Tiger Saw
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Tiger Saw

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This band has not uploaded any videos

Music

The best kept secret in music

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"Gimme Danger / Gimme Sweetness"

Tiger Saw's introspective, cello-tinged indie rock nooks itself somewhere between Low's subtlety and Songs:Ohia's profundity. Beautiful male/female harmonies, wailing distant guitars and heartfelt, poetic lyrics about heartache and disappointment define Tiger Saw's music, which sticks tight to Low's slow tempos but adds a bit more ornamentation, Centered around frontman Dylan Metrano, the songs' folky campfire-singed intimacy could easily stand on its own, but they find their character in Tiger Saw's picket-fence-of-noise production style.
- CMJ Weekly


"Gimme Danger /Gimme Sweetness"

The third album from this semi-amorphous Newburyport, MA, band shows a new growth as well as a newfound playfulness, making for a thoroughly enjoyable listening experience. Regular partners-in-crime Juliet Nelson and JR Gallagher rejoin Dylan Metrano in the studio to make some moving songs based upon contemporary literature and music but completely their own, with the exception of a stunning Wolf Colonel cover that they almost steal from its originators. Wolf Colonel's Jason Anderson lends his multiple talents to the record, as does Marc Gartman, allowing the music to move in many directions at once on a whim. The result is a braver, rawer, and more passionate Tiger Saw with the power to either decimate or reduce to tears anyone who listens. The dueling/blending voices of Metrano and Nelson are to die for, as always, and Anderson even joins in here and there, adding a new dimension to the vocal presence. Where there is a real difference is in the music, as the melodies and presence of these songs is more confrontational than the band has shown in the past. It's almost as though they are reinvigorated or reinspired in their craft, taking more chances and feeling less dependent on their past. Even the mixing seems to bring everything more to the forefront, and right at the listener, conveying an emotionally charged reality. The first few songs on the album sway from themes light-hearted to contemplative and near bitter to somber, and there's nary a misstep to be found. This is well-crafted art, created and presented with a pure heart bent on the task, projecting whatever it feels at that moment. The song where I completely became immersed in the wonder of it all was the simple and gorgeous instrumental "West of the Sun," with a crescendo that almost eclipses the rest of the record. To think that this band has that power even without their much-lauded singing ability was pleasing, to say the least. With all of the different layers Tiger Saw peeled off to reach this point, they're bound to uncover more magic underneath. For this time, there's plenty to go around. - www.brainwashed.com


"Gimme Danger / Gimme Sweetness"

With the first line of the first song giving us the name of the record, all that is left for the listener to do is to sink into the simple but luscious arrangements of this beautiful record. Main tiger Dylan Metrano has written nine incredible songs (and picked one really nice Wolf Colonel song as a cover) and has then had the foresight to bring along a great set of musicians (Julliet Nelson on cello and vocals and Colin Rhinesmith who recorded this wonder and added some glockenspiel, organs, and bass, to name a few) execute these gems. Wow, that's a lot of parentheses!

Easily compared to boy-girl groups like Low (in their slow, but harmony-filled songs) and Ida, (with their slightly less-slow, but equally as harmony-filled songs) and with an edginess akin to some of the Microphones work, Tiger Saw still retains a great degree of individuality in its choice of sound. Recorded in a house, but not sounding one bit lo-fi, the aesthetic seems to be firmly focused on the songwriting and the song's slow but eventual unfolding into full bloom.

Take the fourth track "I Am So Cold". It starts with Dylan's slightly quivering voice alone against a glacial and indistinct sheet of reverbed noise. With no hurry, other voices join in harmony, followed by simple banjo lines that punctuate the formless background. Lap steel creeps in for the second verse, adding another slippery layer to this mostly ethereal song. But forty seconds from the end, drums and glockenspiel come in bring the song to a glorious end. Not bad for a three minute track.

Yet another amazing record from Kimchee, label du jour for the best Massachusetts' bands out there today. Tiger Saw has created a work of quiet majesty with this record, and they have added one more fan to their increasing legion of admirers. Go get this record and join yourself.
- www.indieworkshop.com


"Gimme Danger / Gimme Sweetness"

Tiger Saw's Gimme Danger/Gimme Sweetness continues on the same dreamy path as their previous record, Blessed Are the Trials We Will Find, but at a slower rate. As has been probably stated many times before, Tiger Saw share a lot in common with such slowcore bands as Low, Ida, and the For Carnation. Gimme Danger/Gimme Sweetness is probably offering more of the latter, sweetness - there really is not much danger here. The vocal merge of Dylan Metrano and Juliet Nelson tends to be a duel, working against each other - the vocalists seem to be more successful when singing on their own. Tiger Saw draws on the formula of crawling at a slow, dreamy pace with sweet male/female harmonies, a pattern that Tiger Saw are great at but one that doesn't seem to challenge them or the listener. All that being said, the simple instrumentation and dragging pace against the languid vocals works in Tiger Saw's favor on this short release. One highlight of Gimme Danger/Gimme Sweetness is the instrumental, "West of the Sun," where Tiger Saw do briefly flirt with danger, slowly building tension with droning cello and picking guitars. Tiger Saw round out the end of Gimme Danger/Gimme Sweetness with a sincere rendition of the Wolf Colonel track "The Goodbye," finishing with an interesting depth that captures the lyrics of a farewell and showcase Tiger Saw at their best. Gimme Danger/Gimme Sweetness is another decent release by Tiger Saw. - www.allmusic.com


Discography

Gimme Danger / Gimme Sweetness (2004 Kimchee Records)

I Am a Cold Rock. I Am Dull Grass. A Tribute to the Music of Will Oldham (2004 Tract Records)

Blessed are the Trials We Will Find (2002 Kimchee Records)

Eye of the Beholder compilation (2000 Vorpal Studios)

"I Keep My Misfortune" 7'' single (2000 Redwood Records)

How to Be Timeless Tonight (1999 self-released)

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

Tiger Saw is from Newburyport, Massachusetts, a seaside town 40 miles to the north of Boston. Founding songwriter Dylan Metrano is the one constant in the band, although mainstays Juliet Nelson and JR Gallagher have accompanied him in the studio and in many a live setting since the year 2000. Sometimes Tiger Saw is just Dylan wandering through an audience singing with acoustic guitar in hand, and at other times as many as a dozen performers augment the live experience with cello, viola, piano, organ, drums, horns, and other assorted noisemakers.

Tiger Saw specializes in the whisper, the waltz, and sweet songs that are jazz in concept, but not in execution. Metrano and his ever-growing band of friends and collaborators are impassioned about performing this music for people all over the world, sharing stories, playing campfires, and creating something special night after night.