Blake Rhein and Aaron Frazer, two students at
Indiana University's
Jacobs School of Music, developed a musical relationship with Durand Jones in the early 2010s based on their shared interests in songwriting and old soul
45s. Rhein had met Jones, a
Louisiana native doing postgraduate studies for
classical saxophone, while both were working with Indiana University's Soul Revue. Rhein and Frazer would later bring in the two other members of their
blues rock band Charlie Patton's War, bassist Kyle Houpt and organist Justin Hubler, to form The Indications. They wrote what would be their debut album between Fall 2012 and 2014, recording on a Tascam
four-track recorder. Concurrently, Charlie Patton's War toured regionally and nationally; between tours, Durand Jones & The Indications played their "one and only show" in May 2014. In 2015, the band was approached by Ohio soul label Colemine Records about releasing an album of music from their earlier sessions. They released their first
45 in 2015 and followed with their debut album
Durand Jones & The Indications the following year. Following support from critics and independent record stores, the band would reunite and toured throughout 2017, primarily in the Midwest and the South. In 2017, Steve Okonski replaced Justin Hubler as organist. Their album was reissued by Bloomington label
Dead Oceans in 2018 with new live material. In tribute, the band released the
b-side "Cruisin' to the Park" in 2019. The track was later released as a single with an accompanying music video featuring California lowriders. In 2021, they released a Spanish language version, "Cruisin' to the Parque," with former tourmate
Y La Bamba. During July and August 2018, the band recorded their second album in
Brooklyn, New York and focused on developing a "
vocal group sound." The band toured continuously through 2020, with Mike Montgomery joining as bassist at the end of 2019. Among other singles released in 2020, the band put out a studio version of their song "Power to the People" two weeks ahead of the
2020 presidential election; the demo version was originally released as part of the 2017 compilation
Our First 100 Days. Recorded in January 2020, Frazer released a
Dan Auerbach-produced solo album in January 2021, at which time he noted that a new Durand Jones & The Indications album was in the works. He previously released music under the alias The Flying Stars of Brooklyn NY. Jones appeared as a guest vocalist on a number of tracks beginning in 2020, including on
The Bamboos 2021 album. Of note, Rhein has worked as a researcher for
The Numero Group and produced a number of
reissue compilations for the label. In May 2021, the band announced that their third record,
Private Space, would be released July 30, 2021 and released the lead single "Witchoo". The ten track album was recorded in New York City at Diamond Mine and features a more disco and modern soul-inspired sound. The album was written and produced by Jones, Frazer, Rhein, and Okonski with contributions from bassist Michael Montgomery as well as arrangers Ginger Dolden and Peter Lanctot, harpist
Brandee Younger, and
Eli "Paperboy" Reed, among others. On May 5, 2023, Jones released a solo record under his own name,
Wait Til I Get Over, on record label Dead Oceans. The album chronicles the history of Jones' hometown of
Hillaryville, Louisiana. In 2024, Jones performed four tracks from
Wait Til I Get Over with three members of The Harlem Gospel Travelers as background vocals for NPR's
Tiny Desk Concerts. == Members ==