EPK | Murdoch Band

the murdoch story

Once upon a time it was the 1990s.

Before the internet. Before google. Before YouTube.
Janet was lead singer in the Boston alternative rock band Tribe.

They got a record deal for their first album with Slash (so edgy!),

then got a deal with Warner Bros. for their second album (not so edgy!),

and for their third album, they broke up (super-edgy!!). After much local fanfare,

Janet scored a solo deal with Columbia Records and moved to New York City to make her solo album, which Columbia promptly dropped (so record company!).

Meanwhile, Don was rocking it out on the West Coast. First as lead guitarist for Epic R&B recording artist Jak (so ‘80s!), then for his own LA-based band the Relatives, and next for his Bay Area band Black Tide, who opened for many of the top acts of the early ‘90s. Soon Electra Records came knocking at Black Tide’s door, record deal in the air, but instead of signing, Black Tide broke up (so ‘90s!).

In the mid ‘90s, Janet was in NYC wondering what to do next, Don was on the West Coast auditioning singers for his new band. In walks a chick singer, cassette tape in hand (cassette tape!). “That’s me!” she claimed. But it wasn’t her. It was Janet on a bootleg Tribe tape. Since there was no Internet, no google, and no YouTube, there was no way to check out her story. And Don was like, “You’re hired!”

In 2018, Don was in New Jersey making solo records and one day wondered what ever happened to that chick singer he’d hired back on the West Coast. Using the name of a song he remembered, Don googled her (thanks, google!) and discovered that chick was in fact Janet, formerly of Tribe, now in NYC. And he’s like, what the hell? And he’s like, I gotta talk to her. And he did.

At a pancake breakfast a few months later, after much back and forth and much mutual admiration, Don was like, “Wanna work together?” and Janet was like, “Sure!” And Murdoch was formed. And here we are.

Janet La Valley

Voted “Best Female Vocalist” (Tribe) 3 yeas in a row by The Boston Phoenix
3 major label deals: 1 album on Slash (Tribe), 1 album on Warner Bros. (Tribe), 1 album on Columbia Records (solo project)
2 US tours, 2 European tours (Tribe)
Video aired on MTV’s 120 Minutes; live appearance on The Conan O’Brien Show (Tribe)
“Janet La Valley is equal parts panther, vamp, and multi-limbed Khali, prowling ‘round the stage and clawing the air with a look so wicked you want to rip the legs off the chairs and start sharpening them into stakes…” — MELODY MAKER

Don Kimenker

Lead guitarist for Epic R&B recording artist, Jak
Finalist for San Francisco’s “Best Acoustic Guitarist” award
3 independent solo albums, one considered for a Grammy
"I wish more contemporary music reached this level in terms of the level of quality and integrity" — Grammy feedback for 2012's, "Tattered and True"

Lucinda Fisher

Classically trained pianist and keyboardist
Oboeist - Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia - 10 years
Performed with Rod Stewart, Roger Daltrey, and at US Presidential Inauguration
Masters degree in music from Aaron Copland School of Music - New York City

Kevin C. McCarthy

Bassist for New England-based bands Poor Jim and Gun Metal Gray
Live appearances on Boston’s Emerson College’s Studio C on WERS 88.9 FM
Featured bassist on recordings for the bands Hidden Agenda, Gray Matter, Fear of Ghosts, and IV Band

Steve Iannettoni

House drummer for Caesar’s Atlantic City (60 Minutes appearance)
Drums/vocals on Radio City Band’s album, Stay Another Night
Lead vocalist, percussionist, and original member of NJ/Philly-based The FM Band

street cred

Janet La Valley started her music career as the lead singer of the Boston alternative rock band, Tribe. After releasing two albums the early 1990s on Slash/Warner Brothers label, Tribe split up. In 1994, Janet scored a solo singer/songwriter deal with Columbia Records, moved to New York City to record her debut album, and toured the northeast extensively in the late 1990s. Throughout the 2000s, Janet fronted several NYC-based cover bands and appeared as guest vocalist with various independent artists.

murdoch bios

Don Kimenker has been a professional guitarist since he was 17. In the late 1980s, Don was recruited as lead guitarist for Epic R&B recording artist, Jak. In the early 1990s, Don fronted the LA alternative rock band, The Relatives, as both lead singer and guitarist. In San Francisco, Don formed power-trio, Black Tide, opening for some of the biggest acts of the 1990s. He released his first solo album in 1997. After relocating to the East Coast in 2012, Don released two solo albums, including Grammy-considered "Tattered and True."

In 2021, through a series of unlikely events, Janet teamed up with Don, and together they formed Murdoch. “Gone” is Murdoch’s first full-length release, completed in 2021 at the height of the pandemic.

Making “Gone” was tons of pandemic-fun, including live social-distancing and remote Zoom recording sessions, and weeks-long FaceTime-only video-editing sessions for their first single, “Bad Dreaming.” Don recorded, mixed, and mastered the "Gone" album.