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Event
MARNIE STERN + TERA MELOS
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 16TH
MARNIE STERN
TERA MELOS
+GUESTS
BRANX 320 SE 2ND AVE
ALL AGES | BAR W/ ID
8PM DOORS | $10
MARNIE STERN:
Marnie Stern the album mirrors Marnie Stern, the woman. Birthed during a challenging period in her life, the self-titled Marnie Stern is a compendium of life stories both bitter and sweet.
From ballads to her signature pop guitar-tapping style, Stern and long-time co-conspirator Zach Hill have churned out (for lack of a better word) an enormous album that will further cement Stern as a rising star in today's progressive music landscape. Stern also enlists the bass talents of psych-rock Canadian musician Matthew Flegel (of the band Women & boyfriend of Stern) and up-and-coming mixer Lars Stalfors (Mars Volta, Funeral Party) resulting in Stern stepping up her sonic game and revealing a mature and more focused side of herself. "I wanted to pay more attention to the delicate and subtly layered spaces in between sound and just make things louder and fuller where I didn't on my last 2 records." When asked to sum her album up she maintains, "It's direct and honest and real. I'm no longer taking cover under guitar lines or yelping vocals."
Marnie's third and latest LP, while clearly containing her strongest songs ever, had its fumbles on the way to the finish line. She laughs when describing how the initial recording files were lost and ultimately retrieved through a series of trials-by-fire (upon which many a cigarette was lit) and in one complete statement, she quips: "Holy Doodle!" You will find both the artist and the album to be brighter, louder, and bustling with confidence as the end result.
Clearly, Marnie Stern's life and music are not easily separated; which is why Marnie Stern the record and Marnie Stern the person have REAL personality. Upon hearing her last two albums, In Advance of the Broken Arm (2007) and This Is It And I Am It And You Are It And So Is That And He Is It And She Is It And It Is It And That Is That (2008), it's quite evident that Stern lives in between the lines of chaos and harmony. While Stern's previous efforts garnered much critical acclaim, highlighting Stern's dexterity with both guitar playing and songwriting, she still remains the underdog of contemporary celebrated female musicians.
Three albums into her career, this certainly leaves her exposed. Yet, within that exposure, we find something more relatable and familiar to us all; vulnerability and resilience. And with this collection of songs, all you hear is'Marnie Stern'which is destined for greatness.
TERA MELOS:
Have Tera Melos gone pop?
Well, no.but yes. Much like the long-running Sacramento, CA trio's intricate and complex song structures, it's not quite that simple. Tera Melos' punk-jazz songs have traditionally been densely packed with so many wild shifts of time signature and chord structures that guitarist/keyboardist/vocalist Nick Reinhart jokes they were sounds that, "only wizards could decipher."
Tera Melos' first proper full-length, Patagonian Rats is packed with melodic hooks and jabs that on paper might seem to defy the band's experimental edge. There's even clear and distinct vocals throughout -- a first for the band, where vocals, if any, were previously awash with distortion and layered in the mix. But, particulars aside, Patagonian Rats is the type of album that sticks with you.
Occasionally, "pop" music has really meant daring music. Like the Beach Boys in the late 60s, The Clash in the 70s, Devo in the 80s, Flaming Lips in the 90s -- the greatest artists have dared to make music that is hooky while also being groundbreaking. Patagonian Rats evokes images of bizarre and fantastic alternate realities. Think about the first time you heard "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys; jarring collisions of a cappella harmonies, tremolo-washed bass and chirping theremin. The key is not to understand it, but to let the music transform everyday reality into something new. And, that is the essence of Patagonian Rats.
The album opens with whispered vocals and waltzing organ notes of 35-second intro, "So Occult" that just barely settles in before abruptly tumbling into the blitzkrieg haunting refrain of "Kelly". The latter a simple, ascending riff of phased-out guitar, reverb-drenched vocals and marching rhythms that plays out like that single line from a favorite pop song that gets stuck in your head, constantly on repeat. "The Skin Surf" juts in to the proceedings, quickly shifting to a frenetic Black Flag-meets-the-Ventures wrestling match that truly showcases the impeccable musicianship of Reinhart, bassist Nathan Latona and drummer John Clardy. "All my friends will try and say," Reinhart sings -- not so much with foolhardy bravado, but rather as if from the view of eternity. Elsewhere, "Trident Tail" evokes Syd Barret era Pink Floyd; the music is studious and deliberate, while also infectious and hummable.
Tera Melos formed in 2004 as a quartet, releasing their first self-titled disc in 2005 (later reissued by Sargent House in 2008). The band became a trio in late 2006, releasing the Drugs to the Dear Youth EP early the following year. A split disc with By The End of Tonight (2007) on Temporary Residence and an EP of cover songs, Idioms, Vol 1 followed in 2009. In the meantime, Reinhart collaborated with prolific drummer Zach Hill under the band name bygones, releasing the by- album in 2009 and Spiritual Bankruptcy EP in 2010, both on Sargent House. Clardy has also recently spent downtime as touring drummer with guitar goddess Marnie Stern.
Patagonian Rats will be available everywhere via Sargent House on September 7th, 2010.
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LocationBranx
320 SE 2nd Ave
Portland, OR 97214
United States
Categories
| Minimum Age: 0 |
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: No |
| Wheelchair Accessible: No |
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