Tuesday, January 31, 2012

It Takes Me Away



I was introduced to Milo Greene this past December as the opening act for The Civil Wars. They are a fun fivesome straight out of LA comprised of Robbie, Graham, Marlana, Andrew, and Curtis. They had all been working on other projects and had gotten together to pursue a collaboration with each other.

The thing they had in common? Harmony.

And they're friggin' good at it! It is really impressive for 5 people to be on the same page artistically and especially over harmony. What they produce is soothing. It is very easy on the ears, yet it stirs something in you to get you going. And I could just about listen to them all day over and over and not get tired of their sound.

Like The Civil Wars, they are very folky, but since they have more members, they can play more instruments. They have a set drummer, but there is one thing that's really unique about this band: the other four interchange on instruments played. It is quite an awesome performance element to see them transition from song to song and from instrument to instrument during they're set. I spoke with them after the show and they said they have to really think out their sets because of this. Who needs to be where at what time, will it be easy to cross over and under and around microphones? They have to take all this into consideration.

I thought it was just part of their gimmick, but this is just how they wrote the songs. Sometimes someone had a banjo in their hand and had a riff, another two with a guitar, and the one who didn't have an instrument would have to pick up the bass. If they didn't know how to play, they learned so they could fit in and help that song be. It says much of their commitment to their music and each other with being able to just fill in where needed. They're cohesive and do a fantastic job transitioning. If you watch the videos below, you may see where they cross paths from song to song.

I was sad that they only had a 3-song CD that they were selling while touring with The Civil Wars, but they informed me that they were headed up to Washington state this past January to get some studio time in...because after just 6 short months together they were picked up by Atlantic records! That's crazy, and impressive. On their YouTube channel they have released some clips of their new stuff and I cannot wait to hear their full-length project.

They're touring the West coast right now, and are currently in the mixing process of their LP.

Below are a few of my favorites:

This was their intro and the song "Don't Give Up On Me" in Charlottesville:

Often I play this one again and again and again. It easily gets stuck in my head:

"Cutty Love" was my favorite one I heard live:

And then a little love ditty for V-day, "1957":


These guys rock and I cannot wait to hear more from them! If you want more info, check out their Facebook page here.

This could get BIG in the indie/alternative/folk scene!

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