Amoeba Music

Mitch Easter - Biography

As a musician and a producer, North Carolina native Mitch Easter was the driving force behind a movement that thoroughly upended music in the 1980s. In vivid contrast to the conventions of both the musical mainstream and underground, a slew of bands from the Carolinas and Georgia started taking their cues from the British Invasion, invoking the early Beatles, the chiming arpeggios and nasal, Rickenbacker twang of the Byrds, as well the underappreciated Memphis group Big Star, and the power hooks of the Raspberries and the Records. The result was an engaging “jangle pop,” and in the US it became a staple on the burgeoning college-radio format. Winston-Salem gave birth to Easter and his group Let’s Active, as well as the dBs (who transplanted to New York City); the Connells came from Raleigh; Atlanta had Guadalcanal Diary, while nearby Athens had Love Tractor, Pylon, and a little band called REM. Easter was in the thick of it, and he helped articulate a sound that would eventually jolt rock ‘n’ roll out of its stupor when REM became huge. However, even though REM casts an immense shadow, it’s important to recall that Easter is an ace songwriter who has recorded some outstanding albums of his own.

Easter was born in Winston-Salem, and grew up with Chris Stamey; around 1976 the two formed a band called Sneakers. Stamey and bandmate Will Rigby then split for New York as the dBs. Easter stayed in North Carolina and built a studio in his parent’s garage, Drive-In Studios. This made him a valuable commodity in the underground scene, and he soon had plenty of work. He also formed a new band, initially with Faye Hunter on bass and backing vocals, and Sara Romweber on drums. Let’s Active was a charming anachronism, delightfully out of step. The Afoot EP (1983 IRS) is impossibly catchy and charming, mixing bubblegum bounce with ever-so-slight shades of Southern Gothic-style dread; the lineup remained intact for the follow-up, Cypress (1984 IRS). Big Plans for Everybody (1986 IRS) found the group expanded to a quartet, and the guitars really shimmer and shine. Then things started to droop a bit. Every Dog Has His Day (1988 IRS) is essentially a solo album, with Easter playing all the instruments. After Every Dog Has His Day, he retired the Let’s Active moniker and focused on production work.

Drive-In Studios hadn’t been open for very long, when a band from down the road booked time to record their first single, for a “label” they called Hib-Tone. A 1980 rate sheet gives the prices for Drive-In: $40 an hour for a 16-track recording; $25 for a 4-track demo. It was probably still a lot of money for the guys in REM, but it was a sound investment. “Radio Free Europe” (1981 Hib-Tone) created a sensation on college radio stations, and it got them signed to IRS Records, along with Let’s Active. REM returned to Easter for their debut EP, Murmur (1983 IRS) [wags quipped it should have been called Mumble], and for their first full-length LP, Reckoning (1984 IRS). After that, the jobs poured in. Easter has worked with Suzanne Vega, Game Theory, Marshall Crenshaw, and Pavement. He remains active as a producer, and in 2007 released his first album in two decades. Dynamico (2007 Electric Devil Records) is wonderful, full of dynamic performances and jaunty pop hooks. Easter hasn’t lost his touch.