In One Wind

Musicians, like gods and sci-fi writers, play with time at the peril of their work. Because music falls on our ears in real time, and also because we have a cardio-vascular metronome set to 4/4, we are physiologically predisposed to music with a steady beat. We generally respond best to songs that, like us, have a pulse. When we are confronted with rhythms broken up in uneven parts, they tend to strike us as unnatural or jarringly cerebral—or both, if we’re anti-intellectually inclined to think of stimulus to the mind, rather than the body, as abnormal. I’m anything but anti-intellectual, even in my attitudes toward pop music. Still, I found myself struggling with this inborn resistance to erratic musical time as I listened to the first album by a new band out of Brooklyn called In One Wind. By the end of the second song on the group’s first album, a pretty little enigma aptly titled “What Seems to Be,” all my preconceptions about musical time-play had collapsed.

In One Wind is one of the most inventive and satisfying new bands to have a name that is weirdly awkward to pronounce. The configuration is guitar, three voices (two women, one man), stand-up bass, drums, and various reeds and woodwinds played by two of the members. Its orientation is arty in a way that will later date the group as a phenomenon of Brooklyn in the year 2011, but its music is something more than pretentious. It’s not just gimmicky IT-Dept. pop. The band’s debut album, How Bright a Shadow, just released last week, is exuberantly experimental, neatly dissonant, multi-textured, peppered with surprise, and almost radical not only for the angularity of its time, but also for its underlying warmth.

Like a great many bands today, most notably Animal Collective, In One Wind makes fragmentary music that grows from the experience of living in the ADD age. Its fragmentation is joyful, less a critique of atomization than a cheerful celebration of it. I wish this music had a bit more bite; what it has is a prankish grin, and it makes me smile back. - The New Republic

Folk music tends to earn a pass for its simplicity, favoring storytelling over compositional flourishes. Brooklyn-based indie-folkers In One Wind, however, don’t subscribe to that pared-down aesthetic, weaving their tales through strange angles and stunning, startling juxtapositions. On their debut, How Bright a Shadow!, songwriter Angelo Spagnolo takes inspiration directly from both Franz Kafka, the Bible and the Brothers Grimm, all sources that mire moral fables in bleak, nonsensical violence, an approach directly translated into In One Wind’s stark shifts and baroque confabulations. - Philadelphia City Paper

Blending and often juxtaposing elements of pretty much any genre out there, from Pop to Doo-Wop Jazz, from Americana to Math Rock, and using all sorts of instruments to do so, Brooklyn's In One Wind can be described as a big musical carousel. The band is about to release their debut album "How Bright a Shadow!" on August 16th and the 2 songs available for free preview (embedded below) are very promising. This is obviously a group of people belonging to the that category of musicians who are trying to find new musical paths within the pop realm, and these tracks succeed in being at once entertaining and interesting - something too often both pop and experimental music fail to achieve.


Your music has many different influences, from rootsy music to jazz to classical and experimental. How did all these influences converge into one music?

ANGELO: I don’t think it was a conscious decision to have such a wide range of pockets, but just sort of the way things have worked out up to this point. There is so, so much good music to check out and sometimes it’s hard to keep the boundaries up (not that anyone really should though). We’re starting to find our way around the current music and that is definitely guiding what the next batch of songs will be.

Where did the band name come from?
ANGELO: When the band was started I was reading a lot of Wendell Berry and I came across this poem:

All

All bend

in one wind.

It seemed (and still seems) to have a ton of connections for me.

What are your biggest musical influences?
MAX: My everyday surroundings and particularly my friends and peers. &nbspThere are a lot of really talented people among my friends and their friends and their friends and I'm frequently influenced and inspired and motivated by them.
ANGELO: I agree with Max. I’m never as motivated to create as after I hear what the people around me are up to. Sometimes it’s just like, “Damn.” Also, seeing the groups that have been around for 10+ years is really inspiring. Two examples: Zs and Dirty Projectors. They both went through so many different phases that all have importance to the amazing music that’s happening now. It’s so exciting to hear.

What's your ideal, realistic four-band bill?
ROB: (Assuming you mean with In One Wind): Cuddle Magic Gym, Deer, Zs, In One Wind
MAL: In One Wind, Cuddle Magic, Pattern Is Movement, Becca Stevens Band

What's your dream four band bill?
STEVEN: If this had to include In One Wind, I guess I'd have to say Fred Frith (solo guitar) Nico Muhly, St. Vincent, In One Wind (backed by the San Francisco Symphony)
SAM: My dream lineup for any group I perform with almost always includes Clap your Hands and Say Yeah, Tom Waits, and Bjork, which I think would work really well with In One Wind. &nbspIf it were a tiny venue, I think IOW with Madeline, Wildbirds and Peacedrums, and The Story of Modern Farming would be excellent.

What's the first concert that you ever attended and first album that you ever bought?
STEVEN: First concert I saw that truly inspired me to pursue music was seeing the Dave Holland Quintet at the SFJAZZ festival. The first record I bought was "The Best of Paul Desmond"
MAX:Very first CONCERT, and not like, kid field trip or something like that, but real concert that I was really excited about attending, was Dave Matthews Band when I was 9 years old. Yes.
First album I bought was from one of those mail order CD forms. My parents use to get them, and one time, I think I was 9 at the time as well, I convinced them to fill one out and let me make a pick. I picked "Odelay" by Beck.
SAM:The first concert I attended was Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at Summerfest in Milwaukee, with my mom- nothing quite like grass seats at the Marcus Amphitheater. The first concert I ever went to without a parent was Britney Spears with my cousin Megan she won the tickets on the radio. We tried our best not to have fun, but it was pretty cool.
The first CD I ever bought was from a used CD shop called 'Music Go Round' near my grandparents house in WI. It was Matchbox 20, Yourself or Someone Like You. &nbspI bought Del tha Funkee Homosapien's I Wish My Brother George Were Here on the same day, but Matchbox 20 was definitely on top of the stack. Definitely.
ANGELO: My first concert was a triple bill: Lynyrd Skynyrd / Deep Purple / Ted Nuggent at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Pavilion when I was thirteen.
My earliest music I owned was on two tapes. The first was a Michael Jackson mix tape and the other was from that Jim Henson Show, The Dinosaurs. They put out this strange hip-hop/rock record.

What do you love about the NYC music scene?
ROB: It offers extremely high quality music of any type. You can see a symphony orchestra, an improv night at the Stone, a singer-songwriter, an experimental rock band and a jazz group all in one day (if you have the attention and energy).
MAL: I love the convergence of every culture in one place. It unbelievable, in the true sense of the word. I can go see classical Indian music one night, an indie rock band the next, and a west African drum and dance corps the next. There is inspiration coming from every direction, and in any way you can digest it.

What would you like to see change in the local scene?
ROB: I wish there was more of a sense of music for music's sake, rather than as a revenue stream, with many venues. However the financial realities of running a business in NYC often conflict with that ideal.
MAX: Well sometimes I hear bands that play really, really loud and while I know people are into that and everything, I'd still like to listen to music when I'm an old man and so maybe they could turn it down just a little?

What are your plans for the upcoming year?
ROB: We're releasing our first full length record "How Bright a Shadow!" on August 16th via Primary Records. We just finished a June tour and will be touring again in the fall as well as playing around the northeast through the end of 2011 and into 2012 to support the record.

Is there someone who has helped your band grow through support?
MAL: There are many people! This band has been helped along by so many of our family members and friends, it almost always feels like we are working toward something for more than 6 people.
STEVEN: We recently campaigned on Kickstarter.com where we raised over $8,000 to record How Bright a Shadow. Crazy, right? These supporters have become our backbone - allowing us to take our music to the next level. We have a beautiful new record thanks to our dear friends and family!

Is there a piece of equipment you couldn't live without and why?
ROB: My double bass. It's a John Jusek German workshop bass from the 1960s. I immediately connected with its unique sound the first time I played it in a shop in Chicago 5 years ago and knew it was the bass for me.
MAX: I have a cymbal that I found in the attic of my middle school's band room that I absolutely love, even though I don't use it all the time. It's the only thing I have that's irreplaceable. - Deli Magazine

I missed the first opener, Cuddle Magic, but arrived in time to catch In One Wind, the second band of the night. The Brooklyn sextet played a terrific set, mixing vocal harmonies and woodwinds with some upright bass of their own. Traditionally rooted songs mixed with innovative stylings and funky rhythm breaks give In One Wind a unique sound, and they held the Knitting Factory audience’s attention throughout a long opening set. I had never heard of the young band before, but color me convinced – I’ll keep an eye on them in the future. - Melophobe

This band is incredible. It's ghostly melodic with changing time signatures. It's not math rock at all. And it's not jazz. It's far from either. In One Wind is folk-based and it's Angelo Spagnolo's one-man band fleshed out into a stripped down 4-piece plus a 2-piece choir.

The lyrics are honest and beautiful and their meter is unpredictable. The additional vocals of Mallory Glaser and Lilly Claire Nussbaum are a haunting accompaniment to Angelo's voice. At times, Lilly or Mallory takes the lead and their phrasing is beautiful. Bassist Rob Lundberg and percussionist Max Jaffe provide color to Angelo's songwriting. They just added multi-reedist Steven Lugerner who sometimes plays the bass clarinet, one of the most underrated rock instruments. The songs build yet never get too loud still creating a sustaining intensity. They remind me of Free Design with a little bit of The Association and Simon and Garfunkel.

Does one person write or do you write together?
Angelo brings in the bare bones and together we flesh out the songs.

Who do you all listen to?
Gyorgy Ligeti, Bulgarian Women's Choir, Tom Waits, Bjork, J Dilla, Sufjan Stevens

Is there an atmosphere you're trying to create with your sound or does it just happen?
There's a balance between predetermination and discovery through experimentation.

How often do you practice together?
once a week, give or take

Who inspires you?
David Foster Wallace, David Lynch, David Attenborough

Who influences your sound?
sounds, in general

What are you currently reading?
Names on the Land: A Historical Account of Place-Naming in the United States by George Stewart, The Coming Insurrection by the Invisible Committee, Under the Rock Umbrella by various authors, Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace, The Bible, The Torah

Is this your first residency?
This is our first residency (and it's actually every other week. The next one isn't til Nov. 12th).
We are currently booking our first tour for late February/early march through the Midwest.

You can see In One Wind at Spike Hill in November and December at Spike Hill in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Check out their songs at http://www.inonewind.com - Digital City

In One Wind might rightly be called a folk band, but its six members take that categorization as a light framework and introduce to it numerous additional stylistic influences, including jazz, experimental, and pop. Most of the songs on their self-titled debut EP start off as quiet guitar scratchingsand pleasingly soft male vocals, and while some remain in that realm, others dip suddenly into odd rhythms or haunting drum solos. Folk, though, is certainly their guidepost sound and for that they can be compared to Iron & Wine, though their larger size quickly lifts that comparison away from the bedroom tapes and more into the weightier accompaniment of Sam Beam’s later output.

Another band that comes to mind is the Dirty Projectors, because not only does IOW make unexpected rhythmic leaps that feel like controlled tripping, but they make excellent use of female vocal harmonies. Guitarist/Vocalist Angelo Spagnolo sings with a soft, silky croon that recalls the Bowerbirds’ Phil Moore, while Mallory Glaser and Lily Claire Nussbaum jump in intermittently with old-timey-radio style flair. Add to that Max Jaffe’s subtle, jazzy drums, Robert Lundberg’s dark and sneaky upright bass, and Steven Lugerner’s mastery of the woodwinds, and the band’s eclecticism speaks for itself.

Opener “Two Fine Pressed Suits” begins as a gentle campfire guitar piece, Spagnolo singing in a silky heartbreaker tone before some breathy harmonies ease into the mix. A bit of tongue-dampened clarinet adds a fuzzy weightiness and suggests a fuller sound to come. The track gets noisier and noisier as it progresses, the other band members adding their talents in a subtle yet undeniable way, giving it some heft even as it holds onto its original mood. “Moving” accomplishes something else entirely with a driving train tempo full of random crashes and unexpected rhythm changes. The chorus is one such moment, and delivers a nice dose of pop that makes it something to look forward to. These two songs illustrate the appeal of IOW: they take the comforting, soul-scratching beauty of singer/songwriter guitar folk and combine it with experimental rhythms and randomness that will entice the easily bored.

by Liz Levine - Knocks from the Underground