Event
Bodies of Water, Ah Holly Fam'ly, and White Hinterland
Bodies of Water
The sound of these Los Angeles visionaries conjures the open plains of the west, John Wayne's horse kicking up dust as he looks into the distance all tan and sweating. On their latest release, A Certain Feeling, Bodies of Water have created a sound more grand and versatile than the sum of its parts. Most songs, onward of six minutes, are structured for storytelling and showcasing each instrument by trading, say, a piano solo for a horn solo of the same notes or a male/female vocal trade off. The many roads these songs build, stretch, and deconstruct, render the vocals another musical flair, if not an afterthought. There is a story worth following under all the noise. "Now all of the tendons of the world are loosed/ And in the dark light of pine we speak the truth/Yes way back, oh things grew honest then/Paths diverge into the boring mist." While not as pained as Arcade Fire, the male and female choral vocals circulate notes in calls and responses. In this layered blend, the sound is mighty and rumbling. The gritty video for "Under the Pines" is in step with their storytelling flair and holds the intrigue with a grim reaper dog, deformed child, and suicidal mother.
More Info:
www.myspace.com/bodiesofwater
www.bodiesofwater.net
White Hinterland
On White Hinterland's latest release, Luniculaire, aging French songs are given the royal treatment of being covered, including a gripping rendition of Serge Gainsbourg's edgy "Requiem Pour Un Con." Frontwoman/pianist Casey Dienel is a shimmering gem of talent, able to evoke a velvety-smooth claustrophobia on "Chant de Grillon," and wander into an airy, carefree jazz number, "Dreaming of Plum Trees" that could easily be played by the suited pianist at Nordstroms. White Hinterland's accumulation of talent is shown in not only their instrumentation and composition, but their ability within it to sound as if they may have been plucked from Gainsbourg's French haunts and dropped into the Northwest.
"...[the music] eats away at you like a great novel might: listen once and youâll be intrigued, but youâll perhaps miss a lot of the nuance; listen again and again and the record will climb inside your mind and stay there, perhaps foreverâ"-Ear Farm
More Info:
http://www.whitehinterland.com
http://www.myspace.com/caseydienel
Ah Holly Fam'ly
On Ah Holly Fam'ly's official website, the mostly(?) fictional account of these seven ladies and gentlemen, portrays each as heroic in their own accomplishments. This rag-tag group of friends, mostly Idaho natives, have saved the elderly from burning buildings and paved the way for a better life through laser engineering. Not only this, but their odd non-musical talents and hobbies stretch farther than any high school stage anyone's ever seen. The accumulation of great minds has only aided in their musical vision of campfire storytelling held in an old-timey acoustic framework. This group of old friends, bizarre talents and all, are only a chapter deep into a page-turning epic.
"Joining the ranks of regular rotation here in PDX, the band brandishes saws, accordions, banjos and bells: All the tools needed for a delicate, moody and sometimes dreamy trip through avant-folk."-Willamette Week Local Cut
More Info:
http://www.ahholly.com/famly.html
http://www.myspace.com/ahhollyfamly
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LocationBackspace
115 NW 5th
Portland, OR 97209
United States
Categories
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: No |
| Wheelchair Accessible: No |
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