Pistolita

Conor Meads - Piano/Vocals
Cory Stier - Drums
Justin Shannon - Guitar/Vocals
Derek Miller - Bass


Conor Meads wasted no time getting out of his parents house. At age 18, he moved out of his San Diego home, took a day job writing TV jingles for a music house in downtown San Diego, and moved into the attic of a recording studio. It was there that he penned the songs that would make up Pistolita's debut album, Oliver Under The Moon.

Meads (piano, vocals) and Cory Stier (drums) were childhood friends and next door neighbors. Although Meads was three years older, the two were inseparable. When Stier was 13, Meads took advantage of Stier's impressionable nature and convinced him to buy a drum set. Justin Shannon (guitar) and Alex Kushe (bass) knew Meads and Stier from high school, and in the wake of their graduation, the four friends decided to put their musical talents together and start a band.

Now at age 22, Meads is the front man for the group whose name was derived from a lyric in one of the band's songs, "Bang Bang." As a self-taught pianist and guitarist, Meads is a prolific songwriter whose inherent talent helped him learn these instruments all on his own. He was the guitarist in other bands, but chose to take Pistolita in a different direction. "I wanted to play piano in a band but do it aggressively," he says. "I wanted to avoid all the piano rock cliches and all the power ballads."

Pistolita has been primarily influenced by Fugazi, At The Drive-In, Hot Water Music and Hot Snakes. Their piano-driven rock style draws inevitable comparisons to Cursive, but also appeals to fans of The Get Up Kids and Thursday. Stier, Shannon, and Kushe build a perfect multi-faceted foundation for Mead's haunting melodies on Oliver Under The Moon, which began as a concept album, but the band feared it would be too pretentious.

Pistolita is the first signing on Montalban Hotel Records, the imprint run by self-made booking agent Andrew Ellis. "He came out to see us and didn't like us," Meads explains. "But then we got a last-minute chance to play Bamboozle, and that night he said he wanted to sign us to his label. We knew we wanted to work with him. We wanted to be a part of something new,and his label sounded really exciting."

From here on, Pistolita is looking forward to touring with Say Anything, The Bled and the Vans Warped Tour. They will also return to this year's Bamboozle Festival, which will always hold a special place in the band's history. Pistolita is grateful for their success thus far and remain humble and excited to play for their growing fan base. So take notice. This is just the beginning of a great unfolding rock story.

hot snakes, queen, weezer