Vertical Horizon

It all started at a Georgetown undergrad party in 1991... Keith Kane had come to Washington DC three years earlier and had started singing with various groups while teaching himself how to play the guitar. He was currently playing a week gig at a local club and some people at this party talked him into providing some free entertainment on an acoustic guitar and a small amp that were sitting around. Also at the party was Matt Scannell, who Kane recognized as a member of an electric band called Fallout Shelter. After his song, Kane turned to Scannell and asked him to take a turn. Scannell played "All Along The Watch Tower" and basically blew him away.

Kane had been looking for a partner in crime since the beginning of the school year. He took the chance to ask Scannell to come jam with him at his weekly gig. Scannell said he’d forgotten how much fun it could be to play on an acoustic and quickly agreed to give it a try. With one hour's practice together, Vertical Horizon made its debut later that week as an acoustic duo. The sound was anchored in folk 
music and harmonized vocals and their catalog consisted of mostly covers and a few originals. 

Throughout the year, Kane became a diehard fan of the two musicians John Alagia and Doug Derryberry.  He attended all their shows and eventually befriended them. Alagia and Derryberry were impressed by the young duo and agreed to lay down some of Vertical Horizon's tracks. They put together half a dozen tracks on an EP, but nothing came of it at the time. 

After graduating from Georgetown, Kane and Scannell decided that they 
wanted to spend their lives playing music. All they had to do now was go 
home and convince their parents what a good idea this was. Keith had grown up in Connecticut and Matt was from Massachusetts, so it was New England to which they returned for a while. They spent their first summer out of college living in Cape Cod, working at a golf course, and playing 3 nights a week for what sometimes amounted to beer and peanuts. 


Finally, at the end of that summer in 1992, they took the money they 
saved up over the summer and used it to record their first CD, "There and 
Back Again," at Matt's high school in Deerfield, MA. They sent some 
advance copies around to different people, including Alagia and 
Derryberry, who forwarded it on to a band they'd toured with before 
called Jackopierce. 

Around this time, Kane and Scannell returned to the DC area where the 
had already developed a strong following. There, they met up with Cary 
Pierce and Jack O'Neill of Jackopierce, who had heard the album and 
decided to invite Vertical Horizon out on the road for a two week stint. 
They started in Texas and after two successful weeks, Jackopierce asked 
them to stay on for a third. 

From then on, the guys alternated two weeks home with two weeks on the road.  They used connections they'd made while touring with Jackopierce to get themselves gigs. Vertical Horizon has since toured coast to coast sharing the stage with the likes of the Allman Brothers Band, Huey Lewis, Shawn Colvin, and Better Than Ezra. They've also done shows with The Samples, Widespread Panic, and Del Amitri. 

 "There and Back Again" was a composition of Scannell and Kane and their guitars, but by 1994 the duo were expanding their sound. Their sophomore effort, "Running On Ice," was released in 1995 and featured a full band on most tracks. The album was produced by Alagia and Derryberry (who chipped in on keyboards in spots). Percussion for the album was provided by Carter Beauford of The Dave Matthews Band and Jack. Cary of Jackopierce provided additional vocals. Vertical Horizon employed other members on the road and used several different bassists and drummers for different stints of time. 

Ed Toth was working for Borders Books and Music. He got in touch with 
the band after Matt's mom came into the store and asked for Vertical 
Horizon. Ed's boss very nicely helped her out and as repayment, Scannell 
called the store and offered to put the manager and a friend on the 
guest list to the show at Mama Kin that evening in Boston. Ed ended up 
as the manager's friend and was impressed by the group. So when the band drummer left, Ed took the opportunity to audition. The word is, he blew them away! 

Toth became a permanent fixture of Vertical Horizon before the 1996 
release of Live Stages, the band's latest album. This most recent 
recording features the band's complete sound and is comprised mostly of 
older songs performed in a live and electric setting. 

The group added the bass guitarist, Sean Hurley, in 1998. He was the first 
person to audition for the part, and although personalities clicked immediately, the band needed to view all their options. As they 
auditioned more and more bass players, they kept comparing them back to Hurley who ended up to be the perfect fit after all. 

In 1998, Vertical Horizon recorded their debut, "Everything You Want," 
for RCA Records. The new album continues the band's progression towards an edgier, electric, full-band style of music. Still, their focus has 
remained on strong song writing, vocal harmonies and impressive guitar 
work. The album is due out on June 15th, 1999.

Discography:

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