American Record Co.
Voorheesville, New York · est. 2018 · 2018–present · Active

Black ElectricHybrid

New York dark heavy since 2018 — LarkFest to Magnetic Eye to the lockdown-forged trilogy 'Trewartha', 'Clean', 'Apotrepo'.


HYBRID — legit disclosure: AI/production tools used on specific tracks. No ghostwriters. 'Trewartha', 'Clean', and 'Apotrepo' are the modern-era lineup (Vitali / Andrew K / Greg O — no David Tyo on these tracks).

No. I

The Record

Black Electric arrived playing, not posting: formed in 2018 in the Albany orbit (Voorheesville, NY), on stage at LarkFest by September 2019 and at Pauly's Hotel with High Reeper the next night, with the self-titled debut out on Magnetic Eye Records that fall. The follow-up 'Utopian Hymns' was tracked at Tyo Mixes across the winter of 2019–20 and released independently on May 22, 2020, just as the world shut down. The lockdowns became the woodshed: writing and production started on three full records — 'Trewartha', 'Clean', and 'Apotrepo' — which landed years later in a six-week salvo to open 2025 on American Record. Modern-era credits: Vitali with the New Orleans (Andrew K) and Los Angeles (Greg O) network; the early era was Vitali, Mike Langone (vocals), and David Tyo (drums, engineering, production).


No. II

Eras

  1. 2018Formation

    New York dark heavy

    Black Electric forms in 2018: Michael Vitali (vocals, guitar, bass, electric piano), Mike Langone (vocals), David Tyo (drums, engineering, production at Tyo Mixes). Live lineup adds George Lipscom, Zack Cohen, Stew Overocker.

  2. 2019LarkFest

    On stage in Albany

    September 21, 2019 — LarkFest, Albany NY, one of the Northeast's biggest free street festivals; Pauly's Hotel with High Reeper the following night (per The Obelisk). Photographed by Kiki Vassilakis.

  3. 2019Magnetic Eye

    The self-titled debut

    Digital August 18; CD/LP via Magnetic Eye Records November 17, 2019 (vinyl MGEY72.1, 2021).

  4. 2020Independent

    Utopian Hymns

    Tracked at Tyo Mixes Oct 2019–Mar 2020, released independently May 22, 2020 — right as the lockdowns fell.

  5. 2020The woodshed

    Lockdown writing & production

    During the lockdowns, writing and production begin on three full records at once — the material that becomes 'Trewartha', 'Clean', and 'Apotrepo' — with the New Orleans (Andrew K) and Los Angeles (Greg O) network.

  6. 2025The salvo

    Three albums in six weeks

    'Trewartha' (Jan 2), 'Clean' (Jan 16), 'Apotrepo' (Feb 13) — 37 tracks, released on American Record, years after the lockdown sessions that forged them.


No. III

Releases & Liner Notes

Black Electric — self-titled debut cover art

Black Electric2019

LP · Magnetic Eye Records · 2019-08-18 · 8 tracks

The self-titled debut — digital August 18, 2019; CD/LP via Magnetic Eye Records November 17, 2019; vinyl MGEY72.1, March 12, 2021. All songs written by Mike Vitali/Black Electric. Produced and engineered by David Tyo at Tyo Mixes. The Obelisk: 'Albany heavy blues rockers Black Electric have emerged with a stripped-down, hook-centric debut that's as catchy as it is understated.' Debut live lineup: Mike Vitali / Mike Langone / George Lipscom / Zack Cohen / Stew Overocker.

Source record →

Utopian Hymns — Black Electric cover art

Utopian Hymns2020

LP · Independent (AMRE-0012, American Record catalog) · 2020-05-22 · 10 tracks

Tracked at Tyo Mixes across the winter of 2019–20 — nine months into the band's life — and released independently May 22, 2020 as lockdown fell. Darker hymns, deeper grooves: 'The Sea' swells Crazy Horse-tall, and 'StewBall' sets Lead Belly's public-domain words to new music. 12" LP in Color-in-Color and TriColor variants plus CD, sold via Bandcamp. Timings from the vinyl-preview masters in the estate vault.

Iron Gland (on 'Dirt [Redux]')2020

single · Magnetic Eye Records · 2020 · 1 tracks

Alice in Chains' 43-second interlude, covered for Magnetic Eye's 'Dirt [Redux]' compilation — The Obelisk: 'here covered by Black Electric, which features Magnetic Eye Records' own Mike Vitali (also ex-Ironweed and Greatdayforup) on guitar.'

Source record →

Trewartha2025

LP · American Record · 2025-01-02 · 14 tracks

Released January 2, 2025 on American Record (Albany, NY). 14 tracks. Canonical listing on the Black Electric catalog.

Source record →

Clean2025

LP · American Record · 2025-01-16 · 11 tracks

Released January 16, 2025 on American Record (Albany, NY). 11 tracks. Canonical listing on the Black Electric catalog.

Source record →

Apotrepo — Black Electric cover art

Apotrepo2025

LP · American Record · 2025-02-13 · 12 tracks

Released February 13, 2025 on American Record (Albany, NY). 12 tracks. Canonical listing on the Black Electric catalog.

Source record →


No. IV

Personnel

  • Michael VitaliMember · guitar, vocals, bass, drums
  • Andrew KProducer · bass, producer, mix engineer — New Orleans
  • Greg OProducer · guitars, vocals, production — Los Angeles

No. V

On the Record

“Albany heavy blues rockers Black Electric have emerged with a stripped-down, hook-centric debut that's as catchy as it is understated.” The Obelisk · 2019 · Black Electric debut album due on vinyl Nov. 17; streaming now
“Bluesy refrains drenched in fuzz and fronted by clean distinctive semi stoned vocal tones.” Desert Psychlist
  • LarkFest 2019Lark Street · Albany, NY · 2019 — September 21, 2019 — verified via The Obelisk's debut-album feature. Shot by Kiki Vassilakis (62-frame set in the estate archive).
  • Pauly’s Hotel with High ReeperAlbany, NY · 2019 — September 22, 2019 — verified via The Obelisk.

No. VI

From the Vault

Black Electric live at LarkFest 2019, Albany NY
Photo · Kiki Vassilakis

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