A vehicle for singer/songwriter Alan Charing, A.C. Cotton came together in 2000 when Charing hooked up with bassist Todd Corbett, guitarist Brett Davis, and drummer Sean Oldham. Charing had already received critical recognition with the release of his 1999 solo album Seconds West on Seattle-based indie label LazyBones (it was preceded by a 1997 EP, A Boy and His Dog, and followed by another EP, 2000's All This All or Nothing, credited to the Alan Charing Controversy). That album earned raves from publications across the country and even peaked the interest of MTV, who placed several of its songs on their programs The Real World and Undressed. NBC also borrowed a couple of the compositions and featured them on Providence. A.C. Cotton recorded and released its debut album, Half Way Down, in 2001, and supported it with such notable dates at the Sundance Film Festival and the North By Northwest Music festival, as well as a hardcore club touring throughout their native Northwest. ~ Stanton Swihart