Chauchat emerged from the pomp and decadence that characterized Lancaster, … Read Full Bio ↴Chauchat emerged from the pomp and decadence that characterized Lancaster, Pennsylvania in the late 1990s. While the aristocracy experimented with new musical forms, the rabble was driven by folk violence and a thirst for alcohol. In an attempt to reconcile these increasingly hostile class tensions, Lancaster officials demanded that each group send a musical representative to attend songwriting classes at the local university. Chauchat's singer, Tyler Whitney, was given the unique opportunity to learn about this artistic trade and even earned a Martin's Chips Distinguished Independent Musician Fellowhip at the Kunzler Hot Dog Factory in downtown Lancaster. The aspiring songwriter picked up giant chunks of mysterious meat with a metal hook for the first eleven hours of each day, then ran to music class at night, where, through his lyrics, he aimed to heal society's economic wounds and to conceal the presence of a corrupt and manipulative government. He completed his residency at Kunzler in the spring of 1999 and immediately received a grant to release an independent full-length cassette on a label owned by Lancaster's most infamous book tycoon, Christopher "Unread" Fischer. Eventually entitled "Unhappiness," this first release documented the torture of working at the hot dog factory, while also expressing Tyler's immense joy behind the wheel of his guitar. The Chip and Pretzel Act of 2001 finally eliminated distinctions based on class, and Lancaster became the United States' first official utopia in 2002. The city and its music scene both continue to thrive today.

(Taken from http://www.myspace.com/chauchatband)