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Hoots & Hellmouth
Hoots & Hellmouth
	Hoots performing at World Cafe Live
Background information
Origin	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Genres	Folk; Gospel; Rock; Americana
Years active	2005–present
Labels	MAD Dragon Records
Members	Sean Hoots; Rob Berliner; Todd Erk; Mike Reilly; Andrew Gray (2005-2011, 2021-Present)
Past members	Aaron Blouin; John Branigan; Tim Celfo; Ramon Sender; Matthew E. Stein; Krista Umile
Website	Official website

Hoots & Hellmouth is an American gospel rock band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.

History

Hoots & Hellmouth was formed in 2005 by Sean Hoots and Andrew Gray.^[1] The formation of the band was partially a reaction to and a rebellion against the grandiose rock-star attitude of modern rock bands, with which they were previously involved.^[2] The group was initially started as a duo, playing roots music intended to evoke the revival feeling.^[3]^[4] They eventually expanded to four members after adding Pilot Round, Rob Berliner otherwise known as "The Sun guitarist"; and John Branigan.^[5] Most of the time, they play without a live drummer, instead stomping and using hand percussion such as tambourines.^[6] The group's self-titled debut appeared in 2007 on MAD Dragon Records, distributed by Warner. In early 2008, the album, Hoots & Hellmouth, won in The 7th Annual Independent Music Awards for Best College Record Label Album.^[7] Their follow-up album, The Holy Open Secret, was released in 2009.^[8] On Friday, August 21, as part of their months-long CD release tour, the band headlined their second WXPN Free at Noon concert, playing an 8-song set.^[9] The show, which was videotaped for WHYY-TV's weekly On Canvas program, took place at World Cafe Live and was broadcast live via radio.^[10] On April 19, 2010 "The Window in the Woodshed" was unveiled on HootsandHellmouth.com, the bands official website. A video for unreleased new material titled "The Photograph is Still."^[11] In early November 2010 the band unveiled through their Facebook page, Kickstarter, and other media that they were no longer carried by a label. They had been working on new material for some time and still wished to release a new album. Their Kickstarter project, titled "It came from the woodshed!" was announced on November 5, 2010, with an initial goal of $6,000 to produce and record a 6-song EP. Eventually, when the pledged total reached the $10,000 mark on November 23, the band issued an update asking for fans to reach the $15,000 mark so a full LP could be produced. By December 6, 2010, the campaign achieved $23,882 and was listed in Kickstarter's Hall of Fame, which lists 100 of the most successful Kickstarter campaigns since the company's inception in 2009.^[12] The album is presumably set to be recorded in February, 2011, while they are on tour in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which is where the band has studio time booked.^[13]