Love Tractor

Along with luminaries like R.E.M., the B-52's, and Pylon, Love Tractor helped establish the college town of Athens, Georgia as a mecca of alternative music in the early '80s. Mixing jangly guitar figures, exploratory melodies, and propulsive rhythms, they made music that showed it was possible for a band to be smart, arty, and ambitious while generating a groove that would keep the party swinging all night. Though Love Tractor started out as an instrumental combo (as captured on their self-titled 1982 debut), in time they learned to write lyrics as clever and engaging as their tunes, and 1987's This Ain't No Outer Space Ship and 1989's Themes from Venus were tighter and more accomplished but no less fun. 2001's The Sky at Night was a strong reunion effort, and a single in 2020 confirmed the band was back in business with new music as well as reissues of 1982's Love Tractor and 1983's Around the Bend. Love Tractor was formed in 1980 by guitarists Mark Cline and Michael Richmond and multi-instrumentalist Armistead Wellford. At first, the group used a drum machine when they rehearsed and performed, and Bill Berry briefly played percussion with the band before his other group, R.E.M., became his main priority, prior to Kit Swartz signing on to play drums. Their earliest material was instrumental, if for no other reason than that they could not afford a PA system. However, this approach set them clearly apart from other acts on the crowded Athens scene and helped win them a deal with local indie label DB Records. 1982's Love Tractor documented their formative approach, which touched heavily on fusion and even cocktail music. By their 1983 follow-up, Around the Bend, Richmond was taking the occasional stab at singing. The 1984 EP 'Til the Cows Come Home found Love Tractor welcoming a new drummer, Andrew Carter. The group signed with Bigtime Records, an alternative imprint distributed by RCA, and 1987's This Ain't No Outer Space Ship, produced by Pat Irwin of the Raybeats, was their first LP for their new label. It was a fully vocal set that also found the group tackling a cover of the Gap Band's "Party Train," which was released as a single. Bigtime went out of business not long after the album was released, and they returned to DB for their next project. The quartet enlisted Mitch Easter to produce 1989's Themes from Venus; while it was comprised largely of vocal tracks, it did contain the instrumental "Nova Express," effectively bringing the Love Tractor story full circle. Accordingly, in 1991, the group decided to take a break from the music business. They re-formed periodically and eventually began writing and performing new material for a projected album. During their hiatus, Wellford played in Gutterball with Steve Wynn (of the Dream Syndicate), Bob Rupe (of the Silos), Stephen McCarthy (of the Long Ryders), and Bryan Harvey and Johnny Hott (of House of Freaks). Cline traveled, studying Italian opera and ancient languages, while Richmond studied art history. After several failed attempts at completing their "comeback" album, Love Tractor returned at last in 2001 with The Sky at Night, which featured original members Richmond, Wellford, and Cline, and Bill Berry sitting in on drums. In 2005, a revamped lineup of Love Tractor -- with Richmond joined by new members Billy Holmes, Ben Holst, Tom Lewis, and Darren Staley -- recorded an album, Black Hole, which found Richmond and company exploring a new musical direction influenced by progressive rock. Green Winter, featuring the same lineup, followed in 2006. A holiday album, Before and After Christmas, appeared later the same year; for those recordings, Richmond and Holmes were joined by Nathan Collins and John Guthrie. Love Tractor then went back into hibernation, but in 2015, the Athens, Georgia music and art festival AthFest staged a tribute show called "We Love Tractor," with Mark Cline and Armistead Wellford joined by guests including Joe Rowe of the Glands, Jay Gonzalez of Drive-By Truckers, and Elephant 6 associate Bryan Poole. The positive response to the show led to Cline, Richmond, and Wellford reuniting for live Love Tractor shows in January 2020, and the reunited band (joined by drummer Kit Swartz) issued a new single including reworked versions of "60 Degrees and Sunny" b/w "FEST-ivals," for Record Store Day in October 2020. Before 2020 was out, Love Tractor also delivered a remixed and remastered edition of their 1982 debut album, available on vinyl, CD, and digital formats; Bill Berry helped with the new studio work. Love Tractor's reissue campaign continued in 2021 with an expanded version of 1989's Themes from Venus, which included six bonus tracks. In addition, the group was recording new music and scheduled live shows for 2022. In January 2023, the B-52's played the final date of their farewell tour in Athens with Love Tractor as their opening act. Love Tractor's reissue campaign continued with a new edition of Around the Bend, released by Propeller Sound Recordings in September 2023; the reissue included remastered audio and alternate mixes of "Cutting Corners" and "Timberland."
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