Queen City Sounds and Art

Echodrone’s “Winter” Sounds Like the Cycle and Aftermath of a 500-Year Blizzard

Echodrone3_lg — Echodrone, image courtesy the band

Echodrone’s colossal “Winter” eases in with sounds like the albatross fleeing a coming storm that is bleeding over the horizon like a dark outline. And with a minimal guitar line like the early flutter of snow before the blizzard the song comes rolling in gradually but with great force. The percussion hits with a staggered cadence as the musical storm builds in pitch, tone and intensity. A soaring keyboard melody keeps the pace and conveys an end of the world sense like the category five hurricane of snowfall. But the momentum drops out six minutes in and lonely guitar and a cymbal figure trace the sunrise and the calm of the blanketed/blighted landscape and suggesting a stark beauty filled with hope that worst is over. Triumphant passages of sound replace that calm and collapse into cacophony like massive structures of ice and snow cracking and crumbling in the heat of the late winter sun, yielding streams and the signs of the first new growth of the coming season. At this point vocals enter the song over twelve minutes in striking chords paradoxical chords of joy and melancholy. The song ends with its most experimental soundscaping in minimal synth figures and echoing guitar sounds bouncing back in reverse. If the song isn’t supposed to be an expression of the cycle of winter or a cycle of life it surely takes you through some changes without sacrificing a respectable level of sustained thematic continuity without ever getting stuck in a rut. The sing is part of the the group’s new full-length Everything Starts out September 10, 2019 on Dome A Records. Listen to “Winter” on Soundcloud and follow Echodrone at the links below.

echodrone.com
soundcloud.com/echodroneband
domearecords.bandcamp.com
twitter.com/Echodrone
facebook.com/echodrone
instagram.com/echodroneofficial

Layers of Ethereal Melody and a Classical Sensibility Give Revolt’s Hard Alternative Track “Shatterhand” a Refreshing Dimensionality

Revolt1_lg — Revolt, photo courtesy the artists

The members of Norwegian rock band Revolt are all teenagers but their new single “Shatterhand” (presumably part of their forthcoming debut album The Beautiful Decay) and its sophisticated dynamics and builds sound like a band that is confident in their abilities born out of experience and exploration of the kind of music they want to make. There is a focus and drive to the song that contrasts well with the more introspective passages that seems more impactful than if the band had just decided to stick with a relentless flow of sound. Guitars are able to soar along with the vocals even as the group heads forward to the song’s ethereal denouement. The symphonic elements throughout are a nice touch and the mix of hard rock and classical and atmospheric flourishes gives the song a dimensionality that isn’t common in music in this style or one adjacent. Listen to “Shatterhand” on Soundcloud and follow Revolt at the links below.

open.spotify.com/artist/657E9x6O15qDbZxf8VqLTG
facebook.com/RevoltVBand

At the Intersection of Atonality and Urgency, Christopher Tignor’s “I, Autocorrelations” is a Modern Classical Analog of the Multiple Perils Facing the World

ChristopherTignor1_crop — Christopher Tignor, photo courtesy the artist

“I, Autocorrelations” is Christopher Tignor’s lead single from his forthcoming album A Light Below due out on October 11 on Western Vinyl. The album is a record wherein the sounds are done by “prepared violin and percussion.” While that may sound very academic the effect of the piece is deeply emotional. Tignor’s violin bowing and plucking over a drone and hitting a broad range of the scale suggestions an anxiety, urgency and tension that strikes one when coming to a sudden realization of a truth that must be acted upon immediately. Hitting the occasional atonal figure adds greatly to the sense that formalities must be dispensed with to address the issue at hand before some impending menace comes to fruition. The percussion accents, perhaps bass drums and xylophone, provide the stability and calm to give the song a grounding when it masterfully threatens to go off the rails. Listen to “I, Autocorrelations” on Soundcloud and follow Christopher Tignor at the links provided.

open.spotify.com/artist/4fHCEeChre5Ajrkk2ktKdG
twitter.com/tignortronics
facebook.com/ChristopherTignor
instagram.com/tignortronics

Maude Latour’s “Ride My Bike” is a Dynamic Pop Call to Action to Make the World We’d Like to See Without Neglecting Our Humanity

MaudeLatour2_crop — Maude Latour, photo courtesy the artist

Maude Latour sets up a song with nuanced thinking and complicated emotions from the very beginning of “Ride My Bike.” Latour almost offhandedly says “The world’s on fire so I ride my bike” in a way that may get misinterpreted by some as having a casual indifference to the disaster but really the lyric is an acknowledgment of wanting to do something but knowing that maybe right now you can’t do anything directly so best to be in motion to get your mind thinking and not get stuck in spiral of despair and get neutralized from being an effective person in your world that demands so much of us these days that we have to prioritize even as we adapt to the new horrible normal. The unconventional melody and Latour’s unconventional vocal cadence draws you in to a song that is part R&B and part experimental pop as it alternates between introspective moodiness and upbeat energetic choruses. Latour uses the idea of getting a runner’s high as a vehicle for talking about using a healthy outlet to avoid what she realizes at the young age of 19 are foolish ways to undermine yourself like late nights and dating bad guys, especially when there’s so much at stake right now as you balance living the life you want and one where you’re not a passive actor in a world that is running headlong into ecological and political doomsday if we don’t act now without getting constantly distracted by everyday nonsense and yet we can’t forget our humanity and care for own own fragility and that of others. In many ways it sounds like a love song for the world Latour would like to see happen. Listen to “Ride My Bike” on Soundcloud.

A Sprawling Epic of Soundscapes and Dynamics, Carlo Peluso’s “Earthshape” is Like an Homage to Classic Progressive Rock and Jazz Fusion

Normally older tracks don’t get written up through Queen City Sounds and Art but when Carlo Peluso’s “Earthshape” from his 2015 EP EarthShape was submitted to us through Submithub, the rare exception was made. It sounds like Peluso listened to “And You And I” by Yes several dozen times and absorbed the tonality and structure of the song and its exquisite sonic details. Then wrote a kind of homage to how that song made him feel but did it in his own musical vocabulary that includes un-processed piano alongside electronics and synth and across the song’s 18 minutes 36 seconds takes us through the sonic equivalent of jazz ballrooms that Emerson, Lake & Palmer would have hung out with Mahavishnu Orchestra circa the writing of Tarkus. The intertwining arpeggios between Peluso on Keyboards, Giovanni Peluso on guitars and Marco Fabricci on bass is impressive and inventive, expressive and diverse across the entire song as though the trio is trying to evoke what it might be like to cross time zones, landscapes and cultures on a truly global world tour. Certainly the song is ambitious in its composition and perhaps aspirational in terms of where the band would want to take their music. Its scope is panoramic and while the chops of the players is evident like the work of many of the progressive rock bands of the 60s and 70s the aim is to express creative ideas using a broad palette of sound and dynamics in the maximalist way that has kept a good slice of that music interesting decades later. Follow Carlo Peluso at the links below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dcYr8SsBLc
https://play.spotify.com/album/3DSj1fRPDinlxDjSZGiuyI
https://www.facebook.com/carlopelusomusic
https://carlopeluso.bandcamp.com

The Brash Introspection of The Beekeepers’ “Endless Spiral Notebooks” Has an Undeniably Self-Effacing Charm

TheBeekeepers1_crop — The Beekeepers, photo courtesy the artists

The Beekeepers’ “Endless Spiral Notebooks” is an homage to the numerous journals and diaries a certain kind of person uses to work out personal angst and flesh out ideas all of which can be later consulted for creative inspiration or a reminder how ridiculous one can be charting your personal development in such an informal manner. Maybe you’ll read something or see a doodle that will make you cringe but the possible level of self accountability can be high. Musically the song is a lo-fi jangle that fans of New Zealand bands like The Clean and The Bats or American groups like Tyvek may find to their liking. It’s raw, off-the-cuff but not short on an undeniable charm informed by a paradoxically brash introspection. Listen to the song on Bandcamp where you can also follow the band’s happenings.

Song Demos by The Beekeepers

the-beekeepers.bandcamp.com

While Away the Dog Days of Summer in pantology’s “Lost Summer,” the Hippest Hold and Intermission Music Going

pantology1_sm — pantology, photo courtesy the artist

The strings in the beginning of pantology’s “Lost Summer” sound like an analog for the cool breeze vibe that permeats the rest of the track. Like a blend of new age meditation music, downtempo funk and library music. The low white noise, 808-esque clap sounds and Rhodes piano coupled with a Worrell-esque organ sound on top gives the song a sound like an ultra-hip late night jazz station willing to indulge the weirder end of the art form. There is a shimmer effect placed expertly throughout the song giving the whole song the vibe of an instructional video, that surreal energy of officialdom that weirdo artists have infiltrated to subversively insert content with a decidedly anti-corporate content. If Muzak had hired a cadre of songwriters from KPM Music to write intermission music it might sound a lot like this evocative and lush slice of über chillout zone and like a summer song you’d like to get lost within. Listen to “Lost Summer” on Soundcloud and follow pantology at the links provided.

soundcloud.com/pantology
pantology.bandcamp.com/releases
instagram.com/pantologymusic

“Venice” by Magdalena Bay Encourages Us To Calm Our Minds In Addressing the Global Challenges Rather Than Indulge in Non-Productive Angst

MagdalenaBay6_crop — Magdalena Bay, photo courtesy the artists

For a song about the world possibly ending, Magdalena Bay’s “Venice” is a dance pop song with texture and a great pairing of dire pronouncements and a spirit to enjoy life in spite of the urgency of the moment. Inspired in part by walking through Venice, California, perhaps Ghost Town, perhaps the boardwalk, the duo imbue the song with a duality that acknowledges the normal human impulse to seek out fun even in the face of the worst possibilities almost as a way of staying sane in tough times. It’s not quite whistling in the graveyard but given the predictions that human civilization as we know it might be done by around the middle of the century “Venice” is also a hopeful song that reminds us that panicking and focusing only on the drear won’t make tackling the most serious issues in our lives easier and having a kind of nonchalance means maybe you can focus and be more effective than you would be if you were losing your mind as some misplaced outward demonstration that you are taking the situation seriously. Magadalena Bay suggests its better to have a chill attitude, acknowledge the threat and do the best you can in saving everyone’s lives without losing your cool. Listen to “Venice” on Spotify and follow Magdalena Bay on Instagram.

soundcloud.com/magbae

“Opening Credits” by Superheart is a Nostalgic Pop Song That Suggests a Brighter Future

Superheart_cover1_sm — Superheart, image courtesy the artists

“Opening Credits” begins with a pilot speaking over the airplane P.A. welcoming us on a journey to who knows where. But it doesn’t matter as the bright melody eases us into what sounds like the first part of a modern movie taking place in the late 80s but with a wistful and whimsical quality like a prequel to Joe Versus The Volcano or the sequel to Roxanne. Except with T’pau collaborating with Anne Dudley to make music for a romantic comedy where everything turns out beautifully yet without that movie being cheesy. The song’s melody transports you to a better place in your memory while also tapping into the nostalgia centers of your brain. All while paradoxically looking forward to better days ahead. Listen to Superheart’s “Opening Credits” on Soundcloud and explore more by the group at the link below.

soundcloud.com/superheartmusic

Repenter Send Up the Dubious Achievements of Influencer Culture on Sardonic Rock and Roll Song “So Sick”

Repenter1_crop — Repenter, image courtesy the artists

Nevermind the Frank Frazetta-esque artwork, Repenter’s “So Sick” isn’t a metal or industrial song. It’s a headlong, sardonic send-up of influencer culture and the way some people in pursuing trends or trying to stay ahead of them all but become a human meme. The opening line, “Make a face at your phone like you’re Zoolander” sets the tone but the lyrics seem to be coming from a place that isn’t just cutting and sarcastic but from the perspective from someone who is wondering why anyone would make themselves so overtly a product to be marketed and consumed when most of us already give too much of our lives to social media companies to monetize and sell off to other corporations in order to provide data for market research. It would be too obvious to mock people who do the thing they’re being encouraged, conditioned and reinforced in doing with dubious rewards the things people imagine they must to become the mythical celebrity influencer that many aspire to be. “I just want you to know I ain’t mad at ya, but I ain’t a fan of ya/You’re just so sick with yourself, you don’t need my help,” the song’s chorus makes the perspective more explicit. Holly Winter’s vocals, with a cadence reminiscent of Karen O and the introspective but tough-edged tonality of Martha Davis, paired with a short, sharp, gritty rock and roll song conveys an outsider’s critique of what seems like an inherently toxic cultural anomaly. Listen to “So Sick” at the Soundcloud link below.