A tragedy doesn't stop group

Guitarist Jeremy Bolen, of the band Chin Up Chin Up, says he had a band when he was in third grade.

"I had my first gig when I was 8 years old," Bolen said by phone from Iowa City, Iowa. "I always knew I wanted to be in a band and play music."

But Chin Up Chin Up faced a crisis earlier this year, and Bolen and his bandmates — guitarist Nathan Snydacker, drummer Chris Dye and keyboardist Greg Sharp — considered disbanding the group.

In the early morning hours of Feb. 13, they received word that their bassist, Chris Saathoff, was killed in a hit-and-run accident. It occurred shortly after the guys finished mixing a batch of demos in their hometown of Chicago.

So they faced a choice — to continue or hang it up.

"We talked with his parents and our friends, and there was so much support that we decided to finish the album," said Bolen. "We had a real purpose now to finish the album. It was for Chris."

The band remastered the demo mixes and recorded some other songs that would eventually become the album "We Should Have Never Lived Like We Were Skyscrapers." "We had four songs done and then mini parts of other songs that we could work with. When Chris died, we took some time off to reassess ourselves and then went back to doing what we do.

"So it was a longer process recording this album than usual. But it was nice to have more time to leave the songs and come back to them. Some stayed the same and others changed dramatically."

The band kept all the bass lines for the album but hired Mark Young, a friend of theirs — and of Chris — for the tour. "The tour is going well," said Bolen. "I would love to keep touring and add more dates in January through March.

"It was a trying time getting the album out. But it felt great getting it out. It was meant to be, and we're glad it's finally available."

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If you go

What: Chin Up Chin Up, The Paper Chase and Make Believe

Where: Kilby Court, 741 S. 330 West

When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m.

How much: $12

Phone: 320-9887

Web: www.kilbycourt.com

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E-mail: scott@desnews.com