CONTACT: philipayates@gmail.com or
booking@philyates.com
Phil Yates, not the Phil Yates of
Midnight Guitar Moods fame, is a
Burlington, Vermont based singer-songwriter who used to call Los
Angeles, Chicago, Columbia, SC, and Springfield, IL home. When
not performing, he teaches in the mathematics department at Saint
Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont, DJ’s a show called “Spork!”
on the college’s radio station (WWPV 88.7 The Mike), and writes for the
music blog Station 18 1/2.
Describing his sound as “too folky for the rockers and too rocky for
the folkers,” Phil blends (at least what he thinks are) clever lyrics
with melodies full of hooks. On his EP
Tumble Stairs, digitally
released on Revolution Road in May 2011 and physically released on his
own in June 2011, Phil went into the studio with a band full of friends
to build on his songs. Two of the tracks, “Ninjas vs. Zombies
(Let’s Keep Our Heads)” and “The Bottom of an Urn”, appear in the
movies
Ninjas vs. Zombies and
Ninjas vs. Vampires, respectively.
“The Gift of Love”, a song whose verses were written by the his friends
in the lo-fi legends of southern California cassette culture Wckr Spgt,
also appeared on the compilation
Smooth Sounds: Various Artists Play
the Future Hits of Wckr Spgt. This compilation was in honor of
the 20th anniversary of Shrimper Records and features bands like The
Mountain Goats, Sentridoh, So Many Wizards, Jad Fair, Simon Joyner,
Amps For Christ and Franklin Bruno covering Wckr Spgt songs. Wckr
Spgt, in turn, covered the Phil Yates penned tune “Honeycomb” for their
Today I Saw Turtles EP that came out in April 2011.
Over the years, Phil has had the opportunity to open for a variety of
acts. He has played with The Mountain Goats, The Dead Milkmen's Joe Jack Talcum, Franklin Bruno, Wckr
Spgt, Ann Beretta, and Mary Prankster. Phil has also shared a
basket of chips and salsa with The Apples in Stereo’s Robert
Schneider.