Bill Tucker was once told as a teenager that no one born after the 1970s could create valid art. Born in 1980, he set out to prove this theory wrong. He grew up with a thirst for songwriting and performance, but feeling that there were few opportunities available in his small Illinois town, Bill dropped out of high school in 1997 and moved to Chicago. He became involved with helping the homeless by spending most of his early twenties volunteering, feeding, and even sleeping out on the street with homeless people to understand their lives.

While in the band The Skull, Tucker started forming relationships with local underground musicians and artists across the city. When The Skull disbanded in 2005 he began writing solo songs and on February 1st, 2006 left for his first solo tour of the West and Midwest. He traveled via Greyhound and Amtrak with a 50 lb. pack, 4 songs, 4 booked shows, and about 50 cd’s dedicated to the West titled Consistent Themes EP—a haunting album recorded with a small group of friends in a church on Chicago’s northwest side. Living day to day and relying on the kindness of strangers, Tucker gained relationships with these strangers that not only made his tour was successful, but also earned him a cult following.

These experiences and relationships have been the topic of much of Bill’s works, which draw on the influences of traditional folk, punk, rock, improv, and even jazz. His songs are emotionally sincere representations of life growing up in poverty, the treatment of people, the stress of the city, and heartache. Although his music draws on numerous influences—from Bob Dylan to John Cage—his sound is one all its own and spans genres and shatters preconceived notions of what folk should sound like.

Illusions of Repetition (2007, Reformer Records) was Tucker’s debut album which highlighted his musical growth and featured artists such as drummer Chris Castellan, violinist Ethan Adelsman, and local improvisational musicians Jeb Bishop and Tim Daisy. The album was a bit of a departure from the quiet haunting quality of Consistent Themes and featured driven songs with more technical experimentation. The result was a beautifully constructed and well received album.

Tucker and Castellan began working together more and eventually formed a band with tuba player John Salt and bassist Chuck King. Now called Bill Tucker and Friends, they toured the south to promote the recording of the Little Jesus EP (2008, Reformer Records)—a split with Foley, Alabama singer-songwriter Jonni Greth. Kevin Fitchuk, who has been a major counterpart in creating Bill’s sound, engineered the EP. The recording featured the same upbeat instrumentation that was introduced in Illusions and garnered a new southern following.

After the tour, Bill decided that he didn’t want to be stuck behind a desk the rest of his life and quit his day job. He went on a solo summer tour and then another in the fall, both with Upper New York noise musician City Harvest Black who introduced Tucker to a new world of avant garde noise that began to influence his music. He felt that he was growing apart from his band and made the decision to continue as a solo musician.

In early 2009, Tucker started working with Toronto musicians Phillip Shelton and Jonathon Marck to prepare for a partial US tour. This tour was also self booked and was his most successful, with two weeks of solid booked shows and radio spots. The trio also recorded 3 songs with Cave Sounds, which were released for free digital download.

With 10 new songs in the works, Tucker set to record with CT Ballentine at Iron Mountain in April. The recordings included the instrumentation of avant garde Cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, violinists Ethan Adelsman and Billie Howard, saw player Sarah Leitten, fiddle player Chris Marshall, and flutist/harmonica player Graham Nelson. All but two songs were recorded live to capture the soul of the music. These songs plus 4 experimental tracks make up the highly ambitious sophomore project Mythological Creatures, released January 29, 2010.

He is now playing regional shows promoting the new album.

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