Lenorable

First up, imagine you’re sitting in your bedroom…it’s 1997 and you are roaming around your shitty apartment searching for inspiration to write music. The unresolved teen angst has been stewing too long; it lost it giddiness and anarchy and is slumped in the bathroom quoting from Fall of the House of Usher. In the name of Poe, I give you Lenorable, an undercooked project that combines Ian Graham’s chugging, glam-metal guitars, a drum machine and some very melodramatic vocals, courtesy of Lisa Reed. The duo works well when they able to build up steam and tighten the synth-goth to a bitter punk sound, but the madness of Lisa’s Siouxsie Sioux balladry proved more interesting. - Brightest Young Things

With their droning synth and drum loops, creepy music videos, and Lisa Reed’s haunting vocals, Lenorable are the kind of band that can keep you up at night. The music is dark, but still somehow danceable. They’ll release their newest EP, The Prince, at Black Cat [Feb. 28 at 8pm]. - Washingtonian Magazine

I often find some bands remind me of Siouxsie and the Banshees and in particular, their great album "Kaleidoscope", but rarely has anything sounded like quality outtakes from that album. The vocals are a little bit edgier here, subtle but edge is there. The drums are heavy on an electronic high pitched snare, but that guitar and bass work dance around like McGeough and Severin did so well, so many years ago. But this is not merely a retro release by this DC duo. The sounds are fresh and the vocals chilling. The themes are Poe-based which is highly appropriate for their style. I liked "Ligeia" which manages to sound thick while keeping some distinct space between the instruments. over six and three quarters minutes. This three-song ep is out February 29th and is well worth a listen. And you can also see them live at the Black Cat on February 28th. - DC Rock Live

Lenorable is possibly the best band we could profile on Halloween weekend -- and not only because they have an upcoming show on October 31st.
For one thing, all of the songs on their first EP are based on poems by Edgar Allan Poe. (They even did a Poe House benefit show recently at the Velvet Lounge.)
The song currently streaming on their website is actually based on the work of Kafka, and as such, are unsurprisingly dark.
Lisa Reed's rollercoaster vocals run the gamut between commanding imperiousness and wild fearfulness. However, it always seems to fit in with the noisy guitar screeching that Ian Graham plays atop catchy driving synthy lines.
It's not nearly as kitschy as it may sound upon reading the last paragraph. While the work draws inspiration lyrically from great works of literature and stylistically from greats like Joy Division and Sonic Youth, the songs sound entirely original.
We talked to Reed and Graham about the Poe inspiration, their glow in the dark vinyl and why Graham is dressed like a panda in their press photos.

[interview: http://dcist.com/2011/10/three_stars_lenorable.php]

Find them online: http://music.lenorable.net/ - DCist

all words and photos: Julian Vu

DC-based Lenorable claims to create “Gothwave to the max.” I’m probably the last person qualified to write any sort of review on gothwave, let alone anything “to the max”, but as a fan of local music, I figured it was worth a shot to check out Lenorable. I would concur with their claim in that they are definitely gothwave, whatever that is.

They are definitely other things as well; adorable, abrasive, catchy, energetic, stoic, often all at the same time. Ian Graham’s drum patterns and synthesizer programming do a great job of laying foundation to their sound. In most two-person/backing-track setups, so much is carried on the beat and basslines, all of which Graham does well.

Add on top of that, Graham’s luscious chorussed 12-string guitar that is equal parts shoegaze and post-punk. The songs are all across the board, straying from super-dark love/hate songs to the faster and catchy jams involving hugging dinosaurs. To keep said genre-hopping at bay, vocalist Lisa Reed brings it all together with a consistently feel-good energy, despite the music’s dark undertones. Reed doesn’t just sing straightforward however. Using the magic tricks of synthesis, Reed pitches her voice an octave lower on some songs, perhaps channeling her inner Luther Vandross, but more likely it actually sounds like she got a Talkboy for Christmas.

All in all, the duo of Graham and Reed work. If their sound is indicative of what gothwave is, then I think I might actually warm up to the genre. Maybe. - Brightest Young Things

Standout Track: “Metamorphosis,” whose Kafkaesque writing Ian Graham and Lisa Reed cop to quickly. Reed’s gloomy lyrics narrate a day not unlike Gregor Samsa’s (“City crawler/You’ve got no place in this world/You’ve come undone as you shuffle in the streets and sing to your wounded feet”) while Graham concocts a menacing but catchy guitar riff that eventually unfolds into a cacophony of gothy textures.

Musical Motivation: “I spent all of high school trying to be Fat Mike from NOFX, then it switched and I spent the past few years trying to be Johnny Marr,” says Graham, 26. Reed, 30, cites the theatricality of David Bowie and Freddie Mercury, though what Lenorable lacks in glam it makes up in moodiness. The pair started dating about a year ago; the musical collaborations began about six months later. Reed writes lyrics while Graham handles the music. “I don’t know anything about music,” Reed says, though Graham quickly notes that Reed is responsible for the synth loops in “Metamorphosis.”

Military Brats: Graham’s parents are Army officers; Reed grew up in an Air Force family and served from 1999 to 2003. Their musical backgrounds aren’t so similar. Graham studied several instruments during high school in Montana and has played with a few area groups, while Lenorable is Reed’s first band. Her past contains a sour experience with a vocal instructor. “She said ‘I was never good at science and I didn’t try to be a scientist,’” says Reed, recalling her former teacher’s rather brutal putdown of her singing. That teacher’s assessment, though, was incorrect. - Washington City Paper

[our portion excerpted from a series of lists by DC artists]

IAN GRAHAM and LISA REED, joint conspirators for LENORABLE

* -Asylum's vegan brunch!
* -Blue slushies downstairs at the 9:30 club (even more potent if Smudge is DJ'ing).
* -Cutting Congressmen in line at the carry-outs on Capitol Hill. Sorry Rep. Frank, I just really wanted that lo mien.
* -Drunk post-happy hour Metro-goers: Because it's never too early topuke in your co-worker's messenger bag.
* -Ethiopian honey wine. It'll sneak up on you!
* -The FDR Memorial is an amazing place to take a sack lunch in the summer.
* -The Grill on Florida Avenue. Lisa likes the biscuits and cheese grits; Ian likes the french toast, and the pancakes, and the biscuits and gravy. We both like the cup of crushed ice you get when you order a bottle of Coke.
* -Hardcore's afterglow.
* -Insane rally-goers with lots of guns and zero dictionaries.
* -Jukebox at the Raven.
* -Kickin it at the house with Bananagrams.
* -Looking Glass Lounge and their $5 Beam and Boh combo. And our favorite server Jillian.
* -The Margaritas at Guapos are incredible. Especially the kind they make with a Corona jammed in it.
* -Neighborhood Festivals; whether it's Adams Morgan, Mount Pleasant, Caribbean Day, or any other, it's certain to be a good time.
* -Optimus Prime-related road closures.
* -Pink Sock's midnight performances at Wonderland never disappoint!
* -Quiche (Lisa doesn't know I'm writing this, but for the 99% or so of you who haven't had her quiche, you're missing out!)
* -Rock Creek Park… great post-brunch nap spot, especially in the fall.
* - Snow days with the following: Heavy Metal (the movie), hot toddies, and a reliable record player.
* -Taxi drivers with good advice.
* -U Street Dive Bars.
* -Vinyl fairs will leave you with a full soul and an empty wallet.
* -Walking through Eastern Market leads you to interesting little treasures, including the Bloody Marys at Tunnicliff's.
* -X-TREME Professionals on Segways
* -Yesterday's H Street. You will be missed. (Feel free to give us shit for writing this, but it's true.)
* -Zany tourists … the one's who walk faster than a crawl and don't take up the whole sidewalk.
- Brightest Young Things

It should be noted, I don't shoot as many parties as I used to.Somewhere in between U Hall coming into existence and installing their (ill?)-advised no photo policy, and a BYT editorial decision to drink less of the party DJ Kool-Aid, I started shooting parties with great discretion. So much discretion in fact, this past Wednesday eve was my first Pink Sock rodeo.I have to say, after this most recent experience at the Wonderland Ballroom for Pink Sock's ANIMAL HOUSE PARTY, I am thinking again about bringing the party photos back to BYT. Earlier this year when the Washingtonian was putting their "best of" issue out and they needed photos of Pink Sock because they were to name it "Best Alternative Gay Dance Party," Washingtonian Magazine director of photography David Hicks called me looking for photos of the zeitgeist and I couldn't send him one because I hadn't ever attended. Well David, feast your eyes, and please let me know if you'd like more photos.Hats off to DJ Rad and Bradley, John-boy and Deb, BYT's own homegrown BYGays, for piloting the Pink Sock rocket ship. Pardon the obvious pun but, these BYGays are steering this space shuttle straight (er, not so straight?) towards your anus. Search no further than the event's designation to find obscene anal references. Google "pink sock" why don't you? Better yet, look it up on Urban Dictionary. Go 'head, I dare ya.So yeah, the photos right? That's what you came for -- but maybe I'll shoot another party soon for BYT... just maybe.

From comments:
"It is so nice to go to a dance party and then see (hear) a band break out and play in the middle of it. More live music at DC dance parties, please! The set was short, which was perfect. I go out to parties to dance to DJ sets, but it is great to see the local music scene being incorporated." - Brightest Young Things