ILA MINORI

A musically inclined family affair (with the exception of freshly welcomed bassist, Lalo Rodríguez), Ledaswan graces their SA faithful with an eagerly anticipated third stab at gloomy pop-rock ingenuity. Every track is aptly named in relation to the album’s title, save for the opening dance anthem, “Faulkner,” which begs for a sing-along. Ledaswan generally keeps their music repetitive and on the lighter, less complex end of the rock ’n’ roll spectrum, but vocalist Erica Monzón’s shadowy lyrics provide an intoxicating contrast with utter honesty and passion. Monzón’s pouty, Gwen Stefani-esque vocals are blindingly evident in “25 Years” (reminiscent of “Spiderwebs,” an early No Doubt hit) and “What a Way Two Drown,” a heavy guitar-driven ballad layered with airy filtered vocals. Surprisingly, the gang took their dicey chances and included an instrumental interlude halfway through the six-song EP. Genius, I say! “A Missing Fifth” accurately flaunts the fact that, though Monzón’s vocals often carry the songs, the band has enough instrumental muscle to produce a quality jam. With any luck, NUM83R5 Vol. 2 (set to release in the spring) will render similar flexing we’ve only caught a glimpse of thus far. - the San Antonio Current

A musically inclined family affair (with the exception of freshly welcomed bassist, Lalo Rodríguez), Ledaswan graces their SA faithful with an eagerly anticipated third stab at gloomy pop-rock ingenuity. Every track is aptly named in relation to the album’s title, save for the opening dance anthem, “Faulkner,” which begs for a sing-along. Ledaswan generally keeps their music repetitive and on the lighter, less complex end of the rock ’n’ roll spectrum, but vocalist Erica Monzón’s shadowy lyrics provide an intoxicating contrast with utter honesty and passion. Monzón’s pouty, Gwen Stefani-esque vocals are blindingly evident in “25 Years” (reminiscent of “Spiderwebs,” an early No Doubt hit) and “What a Way Two Drown,” a heavy guitar-driven ballad layered with airy filtered vocals. Surprisingly, the gang took their dicey chances and included an instrumental interlude halfway through the six-song EP. Genius, I say! “A Missing Fifth” accurately flaunts the fact that, though Monzón’s vocals often carry the songs, the band has enough instrumental muscle to produce a quality jam. With any luck, NUM83R5 Vol. 2 (set to release in the spring) will render similar flexing we’ve only caught a glimpse of thus far. - the San Antonio Current

By Adam Coronado

If Ledaswan don’t already have a reputation for being one of the most courteous indie bands in South Texas, I’m going to start the buzz right here. “If everyone could please buy our album, that would be great,” said guitarist Jaime Monzón — as if he was informing a congregation of upcoming church functions — before opening the set with “25 Years.”

Primarily composed of cuts from NUM83R5,the EP-release show was a shoe-gazy affair. Jaime and his brother David took turns playing lead and harmony on their electrics, producing an excellent give-and-take over the amps. Jaime worked his pedal board over, evoking The Edge, Martin Gore, and Minus the Bear’s Jake Snider where appropriate. David used the odd solo to lend the band’s balladry some heft, keeping them loud and rockin’ even if the music was more suitable for journaling at 3 a.m. Unfortunately, the dreamy bluster of the brothers Monzón made the moments when lyricist/singer Erica Monzón (Jaime’s wife) played guitar seem extraneous. Her voice is an easy bone of contention. She does “disaffected” expertly, using an atonal attack to seemingly emphasize the discomforting emotions associated with her lyrics. Her style is “take it or leave it” and can grow on a listener with time. Live, it helps that she’s boosted by such excellent backing musicians.

Anchoring the band were new bassist Lalo Rodríguez and “on again-off again” drummer Oscar Linares. Rodríguez hails from rocanrol band Frequencia. Rather than bring a heavier aesthetic to Ledaswan, he grooved along like a rock statesman. But Linares hit the kit like it owed him money, betraying what may be a love of ’90s post-punk bands Jawbox or the Dismemberment Plan.

Altogether, Ledaswan managed a sonic force without relying on excessive power-chording or sheer volume. Instead, they focused on weaving between anthemic choruses, pensive verses, and explosive codas. The wordless, criminally short “A Missing Fifth” displayed this song formula at its most compact. Inversely, Ledaswan stretched themselves to the limit on the slow rocker “What a Way to Drown,” with Erica pushing a harmonica melody through the mix on the song’s climax. The moment was an appropriate end to a set of songs that touched on suicide (“.357”), being miserably medicated (“Six is Better”), and simply needing a vacation (“25 Years”). With the guitars wailing, drums pounding, and amps blasting, Erica made the modest pocket harp seem victorious. - the San Antonio Current

By Adam Coronado

If Ledaswan don’t already have a reputation for being one of the most courteous indie bands in South Texas, I’m going to start the buzz right here. “If everyone could please buy our album, that would be great,” said guitarist Jaime Monzón — as if he was informing a congregation of upcoming church functions — before opening the set with “25 Years.”

Primarily composed of cuts from NUM83R5,the EP-release show was a shoe-gazy affair. Jaime and his brother David took turns playing lead and harmony on their electrics, producing an excellent give-and-take over the amps. Jaime worked his pedal board over, evoking The Edge, Martin Gore, and Minus the Bear’s Jake Snider where appropriate. David used the odd solo to lend the band’s balladry some heft, keeping them loud and rockin’ even if the music was more suitable for journaling at 3 a.m. Unfortunately, the dreamy bluster of the brothers Monzón made the moments when lyricist/singer Erica Monzón (Jaime’s wife) played guitar seem extraneous. Her voice is an easy bone of contention. She does “disaffected” expertly, using an atonal attack to seemingly emphasize the discomforting emotions associated with her lyrics. Her style is “take it or leave it” and can grow on a listener with time. Live, it helps that she’s boosted by such excellent backing musicians.

Anchoring the band were new bassist Lalo Rodríguez and “on again-off again” drummer Oscar Linares. Rodríguez hails from rocanrol band Frequencia. Rather than bring a heavier aesthetic to Ledaswan, he grooved along like a rock statesman. But Linares hit the kit like it owed him money, betraying what may be a love of ’90s post-punk bands Jawbox or the Dismemberment Plan.

Altogether, Ledaswan managed a sonic force without relying on excessive power-chording or sheer volume. Instead, they focused on weaving between anthemic choruses, pensive verses, and explosive codas. The wordless, criminally short “A Missing Fifth” displayed this song formula at its most compact. Inversely, Ledaswan stretched themselves to the limit on the slow rocker “What a Way to Drown,” with Erica pushing a harmonica melody through the mix on the song’s climax. The moment was an appropriate end to a set of songs that touched on suicide (“.357”), being miserably medicated (“Six is Better”), and simply needing a vacation (“25 Years”). With the guitars wailing, drums pounding, and amps blasting, Erica made the modest pocket harp seem victorious. - the San Antonio Current

By Enrique Lopetegui

Since forming in 2004, Ledaswan has earned a solid following as one of the most active bands in San Antonio. With two EPs under their belt, the group’s third self-produced — and most ambitious — recording will be released on January 21. For it, they re-enlisted the services of Matt Brown (from the Seattle-based band Trespassers William, who also mixed 2007’s Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty), and the long-awaited, two-years-in-the-making result is … another EP!

Judging by three advance tracks we were able to hear, NUM83R5, to be released with a party at Nightrocker Live, is Ledaswan’s best-sounding album so far. “Faulkner,” the first single, is a guitar/drum/bass attack that sounds cleaner and louder than previous recordings; this ain’t a demo-sounding local band. But you should’ve seen singer Erica Monzon’s eyes when she told me how the band decided on an EP instead of a full-fledged album. The conversation took place on a freezing night on the North Saint Mary’s strip.

“I actually had my heart set with NUM83R5 being a full-length, but … ” She stopped talking and looked at hubby/guitarist Jaime, and I don’t want to speculate, but it was a playful I-told-you-we-should-have-released-the-full-damn-thing-you-jerk look.

“The music industry has changed a lot,” said Jaime. “Do we really want to put out a full album and then wait for a couple of years because that’s what everybody else has always done? If we write a song that we love and say, ‘Hey, these subscribers are going to love it, let’s put it out now!’ What’s wrong with that? We can do that now. Not that that’s the way we’re going to do things always, but we want to keep that door open.”

The band recorded a total of 14 songs, six of which found their way onto NUM83R5.

“We chose the songs that got a better response, the ones we felt, ‘This should be out now,’” said Jaime. “The other ones are also good, but have the potential to be even greater, so we decided to keep working on them.” One of the songs included in “Vol. 1” is a whole new version of “The new 60s,” included in Ledaswan’s 2006 debut album.

The second part of the album, tentatively titled NUM83R5 Vol. 2, will be released within six months, possibly followed by a release of both albums together, according to Jaime. “We wanted to have a more constant stream of music coming out, instead of putting [out] a full album and then not having anything new for another two years. That way we keep people on their toes.”

Each song of the album will have its own video, the first of which (the aforementioned “Faulkner”) premiered on January 11 at a Nightrocker party. Watching — and hearing — the video shows a more mature, ass-kicking Ledaswan.

1/17/2011
Email this Story Print-ready version 1 Comment and 7 Reactions

Music > Music
The NUM83R 3, sort of
Ledaswan’s new album is geared toward impatient fans
Photo by Sarah Maspero


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By Enrique Lopetegui

Since forming in 2004, Ledaswan has earned a solid following as one of the most active bands in San Antonio. With two EPs under their belt, the group’s third self-produced — and most ambitious — recording will be released on January 21. For it, they re-enlisted the services of Matt Brown (from the Seattle-based band Trespassers William, who also mixed 2007’s Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty), and the long-awaited, two-years-in-the-making result is … another EP!

Judging by three advance tracks we were able to hear, NUM83R5, to be released with a party at Nightrocker Live, is Ledaswan’s best-sounding album so far. “Faulkner,” the first single, is a guitar/drum/bass attack that sounds cleaner and louder than previous recordings; this ain’t a demo-sounding local band. But you should’ve seen singer Erica Monzon’s eyes when she told me how the band decided on an EP instead of a full-fledged album. The conversation took place on a freezing night on the North Saint Mary’s strip.

“I actually had my heart set with NUM83R5 being a full-length, but … ” She stopped talking and looked at hubby/guitarist Jaime, and I don’t want to speculate, but it was a playful I-told-you-we-should-have-released-the-full-damn-thing-you-jerk look.

“The music industry has changed a lot,” said Jaime. “Do we really want to put out a full album and then wait for a couple of years because that’s what everybody else has always done? If we write a song that we love and say, ‘Hey, these subscribers are going to love it, let’s put it out now!’ What’s wrong with that? We can do that now. Not that that’s the way we’re going to do things always, but we want to keep that door open.”

The band recorded a total of 14 songs, six of which found their way onto NUM83R5.

“We chose the songs that got a better response, the ones we felt, ‘This should be out now,’” said Jaime. “The other ones are also good, but have the potential to be even greater, so we decided to keep working on them.” One of the songs - the San Antonio Current

By Enrique Lopetegui

Since forming in 2004, Ledaswan has earned a solid following as one of the most active bands in San Antonio. With two EPs under their belt, the group’s third self-produced — and most ambitious — recording will be released on January 21. For it, they re-enlisted the services of Matt Brown (from the Seattle-based band Trespassers William, who also mixed 2007’s Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty), and the long-awaited, two-years-in-the-making result is … another EP!

Judging by three advance tracks we were able to hear, NUM83R5, to be released with a party at Nightrocker Live, is Ledaswan’s best-sounding album so far. “Faulkner,” the first single, is a guitar/drum/bass attack that sounds cleaner and louder than previous recordings; this ain’t a demo-sounding local band. But you should’ve seen singer Erica Monzon’s eyes when she told me how the band decided on an EP instead of a full-fledged album. The conversation took place on a freezing night on the North Saint Mary’s strip.

“I actually had my heart set with NUM83R5 being a full-length, but … ” She stopped talking and looked at hubby/guitarist Jaime, and I don’t want to speculate, but it was a playful I-told-you-we-should-have-released-the-full-damn-thing-you-jerk look.

“The music industry has changed a lot,” said Jaime. “Do we really want to put out a full album and then wait for a couple of years because that’s what everybody else has always done? If we write a song that we love and say, ‘Hey, these subscribers are going to love it, let’s put it out now!’ What’s wrong with that? We can do that now. Not that that’s the way we’re going to do things always, but we want to keep that door open.”

The band recorded a total of 14 songs, six of which found their way onto NUM83R5.

“We chose the songs that got a better response, the ones we felt, ‘This should be out now,’” said Jaime. “The other ones are also good, but have the potential to be even greater, so we decided to keep working on them.” One of the songs included in “Vol. 1” is a whole new version of “The new 60s,” included in Ledaswan’s 2006 debut album.

The second part of the album, tentatively titled NUM83R5 Vol. 2, will be released within six months, possibly followed by a release of both albums together, according to Jaime. “We wanted to have a more constant stream of music coming out, instead of putting [out] a full album and then not having anything new for another two years. That way we keep people on their toes.”

Each song of the album will have its own video, the first of which (the aforementioned “Faulkner”) premiered on January 11 at a Nightrocker party. Watching — and hearing — the video shows a more mature, ass-kicking Ledaswan.

1/17/2011
Email this Story Print-ready version 1 Comment and 7 Reactions

Music > Music
The NUM83R 3, sort of
Ledaswan’s new album is geared toward impatient fans
Photo by Sarah Maspero


Bookmark and Share

By Enrique Lopetegui

Since forming in 2004, Ledaswan has earned a solid following as one of the most active bands in San Antonio. With two EPs under their belt, the group’s third self-produced — and most ambitious — recording will be released on January 21. For it, they re-enlisted the services of Matt Brown (from the Seattle-based band Trespassers William, who also mixed 2007’s Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty), and the long-awaited, two-years-in-the-making result is … another EP!

Judging by three advance tracks we were able to hear, NUM83R5, to be released with a party at Nightrocker Live, is Ledaswan’s best-sounding album so far. “Faulkner,” the first single, is a guitar/drum/bass attack that sounds cleaner and louder than previous recordings; this ain’t a demo-sounding local band. But you should’ve seen singer Erica Monzon’s eyes when she told me how the band decided on an EP instead of a full-fledged album. The conversation took place on a freezing night on the North Saint Mary’s strip.

“I actually had my heart set with NUM83R5 being a full-length, but … ” She stopped talking and looked at hubby/guitarist Jaime, and I don’t want to speculate, but it was a playful I-told-you-we-should-have-released-the-full-damn-thing-you-jerk look.

“The music industry has changed a lot,” said Jaime. “Do we really want to put out a full album and then wait for a couple of years because that’s what everybody else has always done? If we write a song that we love and say, ‘Hey, these subscribers are going to love it, let’s put it out now!’ What’s wrong with that? We can do that now. Not that that’s the way we’re going to do things always, but we want to keep that door open.”

The band recorded a total of 14 songs, six of which found their way onto NUM83R5.

“We chose the songs that got a better response, the ones we felt, ‘This should be out now,’” said Jaime. “The other ones are also good, but have the potential to be even greater, so we decided to keep working on them.” One of the songs - the San Antonio Current

San Antonio churns out its fair share of quality bands and Ledaswan are the latest to emerge from our neighboring city. The five-piece self recorded and produced their latest EP Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty last year and it was officially released earlier this year. A full-length can be expected later this year or in early 2009 according to lead vocalist Erica Guiterrez. (Ledaswan released their debut EP How to Rearrange the World in 7 Days in 2006.) The San Antonio Current was impressed enough to bestow multiple awards upon the band in March. Guiterrez’ voice is often mesmerizing and occasionally sugary sweet; “Closure” and “357” are poignant, soothing ditties while the band’s penchant for melody is apparent in songs like “The New '60s” and “Where Birds Go.” And they do pop-errific cover of The Jesus and Mary Chain’s “Head On” -- stream it via their MySpace page.

Band members Gutierrez and Jamie Monzon are also doing their bit for the music community in San Antonio; the duo co-founded the non-profit organization Local 782 -- per Local 782’s MySpace page, “Local 782 was established to bring awareness, support, and innovation to San Antonio’s music community. Uniting musicians to create opportunity by organizing, educating, and performing.”

Check out Ledaswan live tomorrow night at Beauty Bar. - the Austinist

San Antonio churns out its fair share of quality bands and Ledaswan are the latest to emerge from our neighboring city. The five-piece self recorded and produced their latest EP Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty last year and it was officially released earlier this year. A full-length can be expected later this year or in early 2009 according to lead vocalist Erica Guiterrez. (Ledaswan released their debut EP How to Rearrange the World in 7 Days in 2006.) The San Antonio Current was impressed enough to bestow multiple awards upon the band in March. Guiterrez’ voice is often mesmerizing and occasionally sugary sweet; “Closure” and “357” are poignant, soothing ditties while the band’s penchant for melody is apparent in songs like “The New '60s” and “Where Birds Go.” And they do pop-errific cover of The Jesus and Mary Chain’s “Head On” -- stream it via their MySpace page.

Band members Gutierrez and Jamie Monzon are also doing their bit for the music community in San Antonio; the duo co-founded the non-profit organization Local 782 -- per Local 782’s MySpace page, “Local 782 was established to bring awareness, support, and innovation to San Antonio’s music community. Uniting musicians to create opportunity by organizing, educating, and performing.”

Check out Ledaswan live tomorrow night at Beauty Bar. - the Austinist

Best Album of 2007
Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty,
Ledaswan
This moody, enigmatic collection bested worthy efforts from Druggist and Dog Men Poets. - the San Antonio Current

Best Album of 2007
Verse of Truth Trash and Beauty,
Ledaswan
This moody, enigmatic collection bested worthy efforts from Druggist and Dog Men Poets. - the San Antonio Current

Good looks are an obvious advantage for anyone performing on stage, so it's no coincidence that singers are usually above-average in the looks department. It's rarer to find all four members of a band in the upper quartile of attractiveness. Add singular musicianship, throw in an endearing lack of ego, and San Antonio band Ledaswan has pretty much hit the rock-band jackpot. The video on the band's website only hints at the charisma the band exudes on stage.

Ledaswan has been performing as a band for two years, but it took a lot of time and shuffling of members to come up with the current line-up. Singer–songwriter Erica Gutierrez began by performing solo under the name Leaves and later paired with a viola player under the name Ledaswan. She made a tape of her music and passed out 50 copies to people she thought might be interested. One of those copies landed in the hands of guitarist Jaime Monzon, who was then in the band Drughoney. He remembers listening to it over and over again after one of his shows. Monzon says what captured his attention was the feeling Gutierrez put into her songs. "I've always been about music that makes me feel something. It gave me chills when I first heard it. You hear lots of bands and they're pretty good, but it's pretty much background music. But when someone actually makes you stop because they're putting their heart and soul into it . . . " Monzon trails off in wonder.

Gutierrez felt a connection with Monzon because he seemed to understand her music. She says simply, "He appreciated what I did." It might sound like musical kismet, but it took two years of sporadically running into each other before Gutierrez and Monzon finally got together to play music as Ledaswan. Now they're on the band's second bassist, the poised Amanda Flores, and third drummer, the very colorful Delrick Colwell.

Monzon recalls Flores's audition for the band. Flores had seen Ledaswan once at Salute and had never been in a band before. They gave her tapes of the band's songs to prepare. "She played kind of the right thing," Monzon says, emphasizing "kind of". "You could tell there was something more to her. She really loved it. That's what we picked up on. In a couple of months, she had improved 500 times." But Monzon warns her with a laugh not to let the praise go to her head.

Colwell is the most recent addition to Ledaswan (and not the drummer in online video). The band has gathered a cadre of regular fans, but Colwell regrets that he hasn't had a chance to meet many of them. He doesn't get a chance to hang out before or after shows because he's usually guarding his set, setting up his drums, or packing them up. But he doesn't mind the relative isolation. "I like to be at one with my drums before I play," he says. "I like to play every show like it's my last."

Flores recalls Colwell's first gig with the band: "Before the first show he asked us what he should wear. We were like, 'I don't know. We never talked about it before.' We said he could wear whatever he wanted." But they regretted the lack of direction when he arrived in a Hawaiian shirt. He has since converted to what he calls basic "rock-show" black, which suits the other band members' aesthetic.

Although the four musicians are not oblivious to their visual impact, they haven't made it a priority or capitalized on it the way they could if they were more mercenary. They're focused on the music first. Watching the band perform for a crowd at Ruta Maya – with a significant number of heads bowed to laptops – proves that guitarist Monzon is serious when he says that no matter what the sound or the crowd is like, they aim to put on a good show.

"The reason I started to play music is because it's fun," says Monzon, who has been in bands for more than 10 years. "I don't ever want it to stop being fun. It is a business, but I need to enjoy myself." Gutierrez agrees. "There is a lot of competition, but you try to remember why you started playing in the first place – because you like it."

But on stage, Gutierrez on acoustic guitar and Monzon on electric, the two don't look as if they enjoy playing music so much as have an urgent need to play, to communicate. They have a focused intensity that matches the band's sound, which is a thoughtful, guitar-heavy rock that draws obvious, too-simple comparisons to a more energetic Mazzy Star. But Ledaswan isn't afraid to push in a new direction. Gutierrez sometimes straps on a harmonica, and Flores adds backup vocals that meld beautifully with Gutierrez's lead.

Ledaswan recently began recording an EP with the new San Antonio-based First Amendment Records. Fans taking it home after a show may well be able to experience the same wondrous emotiona - San Antonio Current

Good looks are an obvious advantage for anyone performing on stage, so it's no coincidence that singers are usually above-average in the looks department. It's rarer to find all four members of a band in the upper quartile of attractiveness. Add singular musicianship, throw in an endearing lack of ego, and San Antonio band Ledaswan has pretty much hit the rock-band jackpot. The video on the band's website only hints at the charisma the band exudes on stage.

Ledaswan has been performing as a band for two years, but it took a lot of time and shuffling of members to come up with the current line-up. Singer–songwriter Erica Gutierrez began by performing solo under the name Leaves and later paired with a viola player under the name Ledaswan. She made a tape of her music and passed out 50 copies to people she thought might be interested. One of those copies landed in the hands of guitarist Jaime Monzon, who was then in the band Drughoney. He remembers listening to it over and over again after one of his shows. Monzon says what captured his attention was the feeling Gutierrez put into her songs. "I've always been about music that makes me feel something. It gave me chills when I first heard it. You hear lots of bands and they're pretty good, but it's pretty much background music. But when someone actually makes you stop because they're putting their heart and soul into it . . . " Monzon trails off in wonder.

Gutierrez felt a connection with Monzon because he seemed to understand her music. She says simply, "He appreciated what I did." It might sound like musical kismet, but it took two years of sporadically running into each other before Gutierrez and Monzon finally got together to play music as Ledaswan. Now they're on the band's second bassist, the poised Amanda Flores, and third drummer, the very colorful Delrick Colwell.

Monzon recalls Flores's audition for the band. Flores had seen Ledaswan once at Salute and had never been in a band before. They gave her tapes of the band's songs to prepare. "She played kind of the right thing," Monzon says, emphasizing "kind of". "You could tell there was something more to her. She really loved it. That's what we picked up on. In a couple of months, she had improved 500 times." But Monzon warns her with a laugh not to let the praise go to her head.

Colwell is the most recent addition to Ledaswan (and not the drummer in online video). The band has gathered a cadre of regular fans, but Colwell regrets that he hasn't had a chance to meet many of them. He doesn't get a chance to hang out before or after shows because he's usually guarding his set, setting up his drums, or packing them up. But he doesn't mind the relative isolation. "I like to be at one with my drums before I play," he says. "I like to play every show like it's my last."

Flores recalls Colwell's first gig with the band: "Before the first show he asked us what he should wear. We were like, 'I don't know. We never talked about it before.' We said he could wear whatever he wanted." But they regretted the lack of direction when he arrived in a Hawaiian shirt. He has since converted to what he calls basic "rock-show" black, which suits the other band members' aesthetic.

Although the four musicians are not oblivious to their visual impact, they haven't made it a priority or capitalized on it the way they could if they were more mercenary. They're focused on the music first. Watching the band perform for a crowd at Ruta Maya – with a significant number of heads bowed to laptops – proves that guitarist Monzon is serious when he says that no matter what the sound or the crowd is like, they aim to put on a good show.

"The reason I started to play music is because it's fun," says Monzon, who has been in bands for more than 10 years. "I don't ever want it to stop being fun. It is a business, but I need to enjoy myself." Gutierrez agrees. "There is a lot of competition, but you try to remember why you started playing in the first place – because you like it."

But on stage, Gutierrez on acoustic guitar and Monzon on electric, the two don't look as if they enjoy playing music so much as have an urgent need to play, to communicate. They have a focused intensity that matches the band's sound, which is a thoughtful, guitar-heavy rock that draws obvious, too-simple comparisons to a more energetic Mazzy Star. But Ledaswan isn't afraid to push in a new direction. Gutierrez sometimes straps on a harmonica, and Flores adds backup vocals that meld beautifully with Gutierrez's lead.

Ledaswan recently began recording an EP with the new San Antonio-based First Amendment Records. Fans taking it home after a show may well be able to experience the same wondrous emotiona - San Antonio Current