Olympia

by Corey AparFollowing the demise of Equal Vision Records emo act Fairweather in 2004, drummer Shane Johnson and guitarist Peter Tsouras wanted to start something new together, and thus joined forces with bassist Nick Barkley, who was a vet of various Washington, D.C., bands and had toured a bit with Fairweather in the past. On the suggestion of a friend, the trio called up former Brand New Disaster vocalist Phil Williams to complete what would then become the rock unit Olympia in late 2005. The group recorded its first demo in January 2006 and played its first gig a couple months later. Based out of D.C. (though members also hailed from Richmond, VA), Olympia unsurprisingly caught the attention of Fairweather's old label, Equal Vision, and became an official part of its roster soon after the completion of their debut album in the fall of 2006. An eponymous four-song EP was issued that November, which preceded the April 2007 release of Emergencies, an aggressive record that featured the straightforward rock sound (think Foo Fighters) that Olympia wanted to achieve. Touring through much of the rest of the year followed.