Elephants in the room

“After splitting ways with our old label,” says Hills Like Elephants frontman Sean Davenport, “we were told, even though it was them saying they didn’t want to work with us, that we were ‘in breech of contract’ if we put out another full-length. Since the band has no intention of stopping, we decided to keep putting out music anyways.... We’ve been sitting on these [songs] for a while, so we are going to start putting out EPs.”

That’s why their upcoming Bedroom Colonies EP is subtitled Volume 1; it’s just a sampling of tunes originally intended as a full album. For the March 8 release gig at the Casbah, “All attendees will get a copy of the EP just for coming out,” says Davenport of the show, an all-local bill that includes Wild Wild Wets, Boy King, and Jimmy Ruelas. “The name Bedroom Colonies is a reference to how and where we made the EP. It’s a compilation of home recordings that we did out of Greg [Theilmann]’s room.”

Recorded, mixed, and mastered by band guitarist/keyboardist Theilmann, the EP features new drummer Michael Hams, who replaces Juan Carlos Ortiz. Says Davenport, “We’re screen-pressing these ourselves and packaging them in a DIY limited edition sort of deal.”

Davenport founded the group in 2011, just as his previous band Gun Runner was splitting up. Their debut album The Endless Charade, which earned them a Best New Artist trophy at the 2012 San Diego Music Awards, was followed last year by Feral Flocks. A nationwide support tour kicked off at the annual SXSW music fest in Austin, Texas, but Davenport says the band’s best gigs tend to happen at home.

“Our best local show is kind of a toss-up. We had a really good time playing Boy King’s CD release a while ago at the Casbah, but I think it’s tied with our last show at Soda Bar on New Year’s, opening for Scarlet Symphony.”

As for drive-to downers, “The worst show was at the Constellation Room up in Santa Ana, or wherever the hell it is. People were showing up, the audience had a great vibe, and due to a scheduling conflict, our set got cut short and the soundman turned our mics off in the middle of a set...we drove two hours to play for maybe 15 minutes.

“The sound guy told us that was our problem.”