New Sense

flowers before hours - album reviews
With the Flowers Before Hours EP, New Sense has created a sparkling indie pop release that should excite fans of bands like the Postal Service and Starsailor. Considering the fact that the band features members of Camden, Decibully, Citizen King, and Paris, Texas, it's really no surprise that the five songs are wonderfully mellow tunes to be enjoyed on a warm night with the windows open and a soft breeze blowing in. The vocal harmonies and catchy chorus within "Songs on the Radio" may cause spontaneous humming along, while the dancey pop of "Ready to Leave" brings visions of Elefant, and even Kenna, to mind. Another enjoyable effort from the group; now if only they would release a full-length already. ~ Corey Apar, All Music Guide - All Music Guide

New Sense a common ground for group
By JON M. GILBERTSON
Special to the Journal Sentinel

Before singer and guitarist William Seidel and bassist Ryan Weber got together in the seven-man Decibully, they were in Camden, a talented indie-rock quartet that never quite capitalized on its buzz. In fact, Camden broke up during a 2001 recording session that Citizen King's Kristian Riley was producing - which is where the story of New Sense begins.
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New Sense
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Working out of Bionic Studios, a local studio that Riley co-owns, New Sense quickly developed, and a self-titled, seven-song EP came out shortly thereafter. Riley still handles the production and also contributes guitar and backing vocals; fellow Citizen King bandmate D.J. Brooks plays drums; and Paris Texas guitarist Nolan Treolo rounds out the quintet.

With a new EP, "Flowers Before Hours," out on the Brilliante Records imprint, New Sense has clearly become an exploratory pop band. The five songs here, from the Cure-influenced "What If I Get Sick" to the slick and airy "It's Possible," suggest a reach toward a larger audience. In fact, the band is currently considering major-label offers for an already-completed new album, "Flowers After Hours."

Riley spoke for the band.

Q.How is New Sense regarded by the members, considering that it did begin as something of a side project?

A. New Sense is the main thing that I do now. I was recording a project that D.J. and Ryan had called Camden, and the band broke up in the process of recording. But I felt a good vibe with the guys. We took some of the songs that were written, and that ended up being our first CD.

Q. How did you come to be the producer, and what's your feeling of the sound of this band?

A. I've always been the producer of the band, and a lot of times the other guys are on tour, so there's no one else to finish the recordings, really. I definitely don't take the Steve Albini approach, which is really just capturing a band and not changing anything. New Sense is pretty much the opposite. We utilize all the tools that the digital age has to offer in recording our music. We use the studio sort of like an instrument. We do write a lot collectively as a band, so a lot of what happens to the song ends up happening in the studio.

Q. How do you regard Milwaukee as a place for original music?

A. It's an incredible place for original music. I moved to L.A. for a year to scope out the scene there, but I got really bummed because I knew the people I was working with in Milwaukee were far more talented and original than out there. Nolan (of Paris Texas) and I also played with a band called the Etiquette. Bands like that, Paris Texas, Decibully: all these bands are original and different. Yet everyone relates to each other.

Q. Was the intention of this band to explore music that maybe wasn't suitable for the other bands everyone is or was in?

A. Our style is sort of a meeting, a common ground among our perspectives. We have different experiences, particularly with D.J. and I being on a major label, and those guys (from Decibully) having more of an indie-rock background. A mission statement has always been to try to write hit songs. The way the band and the arrangements come together is toward that.

Q.What do you envision doing with this band in the future?

A. We actually have finished an album - it's recorded and mixed and done, so now we're just trying to figure out what to do with it. We've been talking to major labels and we've gotten some nibbles, but we haven't actually inked a deal yet. The "Flowers Before Hours" EP features some songs from that.

Our music has a broad appeal; it's not just for the cool-kids club. We also have a few songs that are pretty radio-friendly, and I don't think any of us are afraid of that. That's certainly, decidedly, consciously a way we're not indie-rock. Davey von Bohlen (of the Promise Ring and Maritime) said to me, "Nobody ever has to apologize for writing a hit song."
- Milwaukee Journal Sentinal