"Reset. Go back to the start. Let me
begin again."
Thousand Houses chose the name of their new album Reset deliberately. The album represents not only a culmination of months in the studio and on stage but also of years of individual work by each member to get to where they are now - in a band with a singular vision and a chance to start from scratch.
Lead singer and songwriter Matt Banta says, "We've all been in numerous bands and have gone down various roads that led to dead ends. With this band, it's a clean slate." Of all the members of Thousand Houses, Banta has seen the most ups and downs in his musical career. Banta was the front man for the Omaha-based band Blue Moon Ghetto, which during their heyday was one of the most popular regional acts in the area. Blue Moon Ghetto sold 15,000 albums with no label, had airplay on most major radio stations in Omaha, and had many flirtations with major label contracts. However, like many bands, the flirtations never developed into relationships and Banta moved on.
After releasing two solo albums, Banta decided to try forming a band again in 2006 and keyboardist Mitch Towne was first on the call list. An accomplished jazz and funk keyboard player, Towne was eager to hear the demos and the two developed a partnership as well as a friendship. After dealing with writer's block in the time previous to forming Thousand Houses, Banta found himself writing with a new and more mature voice, creating songs that not only had hooks but an emotional weight as well.
For about two years, Banta and Towne worked on the new songs and tried to assemble musicians who could not only play but who also understood the vision of the project. By 2008, the lineup was in place. The first member to come on board was guitarist Marc Frieden, a first-class guitar player who has toured the world with bands of varied styles. Drummer and producer Matthew Tobias joined next. Tobias is an in-demand session player and owner of empty house studio, where the band recorded Reset. Finally, Tobias' longtime rhythm section partner, bassist Steve Packwood, rounded out the group just in time for tracking for the album.
Reset represents the varied elements that make up the band's music. Hook-filled pop songs like "Can't Let Go," "Shiloh" and "Will You Save Us" share space with layered compositions such as "Balloon," "10 to 1" and "Don't Forget About Love." The title track, a plea for a second chance in a life lived falsely, closes the album and suggests that the members of the band have learned from their experiences and are now taking nothing for granted. "This band is not about image," says Towne. "It's about who we are right now and what we can say through the music."