Three Leaf

Bio

Amidst Austin’s cultural scene, eclectic-roots-rockers Three Leaf have been rapidly gaining notoriety over the past few years; as much so for their personal accomplishments as for their addictively diverse, trans-genre songwriting and power-packed performances. Since forming in the year 2000 as a result of a successful string of local competitions and shows in San Antonio, guitarist/singer Chris Brennand, bassist Kent Chandler, banjoist/multi-instrumentalist Jared White, and drummer/percussionist Zac Catanzaro immediately sought to make an impact on their locality by spearheading an independent youth festival, dubbed ‘Barnfest’ due to its rustic venue. The event debuted as a unanimous success and helped to affirm the youths’ budding talent and bright future.

Each member made sacrifices to keep the wheels rolling for the group during the next few years despite personal hardship and sparse touring, all of which came to a head with the horrific death of Catanzaro’s father and life-long musical mentor, Richard. Once upon a time having been the beat-keeper for a then-unknown Bruce Springsteen, Rich was often the wisest and most outspoken of Three Leaf’s immediate influences, having given them countless words of advice and encouragement.

Partly as a result of the loss, the group immediately vowed to root down in San Marcos and Austin together to pursue their dreams. Soon after, they established a growing fan base, notably winning the 2006 Battle of the Bands competition at Texas State University in San Marcos where Catanzaro and Brennand both attended; meanwhile they fine-tuned their songwriting, which culminated in their sterling, self-produced debut album, 2007’s ‘Big Light.’ Soon after, the restless spirits those so drive the band’s unique ability to switch time signatures and musical styles at the drop of a hat begat the proverbial itch for adventure, travel, and experience in the band members. Chandler, intrigued by his previous studies, moved to Ghana, Africa for a semester in order completely immurse himself in their traditional musical styling; afterwards he returned stateside in to construct a canoe from scratch along with Chris, who joined him in rowing in it from tip to tip of the Mississippi River, a fifty day excursion of camaraderie and intense songwriting collaboration. This synergy was furthered upon their return, as Catanzaro then joined them on an excursion to Ghana-Chandler’s second- to study music with and produce an album for local neo-traditional Ghanaian group, Gouda. Three Leaf’s sound evolved as a result of their new mindsets and individual travel experiences. The results are satisfyingly rampant in their newest effort, 2008’s Ghana EP, which is a brilliant blend of countless indigenous musical flavors that fall somewhere between Talking Heads and Animal Collective. Heavy handed drumming punches and pushes the beat, as funky bass walks are offset by stuttering, slick guitar-work and rolling xylophone lines, while grainy-but-wide-eyed vocal harmonies emit lyrics of forlorn irony and ambiguous, wishful thinking; all of which is topped off by fantastic performances of traditional Ghanaian instruments that serve to punctuate this brilliant, new fusion of musical styles.

With their return to Texas in April of 2008, Three Leaf has been featured on French Television, as well as in Austin and San Marcos periodicals documenting their continuing personal and professional journey. However, they wasted no time in dwelling upon their past accomplishments, as they released their second full-length album, in Fall 2008, coinciding with more, widespread touring and the next chapter in what is rapidly becoming a must-follow story of musical ingenuity and human adventure.

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