Buzzin': Evening Magazine
mmmm.....artsy
Every now and then, you’ll stumble across a pleasant musical surprise. A band you have no great expectations for comes out of nowhere and sweeps you off your feet with grace and subtlety. Recently, I’ve found myself becoming more and more impressed with Evening Magazine, a Philly 9-piece ensemble who have a knack for quietly magnificent and orchestral melodies. I have a weakness for good string arrangements, and Evening Magazine employ them unbelievably effectively.
Their debut EP, The Ride Across Lake Constance, enters with Sufjan-caliber instrumentation in “Apple Eye,” horns blaring and snares rattling, driving into a wave of electro-goodness before it fades into a whisper of a vocal selection, which crescendoes into 3 voices harmoniously cascading in a room of reverb. “18 Wheels” follows suit, with perhaps the catchiest melody on the EP. Then comes “On the Corner,” a break from the pattern, reminiscent of early TV on the Radio driven by a drum beat with sparse orchestration, only the occasional onslaught of horns. Stop reading this, and start listening to it.
The melodies in the EP are simple in a singable sort of way, but it’s the sophistication of the instrumentation which drives the music. If the debut is this good (and they claim it was recorded in a shed in North Philly), imagine what they could do recording in a house! Chills. Sheer ecstasy.
The Ride Across Lake Constance will be released digitally very soon, and the entire EP can be streamed on their myspace. Check out “18 Wheels” for more of what I love about this band.
wow, this is really decent- — thx