Goodbye Picasso to release album

Goodbye Picasso, a 5-piece alt-country rock band out of New York City. Vocalist/guitarist Chris Dreyer and lead guitarist Scott Taylor formed Goodbye Picasso in college eight years ago and have performed in over 40 cities along the east coast as well as in London, England. This year, the band will self-release its debut album The Book of Aylene on Tuesday, August 24, 2010 and continue to tour the east coast and Midwest this fall.

Dreyer (from Miami, FL) and Taylor (from Cookville, TN) first met in 2001 in London, England while studying abroad as students at Florida State University. The pair clicked instantly and recorded an EP after a month of knowing each other. Since moving to NYC in 2007, the two formed Goodbye Picasso with bassist Tim Lappin, percussionist Joe Nero, and pianist Dalton Ridenhour, and have amassed a huge following, playing sold-out or standing room only shows at several of the major music venues in the City, including Rockwood Music Hall, The Bitter End, Webster Hall, the Knitting Factory, and the Living Room.

“NYC has been a great launching pad for our music and the audiences have responded in the way we always hoped they would," says Dreyer.

To date, the band has played over 400 shows in over 40 U.S. cities throughout the east coast, including 3 of the past 4 years at the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City.

Goodbye Picasso is now set to release its debut work entitled The Book of Aylene, a concept album which consists of 13 songs (all penned and sung by Dreyer) that blend acoustic, roots rock, and blues elements. Dreyer composed a majority of the album based upon the life of a close friend he knew in Nashville and was instantly inspired to write a concept album.

“I found concept albums to be a lost art – using multiple stories to build one bigger story,” says Dreyer.

The Book of Aylene album chronicles the life of a man who struggles with inner turmoil and the various trials with his music career and relationship with a woman named Aylene, from the time he’s wooing her (“Silhouettes”), confronting her after she cheated on him with his best friend (“Better Me” and “Woman”), trying to win her back (“Planned Attack”), and the relationship ending badly (“We Make Great Enemies” and “The Song That Says Goodbye”). The album is bookmarked by two songs that uncover the man’s inner demons with “Voices, Villains, Shadows and Ghosts” and “The Devil, the Bottle and Me”.

The song “Her Name is Aylene” leads right into “Lick the Thumb and Turn the Page”, which describes the man’s songwriting process and eventual success as a recording artist. “Notes and Measures” is the most reflective song on the album which describes how the protagonist goes home and sees how things have changed, while “Don’t Want Nothin’” cuts right through the middle of the album with an angry blues riff and gritty vocals underlined by driving horns and dirty guitar solos.

The Book of Aylene was produced, recorded and engineered by Dan Grigsby (Keith Richards, Joe Cocker, John Mellencamp, Meatloaf, Paula Abdul). Goodbye Picasso goes back on tour this fall.

Look for The Book of Aylene by Goodbye Picasso – out on August 24, 2010.
CD Release show @ Rockwood Music Hall in New York City, August 27, 2010 – 8:30pm

www.goodbyepicasso.com www.myspace.com/goodbyepicasso


The Book of Aylene – track listing:
1) Voices, Villains, Shadows and Ghosts
2) Silhouettes
3) Her Name is Aylene
4) Lick the Thumb, Turn the Page
5) Notes and Measures
6) Better Me
7) Don’t Want Nothin’
8) The Sound
9) Planned Attack
10) We Make Great Enemies (Reprise)
11) The Song That Says Goodbye
12) Woman
13) The Devil, The Bottle and Me