Anton Sword

Native New Yorker Anton Sword grew up with the larger-than-life cacophony of his surroundings set to continuous play in his consciousness. Perhaps that’s why his core serenity and musical leanings flow toward the inventions of J.S. Bach. Just the same, his lyrical inspirations reside primarily in the surreal, mordant wit of his childhood neighbor, John Lennon, who lived just a few blocks away. Sword came of age as a musician in the city of the nineties: a time when major labels still actually gave deals to new artists. He played Fender Rhodes in the psychedelic folk act and underground cult favorite, Glim. Along with contemporaries such as Jeff Buckley, D Generation and Jesse Malin, Glim churned out regular gigs at the legendary East-side assembly line, Sine. Glim opened for Stereolab, caught the ear of Ultra Vivid Scene leader Kurt Ralske (who produced their demo) and built a still-devoted fan base. Ultimately drugs and depression split Glim apart; and after playing in a host of local bands, Sword formed JC & Anphibius with scenester-singer JC, whose spare, minimalistic chamber-pop reminded some of Nick Cave crossed with Burt Bacharach. The duo charmed Europeans through several tours and released two albums, “Deathbed Recollections,” and “Resurrection Jingles.” By 2006 however, Sword retreated to Berlin and there began final work on the songs he’d begun writing himself, work that yielded the debut release, “A Sentimental Education”: a song cycle exploring the different forms of lost illusion and imprisoning fantasy. "A Sentimental Education", presents ten quintessential pop structures with layered ambient textures and down-tempo melodies. Now Sword has returned to his native town and is updating the classic New York piano-based singer/songwriter style. His songs recall the catchiness of Tin Pan Alley, the economy of the Brill Buliding writers, the ambience of jazz piano trios, and even the dark NY edge of the Velvet Underground, all wrapped into a electronic lounge pop format. Backed by the cream of NYC's musicians, Anton Sword is redefining a classic sound and updating it for the 21st century. "A Sentimental Education", is being released by Kiss Chase Records, and will be available in online and select retail stores everywhere beginning March 25th 2008.