Heavens

Heavens is the musical collaboration between friends <a href="spotify:artist:1aEYCT7t18aM3VvM6y8oVR">Alkaline Trio</a> guitarist <a href="spotify:artist:7qVz2CTVWQynqvLaaxZXw6">Matt Skiba</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:20M02mDZGFdv7UZKCi0jEQ">F-Minus</a> bassist Josiah Steinbrick. Relocating from Chicago to Los Angeles in the early 2000s, <a href="spotify:artist:7qVz2CTVWQynqvLaaxZXw6">Skiba</a> became a housemate with East Coast native Steinbrick. Spending downtime together hanging out and listening to records, Steinbrick one day played <a href="spotify:artist:7qVz2CTVWQynqvLaaxZXw6">Skiba</a> some instrumental tracks he'd previously recorded; instantly falling in love with the songs, the two soon began writing together. Steinbrick initially coming up with the music, the two would lay down the tracks at home and <a href="spotify:artist:7qVz2CTVWQynqvLaaxZXw6">Skiba</a> would later add lyrics. The resulting songs, which heard <a href="spotify:artist:7qVz2CTVWQynqvLaaxZXw6">Skiba</a> taking vocals and Steinbrick handling the instruments, allowed both guys to tap into influences -- like <a href="spotify:artist:4HxBVyHaUa60eCSsJWxwWR">the Sisters of Mercy</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2i8ynmFv4qgRksyDlBgi6d">Wire</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7MSUfLeTdDEoZiJPDSBXgi">Brian Eno</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:0S7Zur2g8YhqlzqtlYStli">Television</a> -- not normally heard in their primary punk-oriented bands. In the span of a week in August 2004, the frame of their debut album, Patent Pending, was finished. At that point, both went their separate ways, <a href="spotify:artist:7qVz2CTVWQynqvLaaxZXw6">Skiba</a> to record Crimson with <a href="spotify:artist:1aEYCT7t18aM3VvM6y8oVR">the Trio</a> and Steinbrick to continue writing for Thieves Like Us. Coming back together in the spring of 2005, they entered the studio with producer Ben Lovett to flesh out the record, though additional schedule interruptions would occur before the finishing touches were complete. Patent Pending was finally done in February 2006 and issued on Epitaph that September. Heavens then embarked on a month of tour dates with <a href="spotify:artist:6lNdjatBO3aCJfYYPDKCm6">Darker My Love</a> opening. ~ Corey Apar, Rovi