Biography

History

Origin
Around August 2002, the band Anatomy of a Ghost was formed by John Gourley and Zach Carothers. Gourley fronted the band having had no previous singing experience. Anatomy of A Ghost quickly gained popularity, but before long, the group broke up. Portugal. The Man was originally started as John Gourley’s side project, with Carothers playing bass. Before they had a drummer, they used drum machines and synth-loops as the backing beat. Gourley and Carothers teamed up with Wesley Hubbard, Nick Klein (former guitar tech for Anatomy of a Ghost) and Harvey Tumbleson, and formed Portugal. The Man. The band left Alaska and went to Portland with the intent of recording and touring. The band recorded demos in the summer of 2004, followed by a US tour that fall. In spring 2005, Klein and Tumbleson left and soon after Jason Sechrist joined the band. Portugal. The Man’s debut record Waiter: “You Vultures!” was released by Fearless Records on January 24, 2006. The album was produced by Casey Bates.

Independent Years

On June 22, 2007, they released their second full-length, Church Mouth, again produced by Casey Bates, and set out on a full U.S. headline tour with support from The Photo Atlas, Play Radio Play, Tera Melos, and The Only Children among others. They then toured Europe, and followed it up with another US headlining tour with support from Rocky Votolato and Great Depression during September and October. Following this tour, they joined Thursday (band) on a short east coast tour in November alongside Circle Takes The Square.

In 2008 the band left their label, Fearless Records, and added Ryan Neighbors, their touring keyboardist, as an official member and the replacement for Wes Hubbard.

On July 30, 2008, it was announced that Portugal. The Man was releasing Censored Colors under its independent record label, Approaching AIRballoons, in partnership with Equal Vision Records. It was released September 16, 2008. John Gourley was also chosen as the recipient of the 2008 AP Magazine’s ‘Best Vocalist of the Year’.

In 2009 they played at Bonnaroo and at Lollapalooza in Grant Park, Chicago.

On April 9 Portugal. The Man announced The Satanic Satanist, which was released on July 21, 2009. Originally named The Satanic Satanist of the Majestic Majesty, the album title was later shortened and an acoustic counterpart entitled The Majestic Majesty was released. The Satanic Satanist is themed around memories and stories from singer John Gourley’s growing up in the state of Alaska. The album was recorded with the help of record producer Paul Q. Kolderie of Pixies and Radiohead fame.

On February 11, 2010, Gourley announced that American Ghetto, the bands fifth studio album, would be released on March 2. In order to avoid another leak, virtually no copies of the album were solicited until the release date.

Atlantic years (2010–present)

In April 2010 the band announced their signing to Atlantic Records.

During the summer of 2010, Portugal. The Man went back into the studio to record their new album with producer John Hill. They recorded the album in El Paso, Texas, London, England, and San Diego, California. Grammy winner Andy Wallace mixed the album. Wallace has most notably mixed Rush, Nirvana, Paul McCartney, and At the Drive-In records.
During their fall tour in 2010, Portugal. The Man played a new song known as “We Got It All.” At SXSW 2011, they debuted another song titled “Senseless.” Starting on April 7, 2011, Portugal. The Man began releasing one 30 second clip every week from their new album via their YouTube channel. The songs were “Once Was One,” “All Your Light (Times Like These)” and “So American”. On April 29, 2011 the first full track was released entitled “Got it all (This Can’t Be Living Now.)” They released their second song on May 5 entitled “Sleep Forever.” In the Mountain in the Cloud and was released on July 19, 2011. Portugal. The Man’s short film, “Sleep Forever”, directed by Michael Ragen, clocks in at over 13 minutes and was shot entirely in Gourley’s hometown of Wasilla, Alaska. “Sleep Forever” premiered via IFC on June 6, 2011.

Portugal. The Man also made their second appearance at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival 10th year anniversary in June 2011, as well as Lollapalooza in August.

On the 8th of August after their Lollapalooza show, Portugal. The Man’s van and trailer were stolen. The van and trailer contained all of the band’s instruments and performance gear. On August 9, the van was recovered, but the contents of the trailer were missing. A list of the missing equipment was made available by the band. On August 12 much of the band’s gear was recovered from the home of a man who claimed to have purchased it at a flea market and the band subsequently posted a thank you note on their website saying, “it is more than just a win for PTM, it is also a win for twitter, the world of social media, the Chicago police, and old school journalism.” The man was charged with one felony count of theft for purchasing the stolen equipment.

In Fall 2011, the band went on a US headlining tour with the addition of guitarist Noah Gersh to the band. They also went on to tour Europe in January, opening for The Black Keys, and going onto Australia to headline and perform at St Jerome’s Laneway Festival. In Spring 2012 Portugal. The Man headlined the Jägermeister Music Tour with The Lonely Forest.

On April 3, 2012 it was announced via Facebook that keyboardist Ryan Neighbors would be leaving the band to pursue his own music career with his new project Hustle and Drone. He was replaced by Kyle O’Quin. Drummer Jason Sechrist was replaced by former child actor and drummer Kane Ritchotte shortly after Neighbors’ departure.

On February 8, Portugal. The Man leaked pictures on Bonnaroo’s official Tumblr page which showed that celebrated producer Brian Burton, aka Danger Mouse, is producing Portugal. The Man’s new record. Danger Mouse is most known for his work with Gnarls Barkley, Jack White, and Broken Bells, and for producing award winning albums for bands like the Gorillaz, The Black Keys, and Norah Jones. According to a Q&A Zach did on Portugal’s official tumblr page, their new album will be heavily influenced by Pink Floyd and Dark Side of the Moon.

On February 25, Portugal. The Man released the name of their new album, titled “Evil Friends,” on Instagram. On March 6, the band revealed the album art for Evil Friends using a Tweet-To-Reveal Mosaic. The next day, the video for the title track from Evil Friends was released on the band’s Youtube channel. On June 4, the album Evil Friends was released in the United States.

Recently the album, Evil Friends, has been covered by a number of artists including: Bear Mountain, Terry Urban (Portugal. The Man & Friends) and Passion Pit.

Music videos and short films

On June 6, 2011 Portugal. The Man released a short film featuring the songs “Sleep Forever” and “Got It All (This Can’t Be Living Now)” from their album, In The Mountain In the Cloud. Produced by Richard Hutchins and directed by Michael Ragen, the film features 13 minutes and 16 seconds of Alaskan wilderness intertwined with scenes of PTM front man, John Gourley, dog sledding before he is forced to travel by foot after his dogs abandon him. In the end, Gourley accidentally shoots himself in the face as he trips and falls in the snow. His dogs return and eat their owner, the dead John Gourley.

Currently, Portugal. The Man have also released music videos for their songs “So American”, “People Say”, “All Your Light”, “Do You”, “The Dead Dog”, “AKA M80 The Wolf”, “Lay Me Back Down”, “The Sun,” “Evil Friends,” “Purple Yellow Red and Blue”, “Atomic Man”, and “Modern Jesus”.