The Small Sounds
Houston, Texas, United States | SELF
Music
Press
“Roots rock, played by a bunch of guys who obviously know what they're doing; I was mesmerized when guitarist Craig Feazel sat down and started playing the pedal steel ... A beautiful, beautiful sound, understated and melancholy but still confident as hell. Wow.” - SpaceCityRock.com
The Small Sounds have carved them selves out an album out that is more country than 'Indie Country' but waaaaaay to the left of 'orthodox' Nashville Country. This 12-song full-length album has grit, tenacity, stellar vocals and playing, and sounds quintessentially Houston. The haunting tale of Mothers and Daughters is a pretty Texas country ditty played within the framework of a Beatles-esque progression (without sounding contrived). This album is recorded simply and cleanly without the corny sounding, over washed reverb that all the kids are using these days to record their brand of Country. Or whatever. As for live performance, The Small Sounds pull off all their antics on stage with ease and their harmonies are a delight. - Free Press Houston
“[The Small Sounds] possesses this amazing, gentle warmth ... vulnerable and wide- open, moving along at just the right speed without feeling rushed ... These guys are past masters when it comes to restraint; they never overdo it ... the heartbreakingly gorgeous "Leave Virginia Girl," ... the luminous slide guitar and piano on "Grey While Gone," ... the folk-gospel feel of "Room Eight" ... it's difficult to pin down a standout track ... Taken as a whole, the album feels less recorded than crafted ... Even now, after repeated listens, I find myself drawn to The Small Sounds over and over again, wanting to hear those subtle flourishes and heartworn voices and feel that deep-down warmth one more time ... And really, that's the best recommendation I can give.” - SpaceCityRock.com
“Thank God for The Small Sounds. This sextet of seasoned H-Town musicians is part of a growing contingent reclaiming country from the slickly sweet Nashville nonsense ... a sound that hearkens back to [country’s] early days when the loosely defined genre included mountain music, bluegrass, early rock and roll stylings and a whole grab bag of folk influences.” - Houston Press
Discography
The Small Sounds - S/T full length (2009).
The band’s second album (presently untitled) is set for release in the Spring of 2012.
We have tracks streaming on our facebook, last.fm, and myspace pages.
Photos
Bio
The Small Sounds, originally from Houston, Texas, began as a group of friends sparked by a shared appreciation for folk, retro pop, 60's psychedelia, and old country. After playing in numerous groups in Los Angeles, Austin, New York, New Orleans, Memphis and Denver, they all made their way back to Houston to play the music they love. The Small Sounds' songwriting is influenced by everyone from The Byrds to American Analog Set, Johnny Cash to Caribou, Leon Russell to Radiohead ... you get the idea.
The Small Sounds strive to meld together the old and the new to create music that is modern yet reverberates with the influences of yesteryear – their aim is to find commonality between vastly different styles across large spans of time. The Small Sounds have become known for the interplay of Fender Rhodes, sprawling pedal steel, jangly guitars, and harmonies, all of which accent strong folk-pop melodies. They’ve been compared to Beachwood Sparks, Calexico, Great Lake Swimmers, Ryan Adams, and The Band.
The band has earned recognition and a devoted following in their hometown as reflected by the 2008, 2009 and 2010 nominations for Best Unclassifiable Band and Best Roots Rock/Americana Band by the Houston Press.
Influences include, but are certainly not limited to... The Gulf of Mexico, old italian movies, inertia, various Charlies (Rose, Kerfeld, Brown, Watts -- and the cologne, charlie), Houston thunderstorms, Dunkin Donuts coffee, The Little Bear, Ray Charles' left hand, various Johns (Cash, Prine, Cleese, Lennon, Steinbeck, Wayne, Doe, Paul Jones, Bonham), absinthe, Caribou, Calexico, and 2 Beef Enchiladas.
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