CD Release - Bishop Don delivers Flowers From the Devil

If the three members of Bishop Don could earn a living through sheer ambition, they would be some of the richest men in Atlanta.</
Unfortunately, the trio doesn’t make enough money to play music full time yet, so they hold other jobs as well. Bassist Jesse Cole paints houses. Drummer Cliff Losee works at an Athens Mellow Mushroom. Vocalist and guitarist Blair Crimmins, on the other hand, studies psychology at Georgia State University.</
But it’s clear where their priorities lie. “We want to become the biggest rock band on the planet,” says Cole.</
“I’d like to get as many people to hear the music as possible,” adds Crimmins, so Bishop Don plays one or two shows in Atlanta every month. In addition to its Atlanta gigs, the group tours regularly throughout the North and Southeast. After its next show 10 High Club on Fri., Jan. 20, Bishop Don heads out on a trip through South Carolina.</
The group just released its first full-length CD, Flowers from the Devil, sold at shows, www.cdbaby.com, and brick-and-mortar locations such as Criminal Records and Wax and Facts. Crimmins says Bishop Don’s first release, Strange Love Dance Club EP, sold 2,000 copies.</
On both releases, Bishop Don plays a likeable blend of punk, folk and rock (Cole calls it “polk.”) “Friendly People,” a cut from the EP, begins acoustically, and then segues into a smooth, ’70s-styled midtempo swing via Crimmins’ pan flute solo. In contrast, Flowers from the Devil kicks off with the rousing, full-throttle rocker “Lady of Tides.” Crimmins’ charismatic songwriting girds both discs.</
Bishop Don would love to be discovered by a major record label, but in the meantime, the trio is going to keep on doing what it’s doing. “There’s more interest in live shows now,” says Losee. “People just download music, and don’t buy CDs as much. Everyone has an iPod. So good live performances will make you stand out.”</
“But [live shows] isn’t the only strong suit,” says Cole. “I mean, we’re performing some kick-ass songs.”