The Calm Blue Sea
RIYL: Caspian, Mogwai, Explosions in the Sky
Performing: December 12 @ Mohawk.
The hardest thing for a post-rock band to do is not sound like Explosions in the Sky. It’s true – ask This Will Destroy You. It’s really hard, apparently. The Calm Blue Sea doesn’t seem to have this problem though. The band just released their first LP, a self-titled six song offering produced by Erik Wofford, whose previous credits include working with My Morning Jacket, The Blacks Angels and the aforementioned Explosions. The self-titled record swells and soars, explodes then decays, following a tested post-Mogwai formula without sounding tired and too familiar.
Live, The Calm Blue Sea conveys every once of emotion their stellar debut documents. The band recently wowed a surprisingly packed Red7 audience and undoubtedly will again in December when they join The Midgetmen, Follow That Bird and The Bubbles at Mohawk. Tickets are available at the door.
CBS isn’t entirely instrumental, like some of their peers. Vocals do show up occasionally (“Literal,” “This Will Never Happen Again”) though they’re placed in the mix more for effect, just another layer in the band’s dense compositions. The same goes for xxx piano. While CBS aren’t the first and only space-rock band to use a piano, it’s from this melodic framework that The Calm Blue Sea is able to build such epic tunes, providing more dynamics and ethereal range than a few delayed and otherwise-effected guitars can.
The Calm Blue Sea is available at Waterloo Records for $9.99 or through the band at their shows.
photo care of: ED Fuentes/Blogdowntown.com
Thanks to all the bands and everyone that came out on Saturday night for the Old Bank District Holiday Block Party. It was amazing! Look for more photos and videos of performances in the next couple days.
Music video for Ice Cube's "Gangsta Rap Made Me Do It" from the album Raw Footage released in 2008 by Lench Mob Records.
Ice Cube plays Mohawk on Sunday, December 14. Get your tickets here.
UPDATE:
06:30-07:00 Restaurant
07:15-07:45 Dawes
08:00-08:30 Rumspringa
08:45-09:15 The Like
09:30-10:00 Whispertown 2000
10:15-10:45 The Afternoons
*NOTE: These are the real times.
Come down tonight for the Old Bank District Holiday Block Party. We celebrate the holidays by shutting down Main St (between 4th & 5th) and Spring St (between main & spring). Little Radio will have a stage at the intersection of 4th and Main with live performances from The Like, Whispertown 2000, The Afternoons, Restavrant, Rumspringa, Dawes and others. The event is free to all and all ages. There will be food, a beer garden, a Jazz stage and cocktail bar in an adjacent alley and plenty more. See below for links, videos and free mp3 downloads for all bands performing.
The Like
Video for The Like's "June Gloom" from their LP Are You Thinking What I'm Thinking? (Geffen)
Whispertown 2000
Restavrant
Rumspringa
Video for Rumspringa's "Goldmine" from The Rumspringa EP out now on Cantora Records, directed by Evan Romoff.
Dawes
Directed by Austin Peters
Video for Dawes' "Love Is All I Am" filmed in North Hills, CA.
Music video for ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead's "Caterwaul" off the record Worlds Apart released in 2005 by Interscope Records.
...Trail of Dead plays Red 7 on Saturday, December 13. Tickets will be sold at the door.
Firsts: Sh*te that happened before other sh*te happened.
Today: James Petralli's Firsts! I hope you enjoyed my personal Firsts; this time, we examine what inspired White Denim's James Petralli through the years.
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