Something Like Sound

Mike Marchant, the man behind Widowers and The Outer Space Party Unit (in addition to playing guitar for Houses), is currently giving away his first three EPs as a “thank you” to fans. For the next few days Marchant’s solo work will be available for free through his bandcamp page (Marchant suggests putting a zero in the name-your-price box, also don’t worry about any threats of an obnoxious email list, he’s not a fan of such devices). News of this giveaway comes on the heels of Marchant’s announcement that he’s starting a new band:

I’m about to begin work on a full-length with a new band.  I put an absurd amount of time into writing the songs, and am very excited to share them with you.  Details (band name, members, etc) will come soon.  Happy new year, and thanks again for listening.

While the overall tone of Marchant’s work is relatively cohesive, each EP explores different aspects of pop, folk, lo-fi, space, and electronic styles. In addition to the three EPs, a $1 release for the single “You Were A Runner” is also available through Marchant’s bandcamp. To give you a taste of this release, we’ve embedded it below.

Download: Outer Space and the Sea | Indulgent Space Folk Vol. 2 | ISF Vol. 3: Binary Beach

In-studio radio performances are often reserved for those few who possess the following: a radio/internet stream and enough sense of memory to actually tune in. I can name more than a few occasions where I have earnestly intended to hear my favorite bands play live sets over the radio waves, but simply lost track of time and space. Fortunately (and this is where the actual reviewing starts) there’s the new in-studio compilation from DU internet radio station KVDU.

The first thing that struck me about KVDU Live Vol. 1 was the ridiculously stacked track listing. It’s hard to go wrong when you’re listening to some of the best bands that Denver has seen in recent years. My personal favorite tracks are “Don’t Be Peaches” from Everything Absent or Distorted, “Asleep at the Wheel” by Old Radio, and the previously unreleased “Tunnel of Love” from Hearts of Palm. The live songs recorded by Widowers, The Knew, Paper Bird, and Pee-Pee also get my stamp of approval.

As far as sound quality is concerned, this collection is crisp, well-mixed, and much better sounding than you would expect for songs recorded in an internet radio station studio. This is due, in part, to the fact that the entire compilation was given the professional treatment and got professionally mastered in Chicago. However, as with any compilation or mixtape, track-flow is incredibly important. For KVDU Live Vol. 1 heavier rock songs are tempered with softer folk and pop songs in a way that keeps things moving while emphasizing each track’s place.

KVDU Live Vol. 1 will be released on May 7 at the Hi-Dive and free physical copies will be available that night. There will be live sets from Mike Marchant and his Outer-Space Party Unit along with Blue Million Miles and Old Radio. Marchant will also be releasing a new solo record, Indulgent Space-Folk Vol. 2 that night.

Listen to Hearts of Palm – “Tunnel of Love”

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Tracklist after the jump

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Saturday was different. Not to say it was better or worse than another day, it was just gray (or grey, depending on how geeky you are). It almost felt like a different festival all together, the cloudy/rainy skies certainly had me feeling a bit more mellow than normal.

Upon arrival, Jake and I checked out the full-band John Common & Blinding Flashes of Light, but left soon after, because I had just seen John on Thursday (and the songs, while being full-band, were the same ones he had done solo-acoustic). We wandered over to South Broadway Christian Church to catch Elin Palmer & Kal Cahoone, and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was not another Palmer set (having seen her the night before), but an entirely different experience.

We continued wandering and soon found ourselves at the TS Board shop watching Bastards of Young finish their set, then ran in to Virgil from Suburban Home. He introduced us to In The Red, and their drummer Matt Glasgow (who Virgil claims is the “Tallest Drummer in the World”). After listening to some of their hardcore-punk-rock, it was time for something completely different.

Having seen The Wheel the previous night, I was eager to catch Joseph Pope III. Yet again we found ourselves mellowing out to his folksy guitar-based songs. Next up was Dressy Bessy, a band with lots of energy and danceability (although, as Lance from The Flat Response pointed out, the crowd wasn’t in to it, so things fell a little flat on that end).

As things at the outdoor stage finished up, it was time for one of my faves: Danielle Ate The Sandwich. The Hornet got pretty crowded as people crammed in to the limited space to hear Danielle play her unique ukulele songs. It was a thoroughly enjoyable set, complete with a few covers (I think I heard some Hall & Oates, and maybe some TLC). Danielle was her normal charming self and kept the crowd’s attention, even between songs.

It was out into the rain again to get down to Indy Ink for Mike Marchant (of Widowers). I knew that we were in a good place by the other people who were there watching (I’m pretty sure I saw some of Bela Karoli, and most of Houses, more on that in a bit). Mike’s songs, although mostly “slow/sad,” played well with the weather, and his more upbeat tunes were well appreciated. At the end of the set he invited his band mates from Houses to play “We’ll See The Sun,” and I can’t think of a better way to end a set.

By this point, I was beat. Staying out until 2am for two nights in a row makes even the young (and presumably strong) pretty tired on the third day. So we called it a night and headed home.