Band of the Week

Black Before Red

It's rare that a band just appears out nowhere with a powerful sound and near perfect debut album. For most bands it can take years to perfect their and release a career defining album. So how did these four Texans come to record such an amazing debut? Well these are not high school kids self-producing an album, this is a band who has been playing in and around Austin, TX for quite something. It has been said that they are "a band's band". All though their official history is readily available they are believed to have ties to Okkervil River, and even received some assitance from them in recording, "Belgrave to Kings Circle" (i eat records, 8/07).

Musically, the band is drawing comparisions to the The Shins for their melodies, Of Montreal for the harmonies, and Sea & Cake for their layered instrumentation. Their music seems simple on the surface, familiar in a distant family vacation sort of way, but as you digg deeper you begin to find complexities in sound and lyric. Hand claps, finger snaps, muted horns, gentle electronics all add to the impressive blend of 70's am pop and modern indie-folk.

Each member of this quartet plays multiple instruments, Mark Ferrino, Kevin Schneider, Josh Huck, and Marc Dickey. This only adds to the depth of their and the power of this debut album.

Goddess in Trauma

Check out the One Sheet

Belgrave to Kings Circle (i eat records, August 14, 2007)

Underneath Gold/Matagorda/Our Last Summer/Goddess in Trauma/Bossa Nova #7/Finding Peace in the City/Teenage America/A Passengers Guide to Getting By/Spilt Milk Mistake/Halliberlin Petroleum/Waiting for the Bang

Listen to:

Goddess in Trauma (mp3)

Matagorda (mp3)

Teenage America (mp3)

Underneath Gold (mp3)

For more information on Black Before Red visit their myspace page. You can also pre-order the album there for $10.