Gathering Field

These words from "Days Fly Away," one of 12 new Bill Deasy  compositions on the first Gathering Field record in a dozen years,  reflect the band's "don't look back" attitude. "I think we all feel this is an opportunity to hear what  we sound like right now, not how we sounded way back when," lead  guitarist Dave Brown observes. "This is very much about the present  moment."

One listen to the band's new release, "Wild Journey," and  the truth of Dave's statement becomes evident. Yes, there is something  familiar there, the indefinable chemistry that hooked a legion of fans  the first time around, but there is a new-found depth, a spark of  wisdom, a heightened awareness. The result is a sound that is as it was,  only more so, and then some.

Gathering Field began in a burned-out third floor in Grove  City, Pennsylvania when Bill Deasy and Dave Brown hunkered down for the  weekend with guitars, tequila and recording gear. The results provided  more than enough evidence as to the creative spark between Dave and  Bill, leading the duo to enlist bass player Eric Riebling (formerly of  the Affordable Floors), drummer Ray DeFade, and John "the Junkman" Burgh  on Hammond B3 organ, thereby forming the Gathering Field.

They released their self-titled debut in 1994 and began  performing in Pittsburgh and beyond. Their popularity skyrocketed when  one of the regions most powerful rock stations, WDVE, began playing a  song called, "Lost in America." With the release of the record that bore  the same name, Gathering Field garnered a deal with Atlantic Records in  1996 and continued to develop its ever-widening base of supporters.

In 2001, after nearly a decade of touring and 4  critically-acclaimed recordings, the band went on "hiatus." Bill Deasy  released several solo projects and pursued song and fiction writing (he  wrote and performed the theme for "Good Morning America" and published 3  novels.) Dave Brown produced several projects and all of the guys  continued to perform and record regionally.