The Hounds Below

Playing tough, dynamic, roots-conscious rock & roll that references the past and the present in equal measure, the Hounds Below are a Detroit-based group founded by Jason Stollsteimer. Stollsteimer had enjoyed international success with his previous band, the Von Bondies, but in 2008, with the band going through some internal strife, he began writing a set of songs in a distinctly different style, and assembled a group of friends to do a one-off show under the name Jason Stollsteimer & the Hounds Below. In 2009, the Von Bondies released their third album, Love Hate and Then Theres You, and the group toured the U.S. and Europe in support, but by early 2010, Stollsteimer had decided to make the Hounds Below a going concern, recruiting a handful of fellow Motor City musicians to join him, including guitarists Ben Collins and Sean Lynch, drummer Brandon McDonald, and bassist Molly Jean Schoen. This lineup cut a single, "Crawling Back to You" b/w "Two Step," but many of the musicians were dividing their time with other acts.

In 2011, Stollsteimer announced he had disbanded the Von Bondies, and he began assembling a new, permanent lineup of the Hounds Below. With Stollsteimer on lead vocals and guitar, Skye Thrasher on guitar, Matthew Hofman on bass, and Griffin Bastian on drums, the Hounds Below began hitting the road, playing shows throughout the country, sharing stages with Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, the Horrors, and the Raveonettes, and making a showcase appearance at the 2011 South by Southwest music festival. The Hounds Below began work on a full-length album, You Light Me Up in the Dark, which was released on Slimstyle Records in 2012.