Review: Reighnbeau- Friends
Reighnbeau, whether it is intentional or not, make some
pretty sinister sounding music. I think it has to do with the downcast vibe
that just radiates from them, as well as the unsettlingly whispered vocals of
frontman Bryce Hample.
Hample hails from New Mexico, which is not really the kind
of place that you would associate with music like this. After two excellent
full-length releases—2010’s self-titled, and last year’s Ashes, Reighbeau are back with Friends,
a short set of sparse, acoustic tunes.
Friends is a bit
of a reissue actually. It was self-released by Hample last spring in a very
limited batch of cassettes that are long gone now. But he was unhappy with how
the entire project turned out—the mastering of the tracks, lack of attention it
received, etc. So Kevin Greenspon’s Bridgetown Records has remastered and
released it as part of their spring 2013 batch of cassettes.
That’s right. This is a cassette release. Just deal with it.
You could describe Reighnbeau as “slowcore” (yes, that is a
genre of music.) and they are known to have some shoegaze leanings. It’s easy
to hear that in some of their other material—specifically, the incredible 2012
single “Splinters.” Ashes was a very cavernous affair, where
the reverb in the room acted as if it were a band member. But on an
all-acoustic release such as this, it’s easy to forget about that. The songs
are not bound by the traditional confines of the shoegazing genre, which gives
this set a refreshing sound.
Friends also works
as a bit of an experiment in brevity. Of the nine songs, only two of them go
over the three-minute mark. There’s no real reason for them to be extended out
any longer—they get their point across in the allotted time. But the ending
sometimes comes on too quickly, leaving you with the desire for more—like on the
second track, “Whittle.”
The aforementioned “Splinters” shows up here in an
extraordinarily stripped down format—this along with the opening track,
“Blood,” are stand outs when it comes to setting up the “sinister” vibe I
mentioned before. The tape’s longest track, “Harmony,” showcases some intricate
guitar string plucking, which can actually sound quite beautiful, and reveals
another level just beneath the darkness that’s on the top.
Reighnbeau make fall/winter music, so it’s a bit odd
listening to this in the spring. Friends is
an evocative collection of songs of a band that continues to draw influence
from a variety of genres, yet refuses to be defined by just one.
Friends is a co-release between Bridgetown Records and Grey, and is available now as a free digital download, or as a limited edition cassette.
Comments
Post a Comment