Music
Press
Take Una Volta-era DeVotchKa, subtract Nick Urata's Morrissey croon and replace it with the sometimes-Ani-DiFranco, sometimes-Sarah-Vaughan vocals of Alana Rolfe, add a little more flair for weird noises, and you might get something that sounds like this Fort Collins-based act. The band's violin-based pop bears a broad range of influences, from lounge to Eastern Bloc to indie shoegaze. Eclectic yet satisfyingly consistent, Zugenruhe, Stella Luce's debut long-player, is well-rooted and hook-based. Some moments work better than others (the album's first track, "Prelude," for instance, sounds like a horror-movie soundtrack and gets grating after about the first thirty seconds), while the smoldering seduction of songs like "Esteban's Fishing Song" and the soaring builds of "Beltbomb Machine" make the album worth repeated listens. - Westword
Discography
Zugenruhe
11 Song LP
Release Date 5/22/09
Currently on Rotation at:
90.5 KCSU, 88.9 KRFC, 101.5 KTNI, 1190 KVCU, 93.3 KTCL, 93.9 KBFR, and 106 WZND
Photos
Bio
Colorado based band Stella Luce find themselves poised at a crossroads where traditional music collides with indie rock and electronica. Eastern European melodies carried by lush strings intersect with electronic beats, synthesizers, and rock drums to create something both exotic and refreshing.
Their sound is simultaneously reminiscent of Portishead and Devotchka. With the release of their debut album set for the spring of 2009, Stella Luce is being called one of the most innovative new bands in Colorado’s thriving music scene. The classically trained violist Alana Rolfe leads the band’s sound with her sultry, seductive voice and hauntingly beautiful string arrangements. Her background in folk, blues and bluegrass is apparent throughout the music, adding a vintage feel to even the most cutting edge tracks. Multi-instrumentalist Brett Schreiber adds his uniquely melodic flare to the low end with the bass and cello, and also provides the various acoustic and electronic accoutrements that lend an eccentric, genre defying quality to the music. Rounding out the mix, and laying down the booty-shaking beats that keep the music moving, is drummer and local underground legend Errant Waters. He contributes his uncanny ability to create solid yet innovative beats to any imaginable style of music. Together, these influences create a sound that is often hard to describe, but even more difficult to forget.
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