About
Members
Toby Lawhon
Sauntering through smoke-filled nightclubs and dark cabarets, slipping slyly through the mystique and mystery, a gentleman makes his way to the stage: a forum for rebellious words, a front for his role in the resistance - or is it? A resolute ringleader of a musical menagerie, the voice to ring out through the labyrinthine alleyways and echo in alcoves deep and dark, leading the lost, heartening the forgotten, this is his world: of poisoned absinthe, of cloak & dagger and lock & key; an enigmatic world tangled amid a web of intrigue. Yet he knows his role well, for messages come more profoundly and persuasively when woven secretly within the melodies of music.
Geneva Arena
From out of a dank back alley steps a shrouded silhouette, a phantom figure stalking surreptitiously through the veil of a dreary fog. She is the flowing ghost, the underlying pulse of the resistance, an obscure, cryptic specter whose clandestine movements propel the plot. She looms inconspicuously and shrewdly about the dimly lit street, then strides rhythmically forward as she spies her mark - another strike to anchor the efforts of the revolution.
Parker Sharp
Coolly cutting a deck of cards with a single hand as he casually rolls a tarnished coin along the knuckles of the opposite, a master of legerdemain sits at a dimly lit table. He takes a turn looking each of his opponents in the eye - his cocksure smirk giving nothing away, as it seems to them that it is always there. A jack-of-all-trades cardsharp with an ace up his sleeve - he is the chameleon, the ignis fatuus who phases and distorts whatever required in order to obtain the upper-hand for the resistance. As always, his adversaries are unknowingly hoodwinked by his brilliant sleight of hand. What they are dealt doesn’t matter, for he has already won.
Camron Frederick
Tucked within the confines of a lavish study brimful of curios and oddities, a stoic figure listens intently to the ticking of his pocket watch as sinking sands slide steadily to the bottom of a timeworn hourglass. He is the timekeeper, the steadfast heartbeat of the revolution - a puppet master orchestrating change, and - like clockwork - he instills a sense of urgency, or an air of nonchalance into the movement. He lifts his head as the last grain of sand falls and a magnificent wall of clocks chimes a marching call to arms. The time is nigh.
Antonio Brazil
Behind a drawn tattered curtain, toiling methodically and tinkering masterfully on tarnished contraptions under flickering lights, a polyphonic alchemist calibrates his dissident harmonic devices. With these ingenious implements, and the utilization of a complexity of notes and tonalities, he plans to sonically alter the aether between electromagnetic poles in order to create a resonance that will forever fuel the resistance.
Biography
Location: Marquis Manor - Dallas, Texas
Having the ambitious wish to propel the entire world into a melodic vortex, Marquis of Vaudeville emits an extraordinary alt-rock sound that spirals listeners on an utterly imaginative, musical merry-go-round. One never knows what moodswung journey they’ll embark upon once these musical highwaymen hijack their consciousness.
With imagination at its core, the theatrical flair and intriguing nature of their songwriting has grasped the attention of music lovers worldwide, from the most critical of music elitists to the average radio listener. Although performing frequently at festivals and pop culture conventions, including goth/horror/vampire, fantasy, & steampunk productions, the band is widely known for their own extravagant Vaudevillian inspired sold-out spectacles such as 'A Clockwork Wonderland: Through Aether & Mysterium' (whose live video for 'Utopian Playland' won 'Best Performance Video' at Radio KSCR's Music Video Awards), 'Gadgets & Gobstoppers: The Twisted World of Wonka', 'Unlucky 13', Carnivale Cryptique, and the show that shares the grandiose title of their ambitious debut album "The Great Promenade of Fools & Ghosts".
The musical outfit is known for their captivating, carnival-esque, punk-cabaret stylings, fusing timeworn elements of the old world with newfangled innovation, a sound they've dubbed 'melodic mischief' owing to the music's mysterious, yet playful nature. With their sophomore album ‘The Tragic Valentine’ Marquis of Vaudeville has set the creative bar even higher, breaking through the monotonous & mundane with a rock opera soundscape of angst-ridden anthems, devilishly beguiling ballads, and waltzes through Wonderland that tug at the heartstrings of today’s youth as well as old-school rockers. Along with this album came two award-winning music videos, We're All Mad Here and The ENIGMA Men, both which continue to pile on accolades from film & music video festivals across the globe.
Internet and terrestrial radio such as Texas’ leading rock/alternative stations 97.1 The Eagle (Dallas), 102.1 The Edge (Dallas), 94.5 The Buzz (Houston), as well as Boston Rock Radio, and The Real Radio Show out of New York have embraced their music and featured such songs as 'An Ordinary Day'; a theatrically twisted melodic thrill, and 'Corps of Night'; a rebellious rock anthem to lead the lost and hearten the forgotten. MoV has also performed at 102.1 The Edge's major music festival, Edgefest, with heavy hitters such as Death Cab for Cutie, Modest Mouse, AWOLNATION, Hozier, and The Offspring.
The act has composed and licensed music for a variety of film projects & television shows such as the syndicated series 'Charmed' & Showtime Network’s hit series 'Dexter'. They've also been featured in publications such as Alternative Press, Buzzfeed, Huffington Post, Race Point Publishing's book 'Anatomy of Steampunk' as well as 'Gearhearts Glamor Revue'.
Hate them, love them - either way, they demand the world take notice, and purely desire to incite something genuine, to inspire sincere emotion despite the world’s mind-numbing mediocrity and generic mass production. Whatever your tastes, Marquis of Vaudeville is a tantalizing flavor for even the most finicky musical appetite.
PRESS
“Delivering dreamy melodic guitars, powerful alt-rock vocals reminiscent of Muse's Matt Bellamy and a cabaret-infused punk sound…the band (Marquis of Vaudeville) captures moments of grandeur reminiscent of theatrical greats like the operatic Queen. [Their album] The Tragic Valentine, is listenable from start to finish, with moody melodies, driving rhythms and a dark, vaudevillesque undertone that it paints throughout, while remaining radio friendly. Their polished alt-rock sound and musicality notwithstanding a one-of-a-kind, theatrical stage show [are] what keep their fans coming back.”
— Deitra Magazine
“That mix of pleasant pop and hard-rock dynamics, this stuff is so slick and well-constructed. Very impressive.”
— Doug Brod - former editor of Spin Magazine, MusicNation
“If you’re tired of the same old song & dance, Marquis of Vaudeville readily provides a few unusual flavors to an otherwise bland music world... You can certainly pick up on a Tim Burton-esque quality to many of the various sounds... In fact, singer Lawhon has a voice that many times vacillates between Elfman’s mischievous tone & that of Muse’s Matthew Bellamy... Although Marquis of Vaudeville may never specifically point to Queen as an inspiration, the parallel between what that English band accomplished, and this new act attempts to do, is fairly obvious... When you add the fact that singer Lawhon sounds a lot like Muse’s Bellamy (Muse quickly admits to its hero worship of Queen) the comparison is an apt one. As good as this recording sounds though one can only imagine how great this act must be in person. Like Alice Cooper & Marilyn Manson before them, Marquis of Vaudeville brings visual flair to its unique auditory creations. This is rock music with a distinctly cinematic scope.”
— Dan MacIntosh, Indie-Music.com
"Marquis of Vaudeville's self-titled debut is a shrewd fusing of twinkly pop, gaze-at-the-stars vocals and melancholy melody outlined with edgy, trenchant guitars...This is music to paint your own mental picture while listening to—a healthy dose of rock 'n' roll with a fair share of emotion, invention and imagination."
— Alan Ayo, Dallas Observer
“This Dallas five piece knows a thing or two about hypnotic and beautiful melodies. Marquis of Vaudeville craft alternative rock gems that remain accessible while they wander through space and time. Singer/guitarist Toby Lawhon’s voice dazzles and dances with incredible talent that would make Ours’ Jimmy Gnecco proud. With strong memorable songs, this is the music modern rock radio should be getting familiar with.”
— Exploding In Sound
“Amanda Palmer of The Dresden Dolls applauds the band with, "Ziggy meets Marc Bolan outside Max's Kansas City. Makes me want to break out some sequined leggings and spit on the sidewalk. Space-age modern-age glam nostalgia."”
— Amanda Palmer of The Dresden Dolls, MusicNation
“Beautiful mixes of keys, acoustic, and electric guitars paint a sound-scape backdrop for some really nice vocal work...these guys have fashioned a professional sounding work for the rock fans of the world.”
- LIT Magazine
“Although they've influences that include such classics as The Beatles, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones, their music stands on its own.”
- Adam P. Newton, ENVY Magazine
“Marquis of Vaudeville delivers a musical escape from the mundane. Their debut album The Promenade of Fools and Ghosts is both whimsical & haunting, mixing the band's songs with instrumental pieces that inspire the imagination.”
— Doctor Fantastique's Show of Wonders