Kevin Bronson on September 30th, 2009

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Funny thing happened after Eastern Conference Champions frontman Josh Ostrander lost his voice. His band kinda liked him.

The singer of the L.A.-via-Philadelphia trio was known for his keening vocals that pinched every ounce of emotion out of the melody lines on the band’s wiry 2007 debut, “Ameritown.” But in 2008 after a U.K. tour, “I got sick and my voice just sh*t the bed,” Ostrander says with a wry laugh. “We all just fell in love what we sounded like when I couldn’t sing – we just lowered the register on what we were doing. Poor [drummer Greg Lyons]. He had to listen to me five days a week at practice.”

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The trio returns this fall with a new EP, “Santa Fe,” that’s every bit as tense as its album. Ostrander’s reality-check narratives are delivered in a distressed tenor that splits the difference between Bob Dylan and Thom Yorke, and Lyons’ beats and the scratchy riffs of guitarist Melissa Dougherty and Ostrander make them seem like tight-rope acts. If they sound nervous, well, part of it is for good reason. “Some were inspired by playing online poker,” Ostrander says. “I lost all my money so I don’t play anymore.”

ECC losts its record deal too – the band parted ways amicably with Suretone, a Geffen-affiliated imprint, in 2008. “We decided to take the exit money and continue to make music ourselves,” Ostrander says. “It wasn’t a good place for us.”

ECC also gained the services of Dougherty, who had played in L.A. quintet Lemon Sun, after original member Vern Zaborowski left the band early this year. “She’s a star, hands down,” Ostrander says. The trio currently plays with a two-guitar/drummer lineup, with bass lines coming from backing tracks. Not optimal, but … “Greg and I just always liked playing as part of a three-piece,” Ostrander says. “We’re constantly keeping an eye out, but for now there’s just a little guy in a box back there playing the bass parts.”

||| Live: Eastern Conference Champions co-headlines Buzz Bands LA’s One-Year Anniversary with Voxhaul Broadcast tonight at the Echo, a show that also features Samuel Stewart and Radio Freq.

Photo by Vern Evans