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All Music Guide:
Ken Stringfellow is co-founder of one of the most critically acclaimed power pop bands of the '90s, the Posies, which he formed in 1989 with Jon Auer. Based in Bellingham, WA, the two created a demo tape in Auer's parents' basement and sent it to PopLlama Records in Seattle. The tape was well received, and the duo ultimately released it as the Posies' first album, Failure. They signed with Geffen's DGC label and released three albums that were revered by music critics while going unnoticed by the general public. Upset that the Posies weren't selling as well as DGC's other Seattle-based bands, the label dropped them after the release of the band's third album. The Posies went on to release a final LP, Success, on PopLlama Records, before breaking up in 1998. Both Auer and Stringfellow joined Alex Chilton's Big Star in the early '90s and have pursued solo projects as well.
Stringfellow moved on to several different projects after the dissolution of the Posies. He formed the now-defunct band Saltine, a promising power pop act that disbanded after releasing only one EP. Stringfellow also played with such bands as Twin Princess (with Seattle artist Bootsy Holler), the Orange Humble Band, Lagwagon, Scott McCaughey's the Minus 5, Chariot, and R.E.M., with whom he occasionally tours (Stringfellow also joined the band in the studio to contribute to 2001's Reveal). In addition to continuing his partnership with Jon Auer, Ken Stringfellow has enjoyed a fine career as a solo singer/songwriter. This Sounds Like Goodbye launched his solo stint in 1997, followed by Touched four years later. He released Soft Commands in 2004, having recorded the songs in various studios around the world, while The Sellout Cover Sessions, Vol. 1 allowed Stringfellow to stretch his legs with a batch of eclectic cover material in 2008.
Wikipedia:
Kenneth Stuart Stringfellow (born October 30, 1968) is an American musician, best known for his work with The Posies, R.E.M., and the re-formed Big Star.
Musical career
His association with R.E.M. extends to the mid-90s Seattle scene, where he first met guitarist Peter Buck, with whom he also plays in Scott McCaughey's The Minus 5. Ken also spent time recording and touring with Lagwagon in the late-1990's, during which he helped craft 1997's Double Plaidinum, adding a unique flair to the band's high-paced melodic brand of punk rock. He has also formed a new band with three Norwegian musicians from the band Briskeby, called The Disciplines.
He has released three solo albums: This Sounds Like Goodbye (1997, on the Hidden Agenda label), Touched (2001, on Manifesto Records), and Soft Commands (2004, on Yep Roc Records) as well as an EP with covers by other artists, The Sellout Cover Sessions Vol. 1 (2008, on Sellout Records). Touched was also released outside the United States by Pop Tones with different cover artwork; the Japanese release contains a bonus track (a cover of Robyn Hitchcock's "Airscape"). An international version of Soft Commands was released by Rykodisc; it has the same cover artwork, but contains four bonus tracks (covers of "Never My Love" by The Association, "Down to the Wire" by Neil Young, "New Test Leper" by R.E.M., and "Knocks Me Off My Feet" by Stevie Wonder). In 2003, Stringfellow and Jon Auer released Private Sides, a six-song split EP (Arena Rock Recording Co./Rykodisc).
On December 22, 2007, Stringfellow revealed, via his blog, that he would not be part of R.E.M.'s 2008 tour in support of Accelerate. On mid-2008, Stringfellow visited Serbia and, during his visit, appeared as guest on most of the tracks of the album Nikadjekraj (Neveristheend) by the Serbian rock band Veliki Prezir.
On March 3, 2009 Second Motion Records is set to release the first single from The Disciplines as a digital-only single and limited-edition blue vinyl 7", entitled "Yours For The Taking". The label will release the band's debut album "Smoking Kills" on April 28, 2009 in North America, which will also see the first Worldwide release of the album on Vinyl.
In 2010, he worked with Can Can, an Ecuadorian electro-rock band, by producing their third album, Caos. During his stay in Ecuador, he premiered a new song by The Posies called "Licenses to Hide".
He has recently been working in Queanbeyan, Australia, on Hannah Gillespie's follow up to her debut album Growing Up Stupid.
Personal life
Stringfellow is married to a French band manager, Dominique Sassi, and they have a daughter, Aden, born in May 2004. He was previously married to The Fastbacks' bass player Kim Warnick. They divorced in 1996, after a three-year marriage. Stringfellow has a younger sister who attends the University of Connecticut.
