microphones, Stars of Track and Field, Now It’s Overhead, Colour Revolt, Anathallo, and Margot and the Nuclear So & So’s. They have also made appearances at SXSW, Vans Warped Tour, and the Halifax Pop Explosion.

After a fairly long hiatus brought on by the band being split between cities in 2010, Reggie and Rachel have brought The Western Civilization back with new tunes and a new lineup. The new songs nod back to the tracks on Letters of Resignation but have a more refined and mature quality to them that only comes with time. A new release is on the way in 2019, but until then you can catch some of the new songs (as well as some favorites from Letters of Resignation) live in a Texas city near you!