Tally Hall

Genre
 Hometown
 Relationship to Tally Hall

**Tally Hall** (sometimes stylized as **tallyhall**) is an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in December 2002. The band is known for upbeat melodies and whimsical lyrics. The members originally described their musical style as "wonky rock", later redefining their sound as "fabloo" (/fəˈbluː/ *fə-BLOO*), in an effort to not let their music be defined by any particular genres after critics began defining the characteristics of "wonky rock".

Tally Hall has five members, each of them distinguished by the color of their neckties: guitarist Rob Cantor (yellow), guitarist Joe Hawley (red), drummer Ross Federman (gray), keyboardist Andrew Horowitz (green), and bassist Zubin Sedghi (blue). Touring partner Casey Shea and producer Bora Karaca (also described as a "mascot") also have dedicated colors for their neckties (black and orange, respectively). All five members have provided vocals for the band.

Once under the Atlantic Records recording label, Tally Hall was, again, signed to indie label Quack! Media, who previously helped finance and nationally distribute their debut studio album, *Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum* on October 24, 2005.

They released their second album, *Good & Evil*, on June 21, 2011.

Tally Hall also provided the vocals and music for all of the songs in *Happy Monster Band*, a children's television series that aired on Playhouse Disney.

## History

### Early years and *Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum*

Andrew Horowitz, one of the only members not originally from Michigan, began writing songs when he was eight years old, and attended the University of Michigan, studying composition. There he met Rob Cantor, who had both attended high school with Zubin Sedghi and joined Joe Hawley's film production group, AnonyMous. Tally Hall's original drummer, Steve Gallagher, left the band in May of 2004. Ross Federman, who Joe knew from high school, took his place shortly thereafter. On October 24, 2005, the band released their debut studio album, *Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum*, with violinist Jeremy Kittel contributing strings. They re-released the album on September 12, 2006, on the local label Quack! Media. Tally Hall went on to receive national media attention, performing their song "Good Day" on *The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson* on August 2, 2006, as well as appearing in MTV's segment You Hear It First in September 2006. The band appeared at the 2007 South by Southwest Music Festival. Also in March 2007, they were signed to Atlantic Records and rerecorded their first album. They didn't release the updated version until April 1, 2008. In August 2008, Tally Hall was a performer on the BMI stage at Lollapalooza.

Tally Hall was invited back by *The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson* on September 16, 2008, to help promote the launch of *Tally Hall's Internet Show*. They performed "Welcome to Tally Hall" in newly donned black vests over top of their traditional colored ties, white shirts, and black pants.

The band worked on several projects after the completion of *Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum*, including covering the song "Smile Like You Mean It" by The Killers for the sixth *The O.C.* soundtrack: *Music from the OC: Mix 6*.

### Tours and *Good & Evil*

On September 9, 2009, Hidden in the Sand (HITS), a prominent Tally Hall fansite, broke the news that **Tally Hall** was going to release a collaborative song, featuring Nellie McKay, which would be released as a free download from mp3.walmart.com when customers of Walmart purchased *The Magician's Elephant* by Kate DiCamillo. The book had been made available for purchase earlier that day. The same day, HITS reported the title of the song, "Light & Night", along with a short audio clip of it in another update.

In their 2010 March tour with Jukebox the Ghost and Skybox, it was reported that Joe Hawley had unexpectedly backed out of the tour. Hawley was replaced with Casey Shea, who wore a black tie, and would subsequently fill in for him for the rest of their live shows that year. On March 25, 2011, the band announced that all five original band members were still together.

The band was managed by The Hornblow Group, who also manages They Might Be Giants, OK Go, and Oppenheimer, until 2010, when Tally Hall changed management to Stiletto Entertainment, who manages Barry Manilow, in addition to several other solo performance acts.

Their second album, *Good & Evil*, was released in 2011. With this release **Tally Hall** returned to their original label, Quack!Media.

In order to promote the album, the band held a contest where the winner would be awarded their own theme song. The winner was a high school student named Nathan Naimark, whose self titled theme song would be released soon after. Around the same time, the band released a cover of the Flo Rida song "Club Can't Handle Me", with Casey Shea on guest vocals.

After the release of *Good & Evil* and its subsequent tour, the band became inactive, and all of its members went on to independent endeavors, though some of the projects had multiple members of the band collaborate once again.

### After the hiatus

In 2015, Tally Hall's Bandcamp page was updated with a demo LP entitled Admittedly Incomplete Demos, in reference to their earlier collection Complete Demos. The LP included demos of songs from Good & Evil as well as unreleased songs and live performances. It also included studio versions of covers for the songs Just A Friend and The Minstrel Boy. The former, Just A Friend, was included in the track-lists for versions of Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum that included bonus tracks.

In August 2019, the band re-released their archived cover of Biz Markie's "Just a Friend", which was originally only found on their album Admittedly Incomplete Demos.

Needlejuice Records announced in January 2021 that Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum will be reissued on vinyl, CD, and cassette, with a MiniDisc release in June to coincide with International MiniDisc Day. Pre-orders for a re-issue of Good & Evil opened on August 26, 2022, along with a 7" vinyl for "Turn the Lights Off," which featured the aforementioned track on the A side and "Light & Night" on the B side.

In April 2022, 2 new tracks were added to "Admittedly Incomplete Demos": "Welcome to Tally Hall (Reprise) (Demo)" and "Hymn For a Scarecrow (Demo)".

Since the band's hiatus, members have hinted at a third album, with Hawley promising it on social media and Sedghi joking that they would return if they received "thirty or forty million listeners a month" in a statement for Spotify Wrapped.

In August 2023, claims were leveled against Hawley, including a document with Instagram DMs of him reportedly demonstrating transphobia with a fan and a subsequent intoxicated conversation in which he behaves improperly and sexualizes the same fan. Horowitz, speaking on behalf of the rest of the band, revealed on X that Hawley had been dealing with mental health concerns for years, which was one of the key reasons for the lack of a third album and tour plans. Horowitz asked fans not to connect with Hawley and emphasized that the band did not support his activities.

### Solo work after *Good & Evil*

In 2012, Andrew Horowitz, under the moniker "edu", released a solo album called *sketches 3D*. He was also involved in production and piano on John Legend's *Love in the Future*.

Joe Hawley returned to school, but released a concept album alongside Ross Federman and Bora Karaca, *Hawaii: Part II*, as part of his musical side project ミラクルミュージカル (Miracle Musical), who also created the song “Variations on a Cloud”, about the 9/11 attacks. Tally Hall members Zubin Sedghi and Rob Cantor appeared on the album on the tracks "White Ball" and "Time Machine", respectively.

Ross Federman has made occasional appearances as a producer, percussionist, and DJ under the pseudonym "Mr. F", although his main focus has been school. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in Cell and Molecular Biology, and graduated from Yale University with a Ph.D. in Immunology in May 2019. Federman is married, and he and his wife had their first child in 2022.

Sedghi, aside from appearing in *Hawaii: Part II*, shifted his focus towards his personal life. He graduated from the University of Michigan with an undergraduate Honors degree in Neuroscience, then attended Touro University California for medical school.

He now works as a family medicine doctor at Kaiser Permanente in Orange County, California. Sedghi is married with two kids. As of 2020, Horowitz stated during his Instagram Livestream Keep Up the Good Work:

> "So Zubin, correct me if I'm wrong, but he's on the frontline right now, working at a hospital. Well, last we heard, he was like, he was quarantined for, he couldn't... they thought he might be sick, so he was in quarantine for two weeks, then he went back to work in the hospital, and, as far as I know, he's working.
>
>

In 2014, Hawley, again under ミラクルミュージカル, released *Hawaii: Part II: Part ii,* an album containing demos and samples from *Hawaii: Part II*. Hawley also released *Candle on the Water* under ミラクルミュージカル, a cover of the song of the same name from the 1977 Disney film Pete's Dragon.

Cantor released his solo album, *Not a Trampoline*, on April 14, 2014. In addition, he has made several viral videos on YouTube, including "SHIA LABEOUF" and "29 Celebrity Impressions, 1 Original Song - Rob Cantor". He also records songs for Disney Junior Musical Nursery Rhymes.

Later in 2015, Hawley (ミラクルミュージカル) released *Hawaii Partii*, an album containing 8-bit renditions of select *Hawaii: Part II* songs.

In mid-2016, Hawley announced a comedy hip-hop album *Joe Hawley Joe Hawley*, which was released in October of that year. In 2019, Hawley released *γɘlwɒH ɘoႱ γɘlwɒH ɘoႱ*, a reversed version of the album. This was due to the large amounts of sampling he used, and to avoid copyright. Eventually, the album was released in its original state in 2020. It is assumed Joe Hawley gained clearance for the samples used on the album, as all songs but one are available on the official release.

In 2018, Horowitz released studio versions of piano compositions written in 2003 for the album *etudes.*

In April 2019, Horowitz released studio versions of piano compositions written in 2005 while he was a student at the University of Michigan for the album *etudes II*.

In May 2020, Horowitz started a weekly Instagram Livestream series titled *Keep Up The Good Work*, where he has one or two guests on each stream. A few of these guests have included *Tally Hall* alumni, such as members Ross and Zubin.

## Bio

### 2003

>
> *"Tally Hall was formed in December of 2002. The band consists of five people, namely rob cantor (vocals/guitar), joe hawley (vocals/guitar), zubin sedghi (vocals/bass), andrew horowitz (keyboards/percussion), and steve gallagher (drums). The band's style has been described as "quirky pop-rock." Based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, the band has played in numerous venues and remains active in the ann arbor music scene. In April they recorded a 4-track demo (the partyboobytrap e.p.) in joe's bedroom. It is above mediocre. They presently are writing new material and playing shows weekly."*
>
>
>
>

### 2006

>
> *"It was a small, sweaty club in the middle of Detroit. On maybe a Tuesday. The crowd was on the edge of their feet. And after waiting forever, the main attraction took the stage, a band that dares to challenge. A band that never should have been. A band that got where they were on hard work. The Polyphonic Spree. And they stayed there and brought joy for almost two hours, never a dull moment, always inspiring. When they finished, Tim Delaughter and his crew left the stage. And the show would have ended there, except five collegiate students caught the attention of Mr. Delaughter. "Tally Hall, Tally Hall, Tally Hall. I love it. Tally Hall. It's got a ring. Who are they? What is it?" It was the t-shirt of Joe Hawley, guitarist for Tally Hall. Who are they and why do we care?*
>
>
> *Well, first off, let's get the basics out of the way. They are five college students, three studying pre-med, one a film and writing major, and a music composition and English major. Tally Hall officially began in December 2002 when Rob Cantor, Zubin Sedghi, and Andrew Horowitz performed a set of originals and covers at a small theater in Ann Arbor, Michigan. During that show…(flashback)*
>
>
> *(Middle of some cheesy Third Eye Blind cover, Rob's cell phone goes off. He stops the song to the dismay of Andrew and Zubin and actually answers the phone, holding it up to the microphone. The audience laughs.)*
>
>
> *Rob: Hello?*
>
> *Joe: Jam. What's up.*
>
> *Rob: Umm…we're in the middle of the concert.*
>
> *Joe: No, seriously. What's up? How did it go? Sorry I couldn't make it.*
>
> *Rob: No seriously, you're talking to the microphone.*
>
> *Joe: Gotta go.*
>
>
>
> *(Joe hangs up phone. Rob smiles. Lights out.)*
>
>
> *Well, Joe wound up joining Tally Hall as the guitarist. And then a man by the name of Steve Gallagher, residing with Rob and Andrew, decided he wanted in on the drums. And so it was. Tally Hall.*
>
>
> *The first show as a full band took place at a frat. The band made an early decision to play music with an emphasis on craft, and with five perfectionists, so it was. And the audience at the frat was not too appreciative. But the band trudged on.*
>
>
> *Show after show their wonky 3-part harmony and crafty songs began catching on and a following was built. Their first few months included three performances at Ann Arbor's rock Mecca, The Blind Pig.*
>
>
> *In April 2003 they recorded Partyboobytrap e.p. The name was chosen strictly because it is a palindrome. A year passed with more concerts. And in April 2004 came Welcome to Tally Hall e.p. And then they combined the CDs and added a bonus track and got Complete Demos, which is what the tracks are. They were all recorded on a video camera, each track one by one, and self-edited/produced by the band in their attic.*
>
>
> *After a May 2004 gig in New Jersey, the band replaced Steve with the nimble Ross Federman. Steve, after amiably leaving the band, became a traveling salesman. Believe it. That's what happens when you quit Tally Hall.*
>
>
> *Also in that May, the band received their first national exposure as the in-studio guest on the Mitch Albom Radio Show. Mr. Albom said, "They look like their twelve, but these guys are very talented. You'll be hearing a lot from them."*
>
>
> *And the band further received national exposure when Andrew's "Good Day" won 1st place in the John Lennon Scholarship Competition, run by BMI and Yoko Ono. Frequently asked question regarding the adventure: "How was Yoko Ono?" Andrew's programmed reply is, "She's awesome."*
>
>
> *More recently they have infiltrated the web, earning recommendations on dozens of websites, winning many songwriting awards, and having their videos watched all over the world through the web and at film festivals. Tally Hall has developed a huge local following of the best fans in the world. Their national and international following is substantial, and they plan on touring sometime in the near future. They are also working on a new CD, combining professionally recorded songs both new and old, all originals.*
>
>
> *They are very appreciative of all the support and encouragement. It's nice to know a few guys with a vision in the Midwest can make their voices heard.*
>
>
> *Finally, the name Tally Hall comes from an old funhouse which now goes by the name of Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum. Also, the ties were inspired by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, because everyone likes the Ninja Turtles. Including Tally Hall. And there you have it, the little independent band that could, "Tally Hall, Tally Hall, Tally Hall…"*
>
>
> *contact: tallyhall@umich.edu"*
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>
>

### 2011

>
> "
> • *Tally Hall is a band from Michigan.*
>
>
>
>
> * *Tally Hall released their first album, MARVIN'S MARVELOUS MECHANICAL MUSEUM, in 2005.*
> * *Tally Hall also released TALLY HALL's INTERNET SHOW, an 11 episode series.*
> * Tally Hall's new album, GOOD & EVIL, has been almost 6 years in the making*.*
> * *GOOD & EVIL was produced by Tony Hoffer (Beck, Depeche Mode, Belle & Sebastian)*
> * *ATLANTIC RECORDS funded production of GOOD & EVIL, but after parting ways, Tally Hall will now release the album with Michigan label QUACK.*
> * *GOOD & EVIL is available now in CD and digital formats.*
>
>
> *Rob Cantor /  Yellow*
>
> *Ross Federman /  Grey*
>
> *Joe Hawley / Red*
>
> *Andrew Horowitz /  Green*
>
> *Zubin Sedghi /  Blue*
>
>
>
> *Thanks for reading me. It is lonely being information.*"
>
>
>
>

### Broadjam

>
> *"Each of our personalities is categorized symbolically by tie color. Not gonna lie-- we stole the idea from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."*
>
>
>
>

>
> *"**Similar Artists***
>
> *The Beatles, Queen, Barenaked Ladies*
>
> ***Influences***
>
> *The Beatles, Queen, Johann Sebastian Bach, OutKast, Barenaked Ladies, Jimi Hendrix, Ladysmith Black Mambazo*
>
> ***Bio***
>
> *Since its coagulation in late 2002, Tally Hall has been wonkifying unsuspecting audiences from Ann Arbor to places other than Ann Arbor.
>  They have performed at a plethora of venues, including the legendary Blind Pig (Nirvana's old favorite) and the nationally syndicated Mitch Albom Show.*
>
>
>
> *They enjoy harvesting ideas from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.*
>
>
>
> ***INGREDIENTS:***
>
>
>
> *YELLOW - Rob Cantor (Guitar/Vocals)*
>
> *RED - Joe Hawley (Guitar/Vocals)*
>
> *BLUE - Zubin Sedghi (Bass/Vocals)*
>
> *GREEN - Andrew Horowitz (Keyboard)*
>
> *SILVER - Ross Federman (Drums)*
>
> *100% - Riboflavin*
>
>
>
> ***LIKES:***
>
> *- Chinchillas*
>
> *- Good Times*
>
> *- Music*
>
> *- The Olsen Twins*
>
> *- Chinchillas*
>
>
>
> ***DISLIKES:***
>
> *- Bad Times*
>
> *- Joseph Stalin*
>
> *- Chinchilla Poachers"*
>
>
>
>
>

## Videos

When the band formed, Joe Hawley was working on a comedy sketch group called AnonyMous, and made several Tally Hall songs into videos with his group.

In addition to music, the band has also created numerous movies. These movies include both music videos and humorous skits. The best known of these videos is the music video for "Banana Man", which resulted in significant publicity among online users visiting the website Albino Blacksheep, along with "The Bidding", another popular title by the group.

Corresponding with their single "Good Day", released on February 26, 2008, the band released a music video for the song on YouTube, which was previously on Tally Hall's Internet Show.

In August 2008, the band performed a three-song live video set for LiveDaily Sessions, including the songs "Good Day", "Be Born", and "Greener", which premiered on August 28, 2008. They have appeared on Fearless Music several times, playing songs such as "Be Born", "Ruler of Everything", "Misery Fell", "Good Day", and "Banana Man". These recordings can be found on YouTube.

In July 2014, band member Rob Cantor released a video in which he seemed to perform his song "Perfect" by singing spot-on impressions of 29 celebrities. In the video, Cantor is accompanied by another band member, Andrew Horowitz, on piano and backing vocals. The video received more than 7,000,000 views in 10 days. Shortly thereafter, Cantor revealed the video to be an elaborate hoax.

### *Tally Hall's Internet Show* and music videos

Taking on an even larger role within the band's video portfolio was the ten-part bi-weekly variety-show series *Tally Hall's Internet Show* (T.H.I.S.), which debuted on September 15, 2008. Each episode ran 10 minutes long and was posted on their website. The content primarily included comedy sketches and music videos.

With the release of *Tally Hall's Internet Show* in September 2008, it became clear that many music videos would be released within the Internet Show. "Good Day" was the first music video to be seen in episode one. Other music videos include "Dream", "Greener", "Hidden in the Sand", "Ruler of Everything", "Taken for a Ride", "The Whole World and You", "Two Wuv", and "Welcome to Tally Hall". A song from their second album, "Turn the Lights Off", also has a music video. The music video for their song "&" was abandoned before its release.

### Episode list

1. Good Day (September 15, 2008) – 9:24
2. Death Request (September 29, 2008) – 11:36
3. Taken for a Ride (October 13, 2008) – 9:17
4. Welcome to Tally Hall (October 27, 2008) – 11:37
5. Who Cares (November 10, 2008) – 9:25
6. Two Wuv (November 24, 2008) – 10:32
7. Fifteen Seconds of Bora (December 8, 2008) – 9:08
8. The Whole World and You (December 22, 2008) – 11:06
9. Potato Vs. Spoon (January 5, 2009) – 8:30
10. Good Night (January 19, 2009) – 10:52

#### Canned episodes

1. South by Southwest 2007 (December 23, 2013) – 12:06

## Band members

### Current members

* Rob Cantor (Yellow tie) – guitar, vocals, percussion (2002–present)
* Joe Hawley (Red tie) – guitar, vocals, percussion (2002–present)
* Zubin Sedghi (Blue tie) – bass, vocals (2002–present)
* Andrew Horowitz (Green tie) – keyboards, percussion, vocals (2002–present)
* Ross Federman (Grey tie) – drums, percussion (2004–present)

### Past members

* Steve Gallagher (Grey tie) – drums, percussion (2002–2004)

### Additional touring members

* Casey Shea (Black tie) – guitar, vocals, percussion (Replacement for Joe Hawley, 2010)
* Bora Karaca (Orange tie) – roadie and producer (2005–present)
	+ keyboards, percussion, acoustic guitar, accordion, whistling, backing vocals, announcer (Good & Evil Tour, Summer 2011)

## Discography

### LPs

* *Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum* (2005)
* *Good & Evil* (2011)

### EPs

* *Party Boobytrap* (2003)
* *The Pingry EP* (2005)
* *Just a Friend EP* (2021)

## External links

* Official Site
* Youtube
* Facebook
* Twitter
* Vimeo
* Tally Hall discography at Discogs
* Hidden In The Sand - The Ultimate Tally Hall Fan Headquarters
* Tally Hall on Needlejuice Records
* Broadjam
* MySpace (Archived)

## References

1. ↑ https://twitter.com/needlejuicerec/status/1559196649767018498
2. ↑ https://x.com/adhorowi/status/1691592867616022768?s=46