Tonight: The Dodos w/ AU @ Spiegeltent

I think I've said enough about the Dodos to skim over them in describing tonight's show's. I'm going to cut right to Au (get it? like the periodic symbol for gold!). I'm interested to see them tonight, as most experimental music is hard to really understand until you see it live. I'm not even sure what instruments they use, or how they could possibly create so many sounds with only 5 people.

The west coast has been sort of kicking ass this year in terms of releases. Fans of Animal Collective and other experimental outlets will be impressed by the circus-y, jazz influenced sounds of Au's Verbs. The whole album feels like one epic track, beginning with a crazy choral ensemble, slowly whittling down the sounds to a discordant mist in the album's final track "Sleep". This is not an album for listeners yearning for catchy, easy listening, however it will impress those yearning for something one step beyond indie pop.

Anyone else joining us tonight?

<3 The Elephant

New Awesome Song

Au (pronounce the letters as in: A, U) is a Portland, Oregon based band that is sort of overtaking my world right now. Its one part Animal Collective, one part Bach and one part Huck Finn american folk. I read about them on Stereogum, of course, and it seemed to patch some sort of tear in my musical life. I keep listening to these folk-y soft spoken guitar strumming men, and frankly I need to break out. I am super digging Au because it has a lot of those folk elements that I am loving from The Cave Singers and Fleet Foxes, but also has some more progressive, "noise" to it, that is usually not dissonant or contradictory. It really reminds me of Animal Collective, on the Panda Bear side of things. Head over here and here for some downloads, and to read what SG has to say about them. I didn't even read their review, but hopefully it doesn't totally contradict mine.

They are playing April 19 with Fleet Foxes, in Portland Oregon at 1001 SE Morisson St. IF YOU LIVE ON THE WEST COAST (SPANG) YOU MUST GO TO THIS.

Their album Verbs is out 6/26 on Agoo.

<3 The Elephant