Siblings Neil and Martha Weir formed the band (under the name the Shut-Ins) in 2003 in Minneapolis with a drum machine. They cut five demos and began playing shows in the Twin Cities. Shortly thereafter, live drummer Colin Johnson (Vampire Hands/Skin Flowers) joined the band and the three-piece began playing under the name The Chambermaids, and subsequently recorded the tracks that would later become their self-titled debut full-length.
The Chambermaids’ self-titled record was released on CD by Modern Radio in the fall of 2006, followed by a second album, Down in the Berries, released by Modern Radio on limited-edition vinyl in fall of 2009. During the time between releases, the band added second guitar player Nate Nelson (Pony Trash/American Cream/STNNNG) and drummer Mickey Kahleck. With a solid lineup and Martha back in the country after a teaching stint in Austria, The Chambermaids returned as a force in the Twin Cities music community.
With the addition of drummer Alex Rose (Vampire Hands/Heavy Deeds) in 2010, The Chambermaids began working on new material and released two digital singles on Guilt Ridden Pop, “Whirlpool” and “China Blue.” Both were well-received, including making Jack Rabid’s list of “Top Ten Singles of 2012” in The Big Takeover magazine. Following the success of the digital singles, The Chambermaids returned new vinyl/CD full-length album entitled Whatever Happened Tomorrow on Old Blackberry Way/Guilt Ridden Pop in 2013. With Whatever Happened Tomorrow, The Chambermaids created a strong, pulling album that equally utilizes the merits of both lush, thick soundscapes and sparse, haunting melodies. Complex textural fragments that recall ambient Eno and MBV are set alongside noisy yet minimal pop songs a la The Vaselines or The Breeders. Created and recorded at Neil Weir’s renowned Old Blackberry Way Studio in Minneapolis, Whatever Happened Tomorrow has a sense of vision, atmosphere, mystery and completeness that places it in the realm of classic albums.
