The Fansite Connection
A community for Avril Lavigne, Sum 41 and Evan Taubenfeld fans
Evan Taubenfeld Biography
Introducing Evan Taubenfeld, by the FC...
Evan Taubenfeld was born to be a musician. And it all started at age four, when he began to play the drums. Later at age seven he wrote his first song. Unlike most middle school kids, Evan spent his free time playing drums for a local band called the Suburbanites. By age 13 he had furthered his talent by picking up the guitar, and in high school he fronted his own band, with the name Spinfire. Being a growing musician, Evan applied to Berklee School of Music, to which he was accepted. He later turned down the acceptance to concentrate on Spinfire, which broke up a month later. This was a big blow to Evan's self-esteem, but with his "never give up" attitude he pushed on.
After sending in demo tapes, he recieved a phone call from a friend in the A&R department of Arista Records. This friend offered him an audition in New York for an up-and-coming singer's band. According to Evan, he declined the offer thinking it wasn't what he wanted to pursue. A week later he changed his mind. He then had to learn five song in three days. Since a lead guitarist had already been chosen, Evan auditioned for the drums, but also played a guitar piece. The up-and-coming artist Avril Lavigne picked the then 18-year-old Evan, to join the band as lead guitarist and back up vocals, chosing chemistry and camaraderie as essential bandmate qualities.
Evan and Avril instantly became best friends and proved that having someone to trust in the music industry is a blessing. Evan toured the world with Avril on her Try to Shut Me Up Tour. They played songs such as Complicated and Sk8er Boi off her multi-platinum debut album, Let Go. Through Avril's success, Evan saw first hand the steps to stardom. In 2004 Evan co-wrote three songs for Avril's sophmore album Under My Skin. One of them being the hit single, Don't Tell Me. The duo then took off on a promotional mall tour for the new album before Evan decided to pursue a solo career. With the support of Avril, his friends and family, Evan teamed up with Warner Brothers Records and producer Howard Benson and began what was to be his debut album.
"I always thought that if I could make somebody's day better through one of my
songs, that would give me a reason for existing on this planet.” - Evan Taubenfeld
A year went by and the only outcome was frustration. Eventually tension grew between all parties and the contract was dropped. A huge dose of reality hit the 22-year-old. So once again he turned to family and friends, the one true constant in his ever-chaning life. After performing with Avril at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy, Evan started searching for musicians to start a band. In no time the band Hate Me was formed. Along with forming a band, Evan created a music production company called Big Evil, which now has departments ranging from management and touring to film and design. Everything seemed to be going great. Songs were being written, practice was being held, the band even played two opening concerts. But with progression not coming fast enough, two members called it quits.
"There's No Sweet Without The Sour" - Evan Taubenfeld
Evan was forced to make a decision, try again or give up. With fans waiting for a record, Evan turned to his friend Devin Bronson, who ironically had replaced him as Avril's lead guitarist. Evan, the remaining member Mike Castonguay (bassist) and new member Isaac Carpenter (drummer) formed The Black List Club. Before the band went into the studio, Evan and Avril wrote four songs for her third album The Best Damn Thing, which was released in April of 2007. One being a pop-hit single Hot. Another, a take-your-breath-way ballad, Innocence, which topped Canadian charts without being an offical single release. Evan even took time to perform the duo's latest hits at the Roxy in LA. Also in 2007, Evan helped out MTV by taking the role of executive music producer for the show Kaya. He also produced some songs for hip hop artists Tyga.
In January 2008 the band hooked up with producer John Fields and began recording at Wishbones Studios. During the whole recording process, Evan gave fans an inside look at what making an record is all about by uploading daily video blogs. In April, with recording completed, Evan and Devin debuted the new songs by playing an acoustic set at Avril's Fairfax show. Then the band opened for Click Five at the Roxy. Along with all this he was asked to join ASCAP's (American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers) panel discussion with some of the best in the business.
Late into 2008, fans became increasingly worried that the idea of The Black List Club as a band was falling apart. In October, Evan released a video explaining that The Black List Club would become his family of fans and that the album was to be released as his solo debut. After nearly four years of hard work, the record Evan had always wanted to release was mixed and mastered. Welcome to The Black List Club will be Evan's introduction to the world as a solo act. With songs ranging from upbeat It's Like That and Cheater of the Year to the emotional ballad Evan Way, the record will insure World Domination.
"If you can imagine it, you can achieve it, if you can dream it, you can become it" -Evan Taubenfeld
