Here's a band demanding a little more their audience. Les Racquet turn through more directions in track 'Too Young's ' fantastic harmonies than most bands get through in an album. The trio met up in Brooklyn under two years, and already have a full-length under the belts. But their sound is even more ambitious. There's an almost schitzophrenic cocktail here that moves from punk to Afrobeat to acid jazz in equal turns, but never pulls away from the meat and potatoes required of any ambitious young group. Like an iPod playlist come to life, this is a group you'll find impossible to pin down, but easy to get down to. See them when they play The Studio at Webster Hall on April 11th with Not Blood Paint. - Mike Levine (@goldnuggets)
This band submitted their music for review digitally here.
Ambient and slightly androgynous, the duo Belle Mare released their dreamy debut EP “The Boat of the Fragile Mind” earlier this spring. The EP resonates with somber tones and almost whale-like howls, unraveling soft acoustic guitar, simple piano melodies, and occasional subtle drones. The title track features the quivering vocals of Amelia Bushell, one half of the Belle Mare duo with guitarist Thomas Servidone, painting a dreamscape portrait of longing. Charade (streaming below) gently develops an unexpected blue melody that can lull you into the deepest of sleeps - I've heard of people dreaming of sleeping, in NYC. The duo met at an open mic night in Brooklyn and recorded the album in Servidone’s apartment, but notwithstanding the DIY approach, the record is full of character and the sound mature. With their mix of rich surrealism and an almost gothic aura, these song sounds as if played through an antique phonograph inside a parlor room... located in the deepest of our subconscious. While “The Boat” could easily draw comparisons to other dream-poppers Beach House, Belle Mare’s subtleties and extreme sparsness create a stronger emotional drive and more nostalgic appeal. - Devon Antonetti
