2011 has been a very productive year for Plaid Anxiety. They kicked off the year with their first "Halfway Unplugged" show at Sully's Comedy Cellar in Parkville, MD, playing a full set of stripped-down versions of their favorite songs. It was well received and opened up new horizons for them in the future. Very cool to hear how their "usual' sound translated to a lighter, more melodic style.
Shortly after the "Halfway Unplugged" show, Ted and Adam went back into the studio and vigorously rolled out 10 brand new songs for the new CD, AUTOPILOT. These were the first new songs written and recorded by the band in several years and brought on a variety of changes to them as a whole. The long break from writing and recording proved to be a success when AUTOPILOT brought on some very well received tracks like "My High School Crush Is A Lesbian", "Running Away" and the more subdued "Just Pretend I'm Not Here". AUTOPILOT was available for download purchase via iTunes and Amazon on June 13th, 2011 and available on CD on June 17th, 2011.
June 17th, 2011 also kicked off the band's first "Mini-Tour", appropriately dubbed "THE AUTOPILOT TOUR". Adam & Ted played six shows in a row in different cities, including Baltimore MD, Atlantic City NJ, Brooklyn NY, Philadelphia PA, Wilmington DE, and Washington DC. this was the first time for the band to do anything remotely resembling a tour and definitely broadened their fan base as well as their appreciation for "life on the road".
When the "Mini-Tour" ended, the band was informed that they had made it into the Top 40 bands for The HFStival Battle To Break Out Contest, hosted by the infamous Baltimore/DC Radio Station, WHFS. Thanks to online voting by fans of Plaid Anxiety, they made it into the Top 9 Bands and moved on to the Semi-Finals where they competed in front of a panel of judges at Sonoma's in Columbia, MD. Chuck came back to play with Ted and Adam for the competition and give the band an overall fuller sound. Their performance was very well received by the judges and the audience and they won their spot in the Final Round of the Top 3 Bands. The competition was held at the legendary 9:30 Club in Washington, DC, and after another flawless set, they tied for 2nd Place. More good exposure and some very tough competition, but an incredible experience for Plaid Anxiety.
In between the competition and some other smaller shows played, the trio decided it was time to get back into the studio and start working on new material over the colder months. No further shows are scheduled as of now, but they may still squeeze one or two more in before the year is out.
Currently in the writing process for their next release, which will most likely be finished in the Spring of 2012, Plaid Anxiety also has three other releases in the finishing stages : "Plaid Anxiety - Halfway Unplugged", "THE JUNKYARD - Plaid Anxiety's Greatest Hits According To Plaid Anxiety", and "Plaid Anxiety - Divas". These will be available to the public in the near future as Downloads only, except for the latter, which will be available as a EP CD only.
More details to come about everything Plaid Anxiety, so keep checking back. 2011 isn't over yet!!!