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Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments

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Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments
Company typeMusical group
IndustryMusic
Founded1989
FounderRon House
Defunct2000
Headquarters
Columbus, Ohio
,
United States
ProductsMusic albums and singles

Thomas Jefferson Slave Apartments was a musical group originating from Columbus, Ohio, active between 1989 and 2000.[1][2]

History

Established in 1989 by Ron House, who previously led the band Great Plains, the group derived its name from the slave quarters at Monticello associated with Thomas Jefferson.[3][4] Their early work consisted of several locally distributed 7" singles.[1] The band's first full-length album, Bait and Switch, was produced on a modest budget of $800,[5] and released in 1995 through Onion Records, a subsidiary of American Recordings.[2] After Onion Records ceased operations, the band’s sophomore album, Straight to Video, appeared in 1997 under Anyway Records.[3][6] That same year, they issued the compilation You Lookin' for Treble, which gathered singles and EP selections from the years 1990 to 1992.[7][8] Their last studio release, No Old Guy Lo-Fi Cry, came out in 2000 via Rockathon Records, a label owned by Guided by Voices frontman Robert Pollard.[9]

Although their main period of activity concluded in 2000, the band reunited occasionally for performances within Ohio during the 2000s and into the 2010s.[10][11][12][13]

Guitarist Bob Petric died in April 2021.[14]

Critical reception

Bait and Switch was met with positive feedback from music critics. Ethan Smith of Entertainment Weekly characterized the album as "light on refinement, rich in appeal," giving it a B+ grade. Greg Kot commended the record for delivering a "raucous, gritty enjoyment" filled with sharp guitar work and cleverness. Robert Christgau assigned an A− rating, emphasizing that the initial five tracks formed an ideal, intense melodic sequence. In Spin, Eric Weisbard pointed out that House prioritized musical continuity over lyrical content and began exploring noise elements without fully embracing them. David Sprague from Billboard remarked that the album maintained the laid-back, lo-fi atmosphere reminiscent of the band's earlier single releases.

Studio albums

  • Bait and Switch (American Recordings, 1995)
  • Straight to Video (Anyway Records, 1997)
  • No Old Guy Lo-Fi Cry (Rockathon Records, 2000)

Compilation albums

  • You Lookin' for Treble? (Year Zero Records/Vinyl Retentive, 1997)

Further reading

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named allmusic
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named magnet
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named tp
  4. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named billboard
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  14. ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
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