Music
Press
Cosio's consistently impressive work makes it easy to be a vocal supporter. The new record(The Cacophonist) is textured and
inventive, capturing the emotional energy of a live show while boasting the clean dynamics of a studio album. Cosio
raises the bar for LA's independent artists.
Jon Hershfield, isgoodmusic.com - IsGoodmusic.com
“Authentic storytelling unhindered by all the usual trappings of hopeless idealism. Cosio allows you to see the world with full knowledge of its flaws and still stand poised for change”
-Anthem Magazine - Anthem Magazine
“The Cacophonist is a call to arms for the unbeliever. Narrative anthems tempered with moments of romanticism”.
- Dan Levy, Pretty Picture Movement - Pretty Picture Movement
Melodies you feel at your core, a deep and soulful vocal delivery, wailing harmonica, percussion that moves, tasty lead guitar textures, and a rock solid rhythm section abound in this stellar mixture of Folk, Indie, acoustic, and Blues Rock. If you truly love music with a soul, you will definitely want to check out this wonderfully refreshing and innovative addition to the immerging grass roots music scene. Cosio is a must see! - The Verity Room
Cosio is one of those rare bands who enjoys performing so much they seem blissfully unaware that they're doing something magnificent. Philosophical but not preachy, indie but not sloppy, this is a smart and solid act.
-Jon Hershfield isgoodmusic.com - Jon Hershfield isgoodmusic.com
Well, it must be said, your awesome taste in music is making 2009 go by at breakneck speed because you have spoken yet again, loud and crystal clear – for the month of July; Cosio is your BeatCrave Fav of the Month.
Cosio, the Los Angeles-based band with a penchant for storytelling, can be likened to a dreamer’s dream. Their almost inherent knack at creating a landscape and furnishing it with whatever is the most tangible and specific to the listener is clearly something not learned overnight. Interestingly, though, the band describes themselves very simply:
“The members of Cosio all met …became friends… and formed a band. [...] Called to represent a family in a loose sense of the word.” – Cosio, Biography: cosiomusic.org
Even in the way in which their formation is summarized is indicative of the human condition, which for most includes a definition of family, whether carefully chosen or bound by blood. Their lyrics, melodies, and supporting instrumental harmonies are no different; each ascension, visual phrase, and punctuation is intended and constructed to transport the listener somewhere. It would be almost safe to compare the experience to what one would imagine therapy to be – eerily comforting in touching the nerves, as much as it would also be thoroughly and refreshingly cathartic.
Consisting of Abigail Cosio (vocals and guitar), Mike Fister (drums), Bobby Musgrove (various accompanying instruments), Jeremy Kelley (bass), and Julie Mitchell (guitar), listeners and audience-goers alike have a complete band with what seems to be an effortless goal with each musical and lyrical phrase to entrap whoever is listening in a well-thought-out acoustic embrace.
Cosio’s first full-length album, The Cacophonist, showcases a style that is similar to those who could easily be considered the most essential staples of the popular-in-rumination musical works of Rufus Wainwright, Fiona Apple and Tori Amos. It’s a conscious, realistic view of one’s world and even the most trivial and mundane aspects, coupled with the decision to paint it in romanticized colors, just to make it bearable. But like the artists before them, Cosio appears to understand that it’s not an easy road to take in getting to the point of being acknowledged as a tamer of their craft with the hope of longevity, and not an over-stylized flavor of the week.
What we found particularly intriguing about the band is that to “get to know them” requires a streaming, a spinning, and a detailed listening of their work; there is absolutely no way around it. Such indirect avoidance of the spotlight, despite the recognition and acclaim for their music, is a credit to what appears to be an overall desire – to not be interpreted incorrectly by what is expressed, other than musically, and such a quality is rare if not unheard of.
They display a reciprocal loyalty to the friends and audience they’ve acquired at Los Angeles venues by way of performances, but we are more than intrigued to see just where else their seeds of family can blossom and thrive. We admire and hold highly Cosio’s ability to steer clear from the over-processed nature of the business that saps identity and steamrolls creativity and ingenuity – which on the whole is the indisputable and esteemed quality that makes them our BeatCrave Fav for the Month of July. - BeatCrave.com
Discography
Walk Through Blood, Sleep in Bones EP, June 2006
The Cacophonist LP 2009
Photos
Bio
“Heaven for Climate, Hell for Company”
Mark Twain
So ties the common thread that runs trough the liner notes of The Cacophonist, the first full length album by Los Angeles based band Cosio. The questions of heaven or hell, stay or go, fight or flight make up much of the content to which this 5 member band juxtaposes its unclassifiable sound. From a living room to a stage, is the long and short of the journey they have shared as a band thus far. The bands front woman, Abigail Cosio, grew up in a small town just outside of LA along with the Drummer, Michael Fister, Bassist and Saxophone, Jeremy Kelley and the bands utility man, Bobby Musgrove. There she began writing and performing songs she wrote, influenced by her father and the rearing of old church songs and folk music. Most mornings were first met with her father playing the guitar, finger picking on a steel string. The house she grew up in was filled with music and company. It became a kind of halfway house for young people, friends of the 5 Cosio children. The band began in that living room, when Michael asked Abigail if she might be open to adding some drums to her music. Bobby and Jeremy followed shortly after and so did the stage shows, playing for a number of years in and around Los Angeles. In January 2008, Cosio went into the studio to record The Cacophonist. Julie Mitchell engineered the album and through that process became the 5th permanent member of the band. With all the members in place, the Cosio sound was free to evolve through these 5 willing vessels. The band name pays homage to that family-centered-feeling and the forming ground that the sound and the sentiments of the music are built upon.
The Cacophonist was recorded through the early months of 2008, in a train car turned music studio in an industrial complex in Van Nuys, CA. Their debut album was released June 2009, mixed by Dan Burns and Mastered by Gavin Lurssen at Lurssen Studios. “Cosio's consistently impressive work makes it easy to be a vocal supporter. The new record (The Cacophonist) is textured and inventive, capturing the emotional energy of a live show while boasting the clean dynamics of a studio album. Cosio raises the bar for LA's independent artists” says John Hershfield, owner of IsGoodMusic.com. Cosio can be seen live in some of Los Angeles’s premier venues such as Hotel Cafe, The Bordello, Silverlake Lounge and Spaceland. Recently playing the FYF Festival has propelled Cosio forward opening up new audience and opportunities. Cosio has shared stages with the likes of Jesca Hoop, Port O’Brien, Meiko, The Henry Clay People, as well as other up and coming indie bands across the west coast.
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