CONWAY, Ark. (March 10, 2022) – THISNESS, a band that
features Hendrix College Associate Professor of Philosophy Dr. James Dow, last month
released Threshold, a 10-track digital album
recorded, mixed, and mastered in Arkansas.
Dow joined the Hendrix faculty in fall 2011 and currently chairs
the College’s Study of the Mind/Neuroscience Program and directs the Marshall
T. Steel Center for the Study of Religion and Philosophy. He is also taking
music classes to complete a music major at Hendrix.
“I am grateful that Hendrix College inspires its faculty as well
as its students to cultivate the whole person and become well-rounded people,”
Dow said. “It was through professional development discussions with faculty at
Hendrix that I realized I needed to reanimate the musical side of my identity.”
The band describes its music as positioned “at the intersection
of post-punk, indie/alternative, and psychedelic rock – with hints of post-rock
and southern gothic.”
THISNESS first came together in mid-2019 in Conway, with James
Dow on vocals & guitar, Jesse Butler on guitar, Chris Carrier on drums, and
Michael Norton on bass. They made their debut in Little Rock in February
2020; shortly thereafter, the COVID-19 pandemic gave them an unplanned break from
performing. Band members turned to writing and recording for the remainder of
2020, releasing early versions of “Gone,” “Asylum,” and “Future.” They released
the tracks “Fake” and “Gravity” in early 2021, as well as new mixes of “Future”
and “Asylum.”
The band recorded the album from May through August of 2021, when
Carrier relocated to Indiana. Alex Bush joined the band on drums in September. THISNESS
played two shows in October, plus a streaming video performance as part of an
online benefit for Arkansas Community Advocates. They also contributed a track
(“Gravity”) to the Out from the Cold benefit compilation, which raised funds to
aid unsheltered residents of Little Rock. Threshold was released on February
25, 2022.
“Working with THISNESS on Threshold was an awesome experience,”
Dow said. “I explored ideas that sometimes emerge in discussions of philosophy
and religion, but only in musical form: ideas of abandonment and togetherness,
darkness and light, nothingness and existence, difference and repetition… We
are looking forward to playing these and other new songs at live venues soon.”
THISNESS has an outdoor set coming up next month: They will
perform Friday, April 15 at the amphitheater on the University of Central
Arkansas campus. The show begins at 5:30 p.m. and is free and open to the
public.
For details about the band, visit linktr.ee/thisness, where you can find links
to the album on Bandcamp and Spotify, follow them on social media, and
more.
About Hendrix College
A private liberal
arts college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns
recognition as one of the country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is
featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You
Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and rigor, innovation, and value
have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous college guides, lists, and
rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been affiliated with the United
Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.