David Trumfio (born August 16, 1968) is an American record producer, mixer, engineer and musician, best known for his production work with artists such as Wilco and his recordings with his own band The Pulsars.
Production work
Trumfio grew up in Mt. Prospect,
Illinois, and was a staff engineer after apprenticing at Seagrape Recording Studios.
[Kening, Dan (1996) "Rising stars The Trumfio brothers are ready to shine with a record deal and an upcoming Pulsars' album", Daily Herald (Arlington Heights), November 29, 1996] He started his home studio, Kingsize Recording Den, and officially opened Kingsize Soundlabs in
Chicago's Wicker Park district in 1991 with partner Mike Hagler.
He currently resides in Los Angeles and runs Kingsize SoundLabs, a recording studio in Glassell Park,
California.
His early work included recordings by Evil Beaver, The Mekons, Wilco, Alternative TV, Young Marble Giants guitarist Stewart Moxham and British rock band The Pretty Things.[Weisbard, Eric (1997) " Pulsars Pulsars", SPIN, April 1997, p.155-6, retrieved January 8, 2012]
He has since worked with acts such as Wilco,[Baranowski, Niles (2001) " O.A.R. and the Baldwin Brothers", Riverfront Times, August 15, 2001, retrieved January 8, 2012] OK Go,[[4] ] and Patrick Park.[Deming, Mark " Come What Will Review", Allmusic, retrieved January 8, 2012]
Trumfio has worked for independent record labels such as Merge Records, TeenBeat Records, Touch and Go Records/Quarterstick Records, Minty Fresh, Simple Machines, Darla Records and Vagrant Records. He has also produced recordings by singer songwriter Patrick Park,[Santangelo, Antonia (2003) " Patrick Park Under the Unminding Skies", CMJ New Music Monthly, June 2003, retrieved January 8, 2012] chamber pop band The Aluminum Group,[Richards, David (1999) " Minty Fresh's Floraline Gives '80s-Style Pop a New Spin for the Present", Billboard, May 1, 1999, p. 16, retrieved January 8, 2012][Ankeny, Jason " Plano Review", Allmusic, retrieved January 8, 2012] funk musicians The Baldwin Brothers,[Farr, Sara (2002) " File TVT Records artist the Baldwin Brothers under 'junktronic'", Prefix, January 1, 2002, retrieved January 8, 2012] Number One Cup,[Bush, Nathan " Possum Trot Plan Review", Allmusic, retrieved January 8, 2012] and Franklin Bruno.[Sarvady, Glen (2002) " Franklin Bruno – A Cat May Look at a Queen", CMJ New Music Monthly, November 2002, retrieved January 8, 2012]
Trumfio has more recently worked with Built To Spill,[Paine, Kelsey (2009) " Buolt to Spill There Is No Enemy", Billboard, October 17, 2009, p. 33, retrieved January 8, 2012] American Music Club, Booker T, new wave revivalists The Rentals, and Australian band Papa vs Pretty.
Musician
Trumfio was the frontman in the 1990s new-wave band The Pulsars, in which he did "everything but play the drums", his brother Harry acting as the band's drummer.
[Molanphy, Chris (1997) " Pulsars / Pulsars", CMJ New Music Monthly, May 1997, p. 12, retrieved January 8, 2012]
After releasing their debut single, the band signed to
Herb Alpert and
Jerry Moss's post A&M venture
Almo Sounds in 1995,
and released an album and two
Extended play.
He also played in Ashtray Boy,[Anderson, Lydia (1996) " Pulsars", CMJ New Music Monthly, November 1996, retrieved January 8, 2012][Rothschild, David (1996) " Ashtray Boy's Future Rests on New Releases and Psychic Connection", Chicago Tribune, June 7, 1996, p. 6, retrieved January 8, 2012] The Mekons (intermittently), in Sally Timms' band,[Sullivan, Jim (1995) "Timms' new act: melancholy cabaret", Boston Globe, May 11, 1995, p. 71] and on The Aluminum Group's Plano album.[Romero, Michele (1998) " Music Review: 'Plano' (1998) The Aluminum Group", Entertainment Weekly, August 21, 1998, retrieved January 8, 2012] After bassist Sarah Corina left the Mekons in 2015, Trumfio replaced her, at least through 2025.
Production discography
1991–1999
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Big Jack Johnson — Daddy, When Is Mama Comin' Home (1991)
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Larry Heard — Introduction (1992)
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Certain Distant Suns — Huge E.P. (1992)
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Ashtray Boy — Honeymoon Suite (1993)
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Certain Distant Suns — Happy on the Inside (1994)
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Various Artists — Insurgent Country, Vol.1: For a Life of Sin (Bloodshot Records, 1994)
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DQE — But Me, I Fell Down (1994)
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Pigface — Notes from Thee Underground (1994)
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The Mekons — Retreat from Memphis (1994)
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The Pretty Things — Wine, Women & Whiskey: More Chicago Blues & Rock Sess (1994)
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Jon Langford & The Pine Valley Cosmonauts — Misery Loves Company: Songs of Johnny Cash (1995)
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The Handsome Family — Odessa (1995)
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Number One Cup — Possum Trot Plan (1995)
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Holiday — Holiday (1995)
[Klein, Joshua " Holiday Review", AllMusic, retrieved January 8, 2012]
-
Number One Cup — Divebomb (1996)
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The Handsome Family — Milk and Scissors (1996)
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Yum-Yum — Dan Loves Patti (1996)
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The Coctails — Live at Lounge Ax (1996)
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Holiday — Ready, Steady, Go (1996)
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Butterglory — Are You Building a Temple in Heaven (1996)
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Rico Bell — Return of Rico Bell (1996)
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Motorhome — Sex Vehicle (1996)
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The Pulsars — Submission to the Masters (1996)
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Godzuki — Trail of the Lonesome Pine (1996)
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The Pulsars — Pulsars (1997)
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Palace Music — Lost Blues & Other Songs (1997)
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Tsunami — Brilliant Mistake (1997)
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hollAnd — Your Orgasm (1997)
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Billy Bragg & Wilco — Mermaid Avenue (1998)
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Aluminum Group — Plano (1998)
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The Legendary Jim Ruiz Group — Sniff (1998)
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Sally Timms — Cowboy Sally's Twilight Laments for Lost Buckaroos (1999)
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Wilco — Summerteeth (1999)
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Floraline — Floraline (1999)
[Phares, Heather " Floraline Review", AllMusic, retrieved January 8, 2012]
2000–2009
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Tristeza — Dream Signals In Full Circles (2000)
-
Aden — Hey 19 (2000)
-
Koufax — It Had to Do With Love (2000)
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Billy Bragg & Wilco — Mermaid Avenue, Vol. 2 (2000)
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The Prescriptions — Why We Don't Rent to Women (2000)
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My Morning Jacket — At Dawn (2001)
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Jenny Toomey — Antidote (2001)
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Justin Planasch — Roam (2001)
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Gift Original Soundtrack — Original Soundtrack (2001)
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Wayne Kramer — Adult World (2002)
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Franklin Bruno — Cat May Look at a Queen (2002)
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The Baldwin Brothers — Cooking with Lasers (2002)
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Irving — Good Morning Beautiful (2002)
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Various Artists — MTV2 Handpicked, Vol. 2 (2002)
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Mates of State — Our Constant Concern (2002)
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Koufax — Social Life (2002)
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Ok Go — Get Over It (2002)
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Slowrider — Nacimiento (2002)
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Ok Go — Ok Go (2002)
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Earlimart — Avenues (2003)
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Patrick Park — Loneliness Knows My Name (2003)
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The Sun — Love & Death (2003)
-
Jamison Parker — Notes & Photographs EP (2003)
-
Underworld Original Soundtrack — Original Soundtrack (2003)
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The Velvet Teen — Elysium (2004)
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Chuck Prophet — Age Of Miracles (2004)
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Kool Keith/Kutmasta Kurt — Break U Off/Takin' It Back (2004)
-
Thelonious Monster — California Clam Chowder (2004)
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Simon Joyner — Lost with the Lights On (2004)
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Elkland — Apart (2005)
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Elkland — Apart (The Remixes) (2005)
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Elkland — Golden (2005)
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Nothing Painted Blue — Taste the Flavor (2005)
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Koufax – Hard Times Are in Fashion (2005)
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Grandaddy — Excerpts From The Diary of Todd Zilla (2005)
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Grandaddy — Just Like the Fambly Cat (2006)
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Future Pigeon — Echodelic Sounds of Future Pigeon (2006)
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The Baldwin Brothers — The Return of the Golden Rhodes (2006)
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The Adored — New Language (2006)
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Devics — Push the Heart (2006)
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Nadine Zahr — Underneath the Everyday (2006)
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Earlimart
[[19] ] — Mentor Tormentor (2007)
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Acute — Arms Around a Stranger (2007)
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Let's Go Sailing — Chaos in Order (2007)
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Patrick Park — Everyone's in Everyone (2007)
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Kristin Mooney — Hydroplane (2007)
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American Music Club — Golden Age (2008)
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E for Explosion — Reinventing the Heartbeat (2008)
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Great Northern — Sleepy Eepee (2008)
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Devics — Distant Radio (2008)
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The Rentals — Songs About Time (2009)
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Built to Spill — There Is No Enemy (2009)
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MC Lars — This Gigantic Robot Kills (2009)
2010–present
(incomplete)
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Papa vs Pretty — White Deer Park (2014)
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Mekons — Deserted (2019)
[Information on the website of Bloodshot Records]
-
Dogstar — Somewhere Between the Power Lines and Palm Trees (2023)
External links