Theo Katsaounis is a Chicago musician that fell in the lake playing guitar and came out drenched in drums. By drenched, I mean that he toured extensively over the last twenty years with many Chicago bands such as Joan of Arc, Dead Rider, Stillwell, Locks, Weather and The Shape of Skateboard Jazz. He's recorded and performed with musicians such as Jaimie Branch, Azita Youssefi, John Haggerty, Tomeka Reid Rebecca Valeriano-Flores and Bobby Conn. Theo has released recordings on Joyful Noise Records, Drag City, Polyvinyl Records and American Dreams to name a few. In the summer of 2017 he wrote and recorded the score for Ryan Ferguson's feature-length documentary, Skate or Die. He also wrote, shot, edited and scored the feature-length film Stink Pretty. He's written and recorded a handful of E.P.s over the years but this here is his debut full length album. A product of the pandemic boom to remind you of your own Safe Fears...to protect you from yourself.
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Coming out of writing and directing a feature length film, Stink Pretty, Theo Katsaounis started writing and recording in January of 2021 with no particular goal except to just create because what else better to do under lockdown when making music for the last 25 years with your friends is put on hold? It was a pallet cleanser to say the least.
As the world started to open up he put the project on hold and went back to the workforce. In summer of 2022 he finally got around to completing Safe Fears with a new lens on the creative process. For the most part, the first half of the album was written during lockdown so there’s a more cinematic and somber tone to the songs because who knew what the future held for us at that time. However, as it plays on, it erratically defies expectations by sonically pulling the rug from under the listeners ears, leaving them exactly where their safe fears lie.
And what are Safe Fears you ask? Assembling monsters one song at a time. Clearing the digital landscape to start wars with other musicians to feel safe. We’re conditioned to fear what we don’t know but what if the real terror is coming from within and this album happens to be the soundtrack to it? So go ahead get cozy on your comfortable couch, put on a scary movie and create your own Safe Fears playlist. Protect yourself from yourself.
credits
released September 22, 2023
Written by: Theo Katsaounis
Produced by: Theo Katsaounis
Recorded / Engineered by: Theo Katsaounis
Performance Credits: Theo Katsaounis – acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar, drums, vocals, OP-1 synth, synth one, field recordings, samples
I started Record Label in 1999 as a way to release my own music. Soon I was releasing records by friends Chin Up Chin Up and
Joan of Arc, and was distributed by Touch & Go for about a week before they went out of business. Shortly after I put Record Label on hiatus.
In 2021 'record label' has partnered up with Joyful Noise Recordings and Secretly Canadian Distribution.