Grand Hallway
Grand Hallway Hailing from Seattle, Washington, Grand Hallway is a mini-orchestra of sorts (a typical live show features up to 9 musicians on stage). The troupe's intricate and melodic songs reflect the diverse backgrounds of each of its members. An immigrant of Japanese and Vietnamese descent and raised in the US, frontman Tomo Nakayama's sprawling songs are imbued with the traditions of his native lands, as filtered through the influence of the various Western artists to whom he grew up listening. Possessing a clear (and, at times, genderless) tenor voice, Nakayama weaves seamless pop melodies over his piano and guitar. Add to the mix the Brit-rock and Motown influenced riffs of guitarist Jeramy Koepping (Voyager One) and bassist Kevin Large (Widower), the post-rock drumming of Joel Harmon (Sleepy Eyes of Death), the country/western flavors of Chris Zasche's (The Maldives) pedal steel, and a classically trained string section of Alina To, Jaclyn Shumate, and Esther Shin, and the result is an undeniably unique experience. The seemingly incongruous parts come together to form a whole: an instantly familiar and inviting sound that nonetheless refuses to be defined by any single genre of music.

Grand Hallway's debut album, “Yes Is The Answer” was released in 2007 in Japan on Sideout Records (home to Bright Eyes, Cursive, Two Gallants, The Velvet Teen ), and self-released by the band in the United States. The follow up EP, "We Flew Ephemera", was released in early 2008. Locally, Grand Hallway has performed with such artists as Shearwater, Damien Jurado, Noah and the Whale, Aquaduct, Dead Science, and Laura Gibson. In the fall of 2007 they completed a tour of Japan with Arthur & Yu and Shugo Tokumaru. In May of 2008 they performed at the Sasquatch Festival at the Gorge Amphitheatre featuring the likes of REM, the Cure, Flaming Lips, and Modest Mouse.