There’s something novel about this band
Vancouver sextet claims ’70s sounds of the New York No Wave, post-punk Manchester scenes
A self-described “DIY-artmusic collective,” Vancouver’s NoV3L has clearly studied the sounds that came out of the ’70s New York No Wave and post-punk Manchester scenes. This isn’t to say that the sextet sounds dated; rather that its taut, angular and driving material will reach an instant comfort level with fans of acts ranging from Gang of Four to Girl Band, Interpol to Joy Division.
This explains why the band is out on the road across northern England, the Low Countries and obvious German stops such as Berlin and Leipzig. Its music is an instant fit on that side of the Atlantic.
Lots of groups are mining this same sound, but NoV3L are getting somewhere with it because, well, there is something novel about the band’s mix of mechanical coldness and warm swagger. Here are five things to know about the group’s self-titled EP:
1 SO NOT A JAM BAND
The eight songs clock in at under 20 minutes, so the Free Bird has flown to other pastures. Instead, the typical solo is a few discordant keyboard passages in the final 15 seconds of Natural or the surprisingly slow rhythm guitar build to Will To Power.
2 DANCEABLE
One of the things about the whole mutant disco scene was that it was, by its very nature, good to dance to. So are NoV3L’s songs, particularly Sign on the Line, with its imperative lyric and persistent snare and hi-hat work.
3 TRANSFORMATION
This isn’t exactly cheerful music. In fact, the lyrics tend toward the paranoid and desperate. And why not? This is the world we live in. As the band shouts in the opener To Whom It May Concern — Time is a resource/To use and to treasure — and you get the sense they are using it to the fullest and that you should, too.
4 ART-POP
This used to not be a dirty word when applied to music made by such acts as the Pop Group or Tackhead, and NoV3L seems set on delivering the music with conceptual frameworks such as in the band’s effective low-budget video for To Whom It May Concern. It’s amazing what can be done by dressing everyone in matching gym kits and dancing around like a bunch of rhythmically challenged club kids. Also, the spooky bit at around the two-minute mark is great.
5 A CONTRACT TO LISTEN?
With song titles such as To Whom It May Concern, Sign on the Line, Will To Power and Division, one could surmise that some members of the group might be law students. Or they just might be angling for the audience’s attention with sharp and insightful music that could really take it places. The live footage online certainly makes me want to see them play.
ALSO SPINNING THIS WEEK: Howe Gelb: Gathered (Fire Records):
The legendary Tucson, Ariz., roots poet is all over the map on his latest solo joint, covering the late Leonard Cohen’s A Thousand Kisses Deep with M. Ward, being joined by his 15-yearold daughter Talula for an off-kilter take on Moon River and digging into his own slinky side on the instrumental Anna, or sounding like a vintage blues record on All You Need to Know. In typical fashion, he’s all over the road on the 15 tracks, but sounding both world weary and inspired as usual. A lot of this probably comes from the album being recorded in Cordoba (Spain), Paris, Dublin and under the saguaro cacti in Arizona. Happy trails, indeed.
Tedeschi Trucks Band: Signs (Universal):
Eleven new funky, swinging bluesrock jams from one of the best bands in the business working today. The longer this group stays together, the better its mix of swampy soul, big-band brass and spectacular guitar work becomes. From the opener Signs High Times to the acoustic strums and organ in When Will I Begin, a lot rides on the lead vocals of Susan Tedeschi and she nails it on this recording better than any of the group’s previous releases. Overall, the mood of the album is more understated with a lot more slow-burning soul songs, of which All the World is a standout. Yes, fans of Trucks’ blazing slide may be a bit bummed, but the songwriting is stellar.
Various: Kankyo Ongaku: Japanese Ambient, Environmental and New Age Music 1980-1990 (Light in the Attic Records):
The amazing compilation label continues its exploration of music from Japan with this collection of Kankyo Ongaku, or environmental music, recorded for everything from in-store soundtracks for retailer Muji to companion sounds for a Sanyo air conditioner, incidental escalator ditties and more. It’s altogether wonderful to listen to things such as Toschi Tsuchitori’s Ishiura (abridged), which includes assorted gongs and chimes being struck in seemingly random ways and left to echo off into space, or the almost Eno-esque Park by Interior which pairs looped synth lines over a steady finger snap that becomes hypnotic. New Age and other terms in North America denote a kind of sonic schmaltz, this collection is anything but. It’s 23 tracks of bliss.
We Found a Lovebird: Deluxe Hotel (wefoundalovebird.bandcamp.com):
The fourth release from this local band begins with Never Would Have Guessed. It’s one of the group’s rockier opening riffs that builds to a Yo La Tengo-like back-pocket boogie before the breathy, near-spoken vocals arrive. The tune has a trancelike effect. On the whole, WFaL excels at this kind of music. There’s some chiming jangle pop in there, too. Just check the chorus in Only So Much, where lead vox Larry Lechner gets his inner doo wop artist out in the open.
WE FOUND A LOVEBIRD CD RELEASE
When: Feb. 16, 8:30 p.m. Where: Railway Beer Cafe and Stage, 579 Dunsmuir St. Tickets: At the door.