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backwords

New York City, New York, United States | INDIE

New York City, New York, United States | INDIE
Band Rock Folk

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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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"Bushwick Walkabout Festival Review"

There is nothing in common between Backwords and Gang Gang Dance, who are taking the stage in Chicago around this time, except for one major exception: they’re both fully immersed in their own worlds. Gang Gang Dance’s not quite based in reality; Backwords’ very much based in the summer of 1969 in Haight-Ashbury. They certainly look the part: bandanas, beaded necklaces, a barefoot bassist, the drummer lights up while there’s a pause in a song. They sound the part, too: wavering basslines occasionally cause a stir in otherwise slow, drifting expances. During a set that sounds like a conglomeration of all the music that ever played in Wonder Years, the best comes at the end: an Appalachian hymn turned ho-down — their equivalent to Conor Obersts’ “NYC Gone Gone." - The L Magazine


"Backwords - QUILT and VIDEO"

“Mitakuye Oyasin” is a Lakota Sioux Indian mantra that is said when entering or leaving a sweat lodge. It means, very simply, “We are all related.” I believe it is this ethos that drives Brooklyn-based trio Backwords to make such welcoming, inclusive, melodic, and genre-transcending music.

First of all, to describe their sound: imagine a 1998 Modest Mouse having a threesome with The Beach Boys and Fleet Foxes, and this three-headed music lovechild marinated in a bottle of Old Grandad Whiskey — nine months later, Backwords would have been born. Their music contains a gritty, unwavering, raw guitar-shredding ability, mixed with gorgeous melodies and soothing vocals. Sprinkle in occasional use of the banjo, fiddles, and female backup vocals, and you’ve got yourself Backwords.

Their hooks are catchy and one of the most impressive aspects of seeing them live occurs when frontman Brian Russ steps away from the microphone, turns his back to the crowd, hunches over and absolutely demolishes his guitar strings. His ability to play the guitar turned me from a toe-tapping fan into someone convulsing uncontrollably in front of the stage at a Baltimore club.

Russ can shred and improvise; the guy can flat out play the guitar. And he is supported by an extremely worthy bassist, Tim Pioppo, who thumbs a Hofner semi-acoustic bass a la Paul McCartney and can turn a stand-up cello into a rift machine. Their phenomenal drummer, John Sheldon, rounds out the lineup. He isn’t afraid to jump into the pocket and tear into an army cadence that reminds me of beats provided by bands like The Turtles or The Mamas and the Papas.

Some background on the members: Russ was a born and raised in Philadelphia. After graduating college, Russ packed his bags, guitar, and harmonica and traveled to the poorest county in America, the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in southwest South Dakota. Here, Russ was inspired to create the music for his soon-to-be-band. Pine Ridge represents one of the most severe dichotomies in America today; it lies in one of the most gorgeous ecosystems in the world containing the Black Hills, Badlands, and rolling buffalo-covered prairies. But in this awe-inspiring setting is the most impoverished corner of America with the worst mortality rate in the western hemisphere outside of Haiti.

Russ spent two years in Pine Ridge. In his free time, he would sit atop a cliff, penning music that embodied the teachings and philosophies of the Lakota medicine men he had befriended. He participated in Lakota Sioux rituals, like sitting for hours in agonizing heat-filled sweat lodges. Finally, he decided he wanted to express the strange world of Pine Ridge in musical form. Listening to Backwords’ sophomore album Quilt, it’s evident that the teachings and philosophies imparted on Russ in Pine Ridge stands tall in Backwords’ music.

Quilt is a follow-up to their first release The Buffalo Still Roam. The album opens with “And Then Sigh,” a confident, beautiful track that reminds me of early Pink Floyd. “In the Air & On the Ground” is a sweet tune led by a banjo rift, with fun harmonizing vocals and a fiddle solo in the middle that would make Charlie Daniels proud. “Better Off Alone” returns Backwords to their gritty guitar epicenter and is accompanied with female vocals that reminds me of The Dandy Warhols at their best. “Think of Me (As a Quilt Made Out of Stars)” is a 6+ minute tour de force that really highlights Backwords at its core. The song does not rely on the standard rock song equation, but changes melodies a half dozen times. It begins with a manic guitar rift analogous to Built to Spill and then absolutely dies down into a bluesy, psychedelic tune.

The title of this album, Quilt, embodies their style of music – taking many elements and creating one cohesive, warm, comforting product. Aside from buying Backwords’ music, I strongly suggest finding them in a city near you to witness their musical ability live. They would be happy to see you, because in the end, “Mitakuye Oyasin.” - Indie Shuffle


"VIDEO, 1st Single Release"

An animated video for our first single, "And Then Sigh..." - YouTube


"Psychedelic Folk Rockers From Brooklyn"

Backwords is a Brooklyn based band that combines psychedelic 60s rock with folk music. The end result is an eclectic, melancholic mix that simply sounds amazing. The Buffalo Still Roam is their sophomore release. They also released a third album, Quilt, which is available for purchase in limited edition Vinyl format.

For this second effort, it's available for free download on the group's website. It includes 8 tracks that are filled with plenty of personality, great vocal work and nothing short of fantastic cuts. The lo-fi quality of the record actually adds to its beauty, allowing listeners to get lost in the warm melodies. Right now, the group is busy promoting their new record as well as performing live shows and gigs in and around New York. Sounding like it was recorded ages ago, this nostalgic compilation is a must listen and definitely worth every ounce of your spare hard drive space.

The Buffalo Still Roam opens with the lovely, The Beggars and the Bread. It's a mix of folk and rock with raspy vocals and charming "ooh la la la's" in the background. Meanwhile, Oklahoma, is a personal favorite. The track exudes with that beautiful classic vibe. Brian Russ' voice is expressive and soothing. This one reminds me of Band of Horses only with a little more rawness. The sincerity in the vocals are excellent especially once he starts belting "she doesn't know my name," near the end part of the song.

Title track The Buffalo Still Roam, is perhaps one of the most psychedelic sounding cuts in the compilation. The hazy vocals and banjo picking on the background is trippy and interesting.

Overall, this is one of the best albums I've listened to in awhile. Being a sucker for Band of Horses and similar psychedelic indie folk rock bands makes this compilation an instant shoo-in on my list. If you're bordering on the same type of music as of the moment, then this will be a worthy download for you as well.


- Frost Click


"Fresh Track: Backwords' "Better Off Alone""

Backwords are a folkedelic rock band out of Brooklyn that successfully spread their infectious pop sound all over their most recent album Quilt, which they self-released last September. This quirky fresh track entitled “Better Off Alone” features ramshackle power chords and vocal trade-offs between singer Brian Russ and a female guest vocalist. Its sound fits somewhere between the slightly off kilter approach of a band like Beulah and The Moldy Peaches, while remaining playfully pessimistic towards love. Oh, and did I mention there’s an organ solo?

Grab the fresh track above and pick up Quilts on pretty vinyl via their bandcamp. Limited to only 300. - Neon Musical Insight


"'Quilt' 7.4/10"

Harking back to the days when I used to sit there with my big box of Crayola crayons, I often tried to understand the big difference between red orange and orange red. I understand that it has to do with the amount of red in each. But when you just read the words, it didn’t make sense. It was like saying “yummy good” as opposed to “good yummy”. Did the words mean something different in reverse order?
These days I understand that it’s more similar to the juxtaposition of happy-sad and sad-happy. I won’t go into my distinction between the two. I’ll rather just say that Quilt by Backwords is very much a sad-happy album.
The band is more or less a pop band that incorporates some Southern rock to it. But between Brian Russ’s vocals, which give a garage band feel to it, and the emo-like quality of the titles and lyrics, it is safe to say that the songs are more sad-happy.
Nothing wrong with that. It’s a mix that works quite well. The music is poppy, even if in a soft way. It’s the whole jam band feel of the band. They play in the background, but playfully. They’re not stuck on over indulging any one sound. Everything mixes together nicely. Musically, its a joyful album that you can skip to, tap your toes to, it’ll definitely put a little oomph in your step.
But then the vocals remind you that Russ is being serious yet goofy. Take “In the Air & on the Ground” where Russ admits “In the air and on the ground are things that I have found. Things you that you would not believe. If you gave me one more wish I’d wish to not exist in the state that you know me now.” He sings in a voice that reminds me of someone whispering quietly in a high pitch. It gives the impression that he’s not very confident, but that just goes along with the polar opposites of the music.
You see, while the overall tone is one that things are bad, but that’s not really bad, it does come off morose at the heart. Still his crooning carries a bit of hope in it leaving you feeling that things may get better. He’s no quitter, and neither is this album.
Quilt is an appropriate title. At the heart are some heavier themes that one can’t ignore. But they’re shrouded in cheerful music leaving one assured that this indeed a sad-happy state of affairs. Sadness has settled, but happiness is rocking all around it. Only a matter of time before that sad inertia snaps.
Rating: 7.4/10 - Surviving the Golden Age


"Editors' Top 10 Alt/Folk bands for 2010"

Backwords made the list at #10 for 2010. - The Deli Magazine, NYC


"Counterpane and Cutaways"

Backwords are sewing harmonies with all the right patches of subtle instrumentation on their 2010 self-released album Quilt. Their music has a patterned folk and low-fi psychedelic vibe but it doesn’t meander or unfold like a crazy quilt. Initially, the melodies seem a bit unsure or submissive but after multiple listens you begin to recognize how they doggedly unravel. There is just enough reverb to make it mysterious but enough pop harmony to give you an overall feeling of familiarity. Binding counterpane and cutaways, Backwords are not forging fancy quilts. Instead, they bring a seam of comfort between the old and the new, the quiet and the loud, the ambiguous and the known.
- Crenellation Blog


"LIVE at Spaceland, LA VIDEO"

A live video of a song from our Spaceland show! - YouTube


"Backwords on PBS's Roadtrip Nation TV Series"

The Backwords song "Earth From Space" appears from 16:00-17:15 on this episode, airing Thanksgiving Day at 8:30 EST or streaming online. This is episode 10 of season 7, entitled "New York City." - PBS: Roadtrip Nation


"Backwords-'Quilt' DOA"

Remember Lo-Fi? I’ve done some searching recently, trying to rediscover exactly what that genre description meant. Very few albums I’ve heard in the past two years (certainly since I started reviewing for this site in 2008) fall anywhere near that category: the albums I receive are very often cleverly and imaginatively produced, even those that come from an apparently rootsy folk background. So what was Lo-Fi then? Was it, as I had begun to suspect, a late 90s get-out clause for bands and musicians that hadn’t yet access to pro-tools and other then still relatively new technologies? Or did it refer to an altogether more ideological approach to recorded music, in which the live sound was the only true measure of sonic veracity and adding effects or even balancing the recording was (an even older phrase) a sell-out?

I, and you, need rake the memory banks no more. Backwords’ third album is about as Lo-Fi as you could possibly imagine, apparently recorded directly onto magnetic tape in a Brooklyn basement, each song played live in one take, and with only the most essential remixing undertaken before the eleven track album was sent down for CD mastering. And I’ve mentioned all of this because the actual quality of the album is noticeable: and after a hearing a number of albums which utilised any number of expansive production techniques (for the most part successfully), Backwords less-is-more approach fully caught my attention.

As to the songs themselves, there are at least two aspects to the eleven tracks on Quilt. Backwords are either performing folk type strumalongs, aided by any of their ten named collaborators, or the three actual members of the core band – Brian Russ, Jon Sheldon and Tim Pioppo get down with some grinding PsychePop, minus the occasional fiddle, xylophone and other instrumental and percussive additions that characterise the songs on the earlier part of the album. The jaunty banjo led shanty of “In The Air On The Ground” does sound like the work of a markedly different band when compared to the warped garage punk of “Better Off Alone”, or the laid back lounge jazz of “Think Of Me As A Quilt Made Of Stars”. More than one string to Backword’s bow, for certain.

Backwords set themselves a difficult task. On one hand, their songs are sufficiently varied and innovative to keep their listeners attentions, but the underproduced sound quality very nearly detracts from the album in its entirety and it actually manages to sound dated, in a late 90s haven’t-got -a-computer-yet way , and some of the instrumentation, such as the flute and bells that appear on ‘Gotta Talk’ does sound a bit indulgently shamanic, and only lacks a guest vocal from Allen Ginsberg to make it an accurate recreation of a Yippie happening from 41 years previously. Backwords sound a little awkward here, and the album would’ve benefited from another track in the manner of the jugband stomp of “I Have Seen” or even the untitled 12th track, a bluesy Dylan evocation that ends the album. Backwords don’t always play to their strengths.

One thing a (seemingly purposefully) patchy album such as this does, at least with me, is keep the listeners attention and Backwords succeed in this. They aren’t in it for the money, they aren’t the greatest musical virtuosos you’ll ever hear, and at least some of the album was recorded in a bit of a hurry, but I actually like Quilt. It has character, charm, and an infectious sense of enjoyment that carries over with little effort. Backwords had fun recording Quilt, and most of you reading this will find their efforts at the very least entertaining. - Adequacy Indie Reviews


"Intimate Blogspot Video"

The official Terror Eyes session posted online! - Terror Eyes


"Music That Takes You Back Home: Backwords Plays CMJ 10/22-23"

If at some point, during this CMJ madness, you were in desperate need for some warmth and "homeyness" in musical form, we recommend you head to one of the two Backwords' CMJ shows (at Sycamore in Ditmas Park on 10.22 and Kenny's Castaway on 10.23.) This Brooklyn based band blends folky and old timey influences with gentle psychedelic pop influences reminiscent of Flaming Lips and Grandaddy. Their music is soothing, but weirdly so, in a lo key, unassuming, almost bucolic kind of way. Brian Russ' vocals sing stories full of wisdom through timeless melodies. These guys might not be the kind of band that gets hyped by the blogosphere or in Pitchforkshire, but they sure are doing something nobody else we are aware of is doing in NYC right now: unpretentious, mellow psych folk that speaks to the heart. - The Deli Magazine, NYC


"Backwords: Center of the Earth"

Los Angeles is in for a real treat. Backwords, the Brooklyn psychedelic folk-rock band has two upcoming performances as they pass through on their tour! The wonderful harmonizing power of Backwords is comprised of the very talented trio of Brian Russ, John Sheldon, Tim Pioppo who make the inspired, perfectly sounding music that captures the bands raw energy. Cannot wait to see them live! - Loudvine


"New Music From Backwords"

Backwords is a young band from Brooklyn with that sort of alt-country/folk sound that I’ve been into a lot lately. The group are prepping their new LP, Quilt, for a September 7th release which can be had digitally, via CD, or on a limited 300 pressing vinyl (check bandcamp for pre-order). Below you can check out latest single “And Then Sigh” to see what you think of the band. It’s pretty simple stuff, and yet somehow readily enjoyable. - Austin Town Hall


"Bandcamp Heroes"

bandcamp heroes is a new feature on Bolachas. most of these posts won’t have a download link or a big review, because well.. you can just go to the bandcamp page (clicking on the bandcamp logo below the album cover) and stream the hell out of it with decent quality. why waste words when you can just listen to the whole thing and make up your own opinion?band of horsesy oohs, built to spilly melodies – do you really need something else from this world?

backwords’ quilt is a perfect record for classic indie rock lovers and you could tell it from just listening to the lead track, which they give away on their website. check the tags on their bandcamp page to see a comprehensive list of their influences – they’re all there!

still on their bandcamp, you can order quilt on crystal clear 12? vinyl, limited to 300 copies on a recycled sleeve! - Bolachas Blog


"'Quilt' 4/5 Stars: Pretty Sweet!"

BACKWORDS, “Quilt” (self-released)
I didn’t know what to expect from “Quilt,” the third release from Brooklynites Backwords. It took a single spin of this DIY gem to understand why the talented trio is a fixture on the Big Apple music scene. It’s difficult to pigeonhole Backwords into a single genre — when pressed, the guys refer to their music as psychedelic folk-rock” — and the all-over-the-place sound is surprisingly effective throughout.
“Quilt” opens with the solid one-two punch of “And Then Sigh” and “Center of the Earth,” before Backwords find their groove on the superb “In the Air & on the
Ground.” Additional keepers include “Better Off Alone,” “Think of Me (As a Quilt Made of Stars),” “Gotta Talk,” “None of This Is Wrong” and “Indefinitely,” a bonus track available on CD and digital download only. Do yourself a favor and get to know these guys. (JS) - The Daily News, In Tune Reviews


"Backwords Headlines Union Hall"

We like Backwords' chilled and poli-instrumental approach to psych-folk-pop, and we also appreciate their not too lo-fi recordings (we feel like this "ultra-lo-fi" thing is getting a little out of hand here in NYC... it's time to make things sound decent!). The band will celebrate the release of their debut full length album "Quilt" with a party at Union Hall on 09.02, and then embark on a East coast tour. - The Deli Magazine, NYC


"'Quilt' LP Review"

Quilt is the third album from Backwords, a three-piece group out of Brooklyn, NY. Just as the album title would suggest, the music is extremely warm and puts you right at home next to your favorite quilt your grandmother made you as a child. On their third album, they put together an soothing mix of acoustics, banjos, violins, and many other instruments alongside their triple vocals and harmonies. Listen and download the great opener “And Then Sigh,” the beautiful folk-pop track “Center of the Earth,” and the folky head-bopper “Dig Deep.” With a sound that’s made to be on a turntable, you can order this LP straight from their BandCamp for less than $15 with shipping! And watch the video for “Center of the Earth” below, which seems to be a super fun farm dance party in a New York park! - The Noise Is Blog


"The Deli Magazine Blog 2.25.10"

Please see the jpg for text and pictures... - The Deli Magazine


"Bootleg Magazine Reviews "The Buffalo Still Roam""

From a print mag, please see the PDF... - Bootleg Magazine


"7.5 on SIC Magazine"

I’m thinking Americana, the opener ‘The Beggars And The Bread ‘confounds that by sounding more like The Kinks. A marvellous oompah swing of a song ushered in on Chet Baker sweet horn, a lament of an unhopeful suitor who just might have got lucky. ‘Homeland Security’ is Neil Young, no way round it, something around ‘Hawks & Doves time. ‘I Need An Ocean’ is more the Americana I was expecting, a stagger round with a 20 second electric solo that is wonderful and as basic as they come.

‘Oklahoma’, while sadly not as high as an elephant’s eye, is a waltzing Southern Cold War Kids. After a two second undertow of menace ‘This Is What I Call Home’ is fully ushered in with chimes and vocals, then brought out to main-street by honky tonk rhythm, whistling (yeah, whistling) and a keening chorus. The ghosts of the town, high on peyote, shuffle through the desert dusk. They come back on the title track to mumble muffled and drunk pleas, desperate to return to a simpler time, the banjo picking notes with the same painful nostalgia realised by John Barry’s theme from The Persuaders (one of the few tracks that can reduce me to tears, fact fans).

‘Smoke Detector’ is whimsy, weaker than the rest but fun nonetheless, another basic but magnificent guitar part lifting it to a harmonious section. ‘Earth From Space’ is like a David Lynch soundtrack piece and a lovely coda. All this down home fun and they seem to be from Brooklyn (hottest city on the planet right now) – go figure. That this is a free legal download, shows that there are gems to be found on-line even for fans usually in need of the tangible object. - SIC Magazine


"Terrible Love Songs Review"

Backwords second album The Buffalo Still Roam sounds a bit like what you'd get if Daniel Johnston had recorded with The Beach Boys and being a fan of both, I love it!

Full of a lovely whacky charm with raw but somehow gentle sounds of unpolished Americana, this album is exactly what I needed to be listening to right now. Really great job guys!

Top Tracks: The beggars and the bread, Smoke Detector, This is what I call home - Terrible Love Songs


"Backwords: Center of the Earth [VIDEO/Review]"

Backwords is psychedelic folk. Embodiment is the easiest way to describe the music they create; they are psychedelic folk, they produce it in every form and fashion. You have a song like “And Then Sigh” which bounces along like a less frantic Caribou song, and then you have a softer, more emotive track like “Center Of The Earth”. Both demonstrate the band’s precise psychedelic nature. Then there’s the fun video for “Center Of The Earth”. Joyous and playful, it too conveys the nature of the band perfectly. Sun, rain, snow – whatever the weather, “Center Of The Earth” will strike in you the urge to go out and enjoy it. - Fense Post


"The American Beatles"

This album has a thread of pop that strings their eclectic mix of psychedelic with alt-country twang. Try tracks 3, 6, 11, 12, 13. It's definitely a new twist on an old sound. - Minx and Ninny


"The People Under the Stairs"

On the wall of the makeshift studio, right next to the egg cartons that the tenants admit are worthless for softening the sound of their recording sessions, there hangs a quote from Wayne Coyne, lead singer of The Flaming Lips, about how music is at its best when it’s sloppy. I would have copied it down word for word, but I couldn’t see it that well in the dim light of a lava lamp. Sitting in a red glow in a DIY recording studio was the traditional way the guys in Backwords listened to their own tunes.

Though it’s obvious this three piece band from Park Slope likes to experiment with sound, sloppy might not be the right word to describe them. Sloppy is more fit for a group that randomly throws sounds together just to get a unique but completely unruly result. Your high school’s most popular ska band was sloppy. Tracks off of Backwords’ new album Quilt feature a local drum circle along side an ancient Casio keyboard and a fiddle player they found on Craigslist, but that’s only one part of the puzzle. Random noise is not the goal, and all random assorted pieces are made to fit, even if sometimes they have to be rammed into each other.

Brian Russ and John Sheldon live on a residential dead end block overlooking Prospect Park with their girlfriends and three cats. Tim Pioppo, the last part of the trio, has been sleeping on their couch while they put the finishing touches on the new album. Even though Backwords is pretty freewheeling when it comes to sampling outside sounds, when it comes to its own instruments, the band members are perfectionists. The day I showed up for a tour of the space, John was obviously running on empty from the previous night when he had to bang out a grueling 36 takes for one song on his drums. It was long nights like this that made having a recording studio down the hall sound so useful.

“We put the drums in the basement and the people upstairs are nice, so they don’t really mind,” explains John on the logistics of home-recording. “Besides, the guys across the street make more noise playing dominoes than our band ever could.” Both John and Brian have day jobs as teachers in Brooklyn and Queens respectively, so by the time they get home for practice they are already spent. “Its nice to be able to walk into the next room and go to sleep after playing all night. It also costs nothing, which is probably the biggest plus.”

The guys that make up Backwords find it easier to talk about their music piecemeal, track by track, than to saddle their band with a specific genre. When pressed, they give a pretty convincing runaround before settling on something close to “psychedelic folk-rock.” Even that seems too restrictive though, what with vocals that sound like they were ripped from a Beach Boys track laying on top of instrumentals that have that charming, lo-fi quality that sounds like it was recorded in a friend’s basement.

“We tried to get as many live recordings of bass and drums as possible,” Tim explains, “that way it sounds like three dudes playing music instead of something really over-produced.” - New York Press Magazine


Discography

1) "By The Neck" Released March 6 2012

2) "Quilt" Released Sept. 2010

3) "The Buffalo Still Roam" Released Jan. 2009

4) "Factory Angels" Released Dec. 2008

Photos

Bio

backwords blends modern psychedelics with folk rock, 60s pop and a myriad other sonic surprises. Like a bluebird fluttering through the prairie, backwords delivers gentle, lazy melodies that stick to the tongue and cannot be forgotten. And like a vigilant hawk nesting atop a New York skyscraper, there is a fury—a swooping darker underside that backwords explores at the drop of a dime. It is and is not quite The Beach Boys meeting Daniel Johnston meeting Built to Spill meeting The Velvet Underground meeting Wilco meeting ? and all sharing a mellow joint…

Based out of Brooklyn, backwords is rooted in city grit but rides the concrete waves with a cowboy’s heart. The band is a regular fixture of the New York City scene and has played countless gigs over the last three years at venues and spaces such as Mercury Lounge, The Bell House, Cake Shop, Glasslands, Cameo Gallery, The American Folk Art Museum, etc. They have played official showcases at 2009, 2010 and 2011's CMJ Music Marathon as well as 2010's Northside Festival and were recently named a “Top 10 Emerging Artist” in the “Alt-Folk” category by The Deli Magazine NYC.

backwords has toured the United States extensively in the past few years from NYC to LA, logging in over 200 shows and has played with such bands as: Dark Dark Dark, The Wooden Birds, Julian Lynch, Quilt, These United States, Le Loup, Jeremy Jay, Freelance Whales, Dinosaur Feathers, Darwin Deez, Warpaint, Pepi Ginsberg, The Features, Fort Lean, Reptar, Country Mice, North Highlands, The Beets, Shark?, The Old Ceremony, The Deep Dark Woods, Ava Luna, Yukon Blonde, Craft Spells, Hosannas, Spirit Family Reunion, Turbo Fruits, Pujol, Radical Dads etc…

Their latest release, “By the Neck,” takes new twists and psychedelic turns as it explores fresh creative territory mixing surf garage sounds with Pink Floyd spazz-outs, gentle Byrds-like vocal layers, and apocalyptic subject matter. There is boy-girl vocal interplay and textures both thick and breezy. It is an album that works cohesively as a whole yet can be picked apart for its catchy, finger tapping individual tracks. It is both vintage and excitingly new at the same time.