The Go Round

The Go Round is a lyrically driven trio out of Brooklyn NY consisting of Theodora Prunoske (violin, mandolin, vocals), Brandon Whightsel (guitar, ukulele, vocals) and Richard Duke (banjo, guitar, vocals). Brandon and Richard met as solo musicians in a hole in the wall cafe in South Brooklyn in 2009, when they were both booked on the same lineup. Richard had planned to cover the Elliott Smith song “Oh well, OK,” and decided to scrap the idea when Brandon played first and covered “Angeles.” Richard was transfixed by Brandon’s delicate and melody driven guitar work, lost as he watched brandon’s fingers climb all over the fretboard, nimbly fighting to contain his lyrics like a spider cocooning its prey. The stories in Brandon’s songs called to past lives, lost histories, secular traditions, and a patient observation. There were arcane etymologies and rhymes with three, four, five meanings, woven through common pastoral language and infused with colloquial voice. It ended up pairing well with Richard’s more meandering, obtuse, lyrics, with obscured stories and a blunt, fretful accompaniment on guitar. Brandon and Richard put out their first record Gone together in 2010, recording it in the closet of one or other Brooklyn apartment, and touring extensively through the fall in support. They met Theodora in Bushwick early the next year, at a bar that Richard tended, and Theo had begun to serve. Theo’s vivid, searching violin brought new depth to The Go Round, fleshing out the sound, and helping Brandon and Richard to find their own musical centers. Together they released an EP almost immediately upon meeting, relying on Theo’s unique ability to leave her permanent mark on a song after only one or two listens. Eastern Parkway, released, in 2011, consisted of four songs drawn from their extensive back catalogue, and was supported with a national tour later that year. Today The Go Round is a band rooted in deep friendships, and an honest bond from thousands of hours and many years of playing together. The musical relationship is intuitive and fluid, and it can be heard in the songs. Their newest release Hard Telling, Not Knowin, (Spring 2015) was recording live, with no over dubbing, no separate tracking, no vocal booths, at Bunker Studios in North Brooklyn. The togetherness that exists between Brandon Richard and Theo colors the record and lends a true harmony to the honest and probing effort of the album. The deep love, the common bond, and the mutual respect that has brought and kept The Go Round together is the driving sentiment of the record. There is an energy in HTNK, both effusive and knowing, young enough to be excited by prospect, old enough to sit tight, and wild enough to leave at any given moment. The Go Round will be touring in support of HTNK in the spring and summer of 2015 . You can stay updated on future shows at thegoroundmusic.com and follow them on istagram and twitter @thegoround http://thegoround.bandcamp.com