Leaves Russell

The four weird guys from Leaves Russell released their first full length on March 9th at the Doug Fir Lounge in SE Portland.

The sinister themed album, “We Chose the Devil Red,” is a rock compilation that lacks guitars, but the Portland based band achieved an epic rock sound that tears at your emotions. The album itself, from song to album art, was designed to bring out the tendencies of human nature that society has labeled evil. Yes, buy the album. You’ll love it. Each song will pull your heart in another direction. But if you really want to experience the true musical emotion, go see a live show. - The Portland Pick [3/15/13]

LEAVES RUSSELL, NO KIND OF RIDER, JOSH AND MER
(Doug Fir, 830 E Burnside) Guitar addicts will need to look elsewhere: Leaves Russell doesn't carry a typical six-string in its arsenal. Rather, the Portland four-piece is fueled by lead singer Matthew Russell's piano and Thacher Schmid's mini string section, which includes violin, mandolin, and viola. (Bassist Isaac Medina and drummer Jackson Conrad round out the ensemble). Leaves Russell's first full-length, We Chose the Devil Red, is a moody, almost proggy collection of reflective songs, and what it lacks in buoyancy it makes up for with an almost bloodlust-y sense of the macabre. The darker tunes are usually the best on We Chose the Devil Red, but whichever ones they play at tonight's record release show, they're bound to connect with you in unexpected places. NL - Portland Mercury [3/6/13]

Leaves Russell bill themselves as "Portland's masters of space and time." If that's truly the case, then the space is inside our city's many dreamy artistic heads. And the time lies somewhere between Harry Nilsson's and Tori Amos' first makeout session in a parallel universe and Radiohead's in-studio jam sessions while getting loose to lay down a money track. This Portland quartet creates intelligent understated music for the contemplative rocker. They're quietly powerful, sport classically influenced chops, but also seem to be more in utero right now than blowing out their first candle, so to speak. If these boys stick with it and really take what they're doing to its logical emotional end -- not to mention get a producer who kicks their butts -- they just might create something that could make some serious noise. Show up dressed up, and you could be in their next video.

Leaves Russell, 9 p.m. Friday, April 13, BING Lounge, 1210 S.W. Sixth Ave. $10, $15 for two. Free beer and wine, free copy of show. All ages. Info: www.leavesrussell.com.
- Portland Tribune

Leaves Russell bill themselves as "Portland's masters of space and time." If that's truly the case, then the space is inside our city's many dreamy artistic heads. And the time lies somewhere between Harry Nilsson's and Tori Amos' first makeout session in a parallel universe and Radiohead's in-studio jam sessions while getting loose to lay down a money track. This Portland quartet creates intelligent understated music for the contemplative rocker. They're quietly powerful, sport classically influenced chops, but also seem to be more in utero right now than blowing out their first candle, so to speak. If these boys stick with it and really take what they're doing to its logical emotional end -- not to mention get a producer who kicks their butts -- they just might create something that could make some serious noise. Show up dressed up, and you could be in their next video.

Leaves Russell, 9 p.m. Friday, April 13, BING Lounge, 1210 S.W. Sixth Ave. $10, $15 for two. Free beer and wine, free copy of show. All ages. Info: www.leavesrussell.com.
- Portland Tribune

Leaves Russell releases debut album, raises local bar
By Nicholas Kula
Vanguard staff

Leaves Russell: Delivering a holy experience.
Like black metal, grind and pretty much all electronic music, Portland has this unspoken ratio in play: For every good band, there are approximately 300 bad ones. Everyone in Portland thinks they're in a good band. That said, for some strange reason, our town's venues are clogged with bands that are just plain no good. With Portland's nepotistic nature, spots in our now waning venue population are hotly contested. More often than not, smaller venues are packed to the gills with bands nobody really wants to see. But quietly, in the shadows, relative unknowns are doing some amazing things. Enter: Leaves Russell.
On Feb. 4, Leaves Russell released its first piece of music, "Tale of Two Basements." A very promising release, ToTB may have performed the impossible: raising the bar of Portland's stalwart music scene—and nobody out there knows it yet. On the flipside; at five tracks, does ToTB have the mass necessary to make a real impact on Portland's sonic landscape?
In the shortest terms possible: it should. More honesty drips from this record than most albums released by Portlanders in the last few years. Listeners will call it like it is on this record. Leaves Russell are, in no uncertain terms, a more pop-oriented Radiohead with some R&B hooks scattered throughout.
And really, that's fine. Songs like "Paperthin" really exemplify this comparison. Frontman Matthew Russell sounds like Thom Yorke might, if Yorke weren't howling into a microphone drenched with compression, reverb and echo. It is this sense of stripped-down honesty that characterizes ToTB. Sparse but lush instrumentals cover the terrain of the record, which are only augmented by Russell's crooning.
When the instruments drop out, Russell's voice is naked and wavering, which only reinforces the idea that this record seems to conjure up again and again: Four guys got together and recorded a very real album, more out of passion than menial chore. Lots of records released in this city traverse every path BUT honesty, and sad to say, the façade quickly wears thin.
Every member contributes something to the band, which is more than can be said for quite a few bands these days. The lovely piano work is added by Russell himself, and its interplay with strings player Thacher Schmid's violin on songs like "La Zona Rosa" is pared down and devoid of any pompous frills—quite the welcome change from early 2011's (and late 2010's) glut of dense tedium.
The rhythm section, comprised of bassist Isaac Medina and percussionist Jackson Conrad, is about as tight as any band could hope for. The closing minute or so of the album's opening track, "Heart of Things," is a perfect example. In what appears to be a short interlude at the end, the band interplays brilliantly with one another with gorgeous tones all around, especially those from Medina.
Of course, no album is without its flaws, and thankfully, this record keeps them to a minimum. Some of the songs could stand to be tightened up a bit. Some songs, such as "Paperthin" have a couple sparse transitions that drag down the mood of the song a bit. The transitions between tracks aren't as smooth as they could be, but I think this hints at the album's chief problem: the track order.
The record as a whole is exceptional. The order in which they choose to present it, however, is a little slipshod. The album's pathway is a rocky one mood-wise, when a record of this caliber and emotive content could benefit from a much smoother ride. Personally, I'd order the tracks two, four, one, three and five for maximum enjoyment. But when your record's biggest problem is the track order, I'd say you're doing just fine. ¦
- Portland State University Vanguard [3/1/11]