Your 33 Black Angels

The past few years have been an excellent time for garage-pysch, thanks to artists like Thee Oh Sees, the Fresh & Onlys, the Black Angels and Sic Alps. However, we haven’t heard much from Brooklyn’s voice within this recently (rehashed) scene, until now, with Your 33 Black Angels. They have a distinctly New York take on psychedelic pop, piling on distortion, delay, and reverb, where they reference past local institutions like the Velvet Underground in their lysergic-sopped drones. Their lead vocalist “JW” also recalls Lou Reed, when here he recites the lyrics with a mix of poetry and indifference in “Lucifer, Morning Star.” JW sings, “There’s not much between us but madness and violence and tears/ There’s not much holding us back except violence and diseases and years.” Lines like this have a dusty feel that lends the song a cryptic wisdom. Your 33 Black Angels may be drawing more inspiration from the past than looking forward, but their guitar-spun cuts are at least equipped to age well. - MTV Hive

The past few years have been an excellent time for garage-pysch, thanks to artists like Thee Oh Sees, the Fresh & Onlys, the Black Angels and Sic Alps. However, we haven’t heard much from Brooklyn’s voice within this recently (rehashed) scene, until now, with Your 33 Black Angels. They have a distinctly New York take on psychedelic pop, piling on distortion, delay, and reverb, where they reference past local institutions like the Velvet Underground in their lysergic-sopped drones. Their lead vocalist “JW” also recalls Lou Reed, when here he recites the lyrics with a mix of poetry and indifference in “Lucifer, Morning Star.” JW sings, “There’s not much between us but madness and violence and tears/ There’s not much holding us back except violence and diseases and years.” Lines like this have a dusty feel that lends the song a cryptic wisdom. Your 33 Black Angels may be drawing more inspiration from the past than looking forward, but their guitar-spun cuts are at least equipped to age well. - MTV Hive

Rock’n'roll is not dead because there are still rock bands making it, and if you are one of those people who need your rock music to be revolutionary and without precedent well boy have you come to the wrong genre in the first place. Rock bands have been reworking the classics since before Led Zeppelin was ripping off Willie Dixon. So, okay, here’s Brooklyn’s Your 33 Black Angels, and this one just kills it: the vibe is terrific, the guitar riff insistent, the lyrics slippery but compelling, and the organ fills are perfect. (Do not underestimate the organ in the rock’n'roll bag of tricks.) And then there are the little, unutterable things. One example: early in the song (0:26), when the singer sings, “I was just reminded,” and there’s that long and perfect pause between “just” and “reminded,” and it’s exactly the kind of thing you do if you really know how to write songs. In the end there is something so precise and exquisite about this seemingly rough-hewn song. It sounds like something Ron Sexsmith would write if he were in a band with Neil Young. - Fingertipsmusic.com

Rock’n'roll is not dead because there are still rock bands making it, and if you are one of those people who need your rock music to be revolutionary and without precedent well boy have you come to the wrong genre in the first place. Rock bands have been reworking the classics since before Led Zeppelin was ripping off Willie Dixon. So, okay, here’s Brooklyn’s Your 33 Black Angels, and this one just kills it: the vibe is terrific, the guitar riff insistent, the lyrics slippery but compelling, and the organ fills are perfect. (Do not underestimate the organ in the rock’n'roll bag of tricks.) And then there are the little, unutterable things. One example: early in the song (0:26), when the singer sings, “I was just reminded,” and there’s that long and perfect pause between “just” and “reminded,” and it’s exactly the kind of thing you do if you really know how to write songs. In the end there is something so precise and exquisite about this seemingly rough-hewn song. It sounds like something Ron Sexsmith would write if he were in a band with Neil Young. - Fingertipsmusic.com

When you see a song titled "Pop," there's a good chance you'll expect it to be even slightly influenced by the genre. Do not expect that from Your 33 Black Angels' "Pop" -- expect so much more. There's is a number in which electric guitars are drenched in reverb, indie-rock flirts with electro, and the whole thing is dolloped with a heap of psychedelia. It's nothing short of a musical experience, and one you'll want to have over and over. - Purevolume.com

When you see a song titled "Pop," there's a good chance you'll expect it to be even slightly influenced by the genre. Do not expect that from Your 33 Black Angels' "Pop" -- expect so much more. There's is a number in which electric guitars are drenched in reverb, indie-rock flirts with electro, and the whole thing is dolloped with a heap of psychedelia. It's nothing short of a musical experience, and one you'll want to have over and over. - Purevolume.com

This spring, the New York band Your 33 Black Angels quietly released one of this year's treasures: Lonely Street (no label), in a numbered vinyl-only edition of 250 (I've got number nineteen). The LP is worth the hunt for its pop-wise rattle (Pavement with a case of the Strokes) and singer Josh Westfal's resemblance, in dry, frank voice and cautious optimism, to another local institution: Lou Reed on the Velvet Underground's fourth album, Loaded. - Rolling Stone

This spring, the New York band Your 33 Black Angels quietly released one of this year's treasures: Lonely Street (no label), in a numbered vinyl-only edition of 250 (I've got number nineteen). The LP is worth the hunt for its pop-wise rattle (Pavement with a case of the Strokes) and singer Josh Westfal's resemblance, in dry, frank voice and cautious optimism, to another local institution: Lou Reed on the Velvet Underground's fourth album, Loaded. - Rolling Stone

With three guitars and a keytar jostling over the rhythm section, the potential for chaos was high. Perhaps that’s why the group started with slower, tidier material that suggested either the Doors (if it was stately and keyboard-driven) or the Rolling Stones in their Gram-Parsons-is-my-personal-guru period (if it was twangy and a little wasted). For such examples of the latter mode as “Modern Girl” and “English Accents,” it didn’t hurt that tambourine-twirling lead singer Josh Westfal matched a Jagger-like vocal weariness to a look that was pure Brian Jones: fur coat, scarf worn like a tunic and a shoulder-length mop of light-brown hair.

Although Westfal’s voice has been compared to Lou Reed’s, the Angels’ affinity to the Velvets was most obvious when they locked into a “Foggy Notion”-style vamp. None of the songs lasted as long as the near-epic numbers on the band’s brand-new album, “Moon and Morning Star,” yet the interlocking guitars sometimes surged into what seemed like an eternal groove. - Washington Post

With three guitars and a keytar jostling over the rhythm section, the potential for chaos was high. Perhaps that’s why the group started with slower, tidier material that suggested either the Doors (if it was stately and keyboard-driven) or the Rolling Stones in their Gram-Parsons-is-my-personal-guru period (if it was twangy and a little wasted). For such examples of the latter mode as “Modern Girl” and “English Accents,” it didn’t hurt that tambourine-twirling lead singer Josh Westfal matched a Jagger-like vocal weariness to a look that was pure Brian Jones: fur coat, scarf worn like a tunic and a shoulder-length mop of light-brown hair.

Although Westfal’s voice has been compared to Lou Reed’s, the Angels’ affinity to the Velvets was most obvious when they locked into a “Foggy Notion”-style vamp. None of the songs lasted as long as the near-epic numbers on the band’s brand-new album, “Moon and Morning Star,” yet the interlocking guitars sometimes surged into what seemed like an eternal groove. - Washington Post

I first checked into Your 33 Black Angels in October of last year. I was impressed and I even drafted up a post. I guess I lost the cd (because I can't find it now) or just lost track of my thoughts because this is the first time I've mentioned them. I was reminded of the band the other day at my local independent record shop, LUNA Music. The clerks were high on them, playing the cd as I browsed - I thought, "Hmmm, I'm pretty sure I've listened to this cd a couple times. What is it again?" I figured it out, so I went back to check the archives, and sure enough, post started but never completed.

The Brooklyn-based band self-released Lonely Street last year, and have been hearing good reviews ever since. Lou Reed/Velvet Underground comparisions aside, the band makes catchy lo-fi/grit rock with some softer pop sensibilities. I doubt it will be long before they're signed to a solid indie label.

This band will also be down at SXSW this year, playing TC’s Lounge on March 13th. - My Old Kentucky Blog

I first checked into Your 33 Black Angels in October of last year. I was impressed and I even drafted up a post. I guess I lost the cd (because I can't find it now) or just lost track of my thoughts because this is the first time I've mentioned them. I was reminded of the band the other day at my local independent record shop, LUNA Music. The clerks were high on them, playing the cd as I browsed - I thought, "Hmmm, I'm pretty sure I've listened to this cd a couple times. What is it again?" I figured it out, so I went back to check the archives, and sure enough, post started but never completed.

The Brooklyn-based band self-released Lonely Street last year, and have been hearing good reviews ever since. Lou Reed/Velvet Underground comparisions aside, the band makes catchy lo-fi/grit rock with some softer pop sensibilities. I doubt it will be long before they're signed to a solid indie label.

This band will also be down at SXSW this year, playing TC’s Lounge on March 13th. - My Old Kentucky Blog

A reader sent us an e-mail recently telling us to check out the band. A quick trip to their MySpace page and I was hooked almost immediately. About a week later, Lonely Street by Your 33 Black Angels arrived, courtesy of a fine Chicago postman.

I slipped Lonely Street into the player on the way to work and was almost giddy. It was like discovering super-chunk peanut butter for the first time. Regular peanut butter is good but super-chunk is great. Most of the bands I listen to are good, but Y33BA is great. (In case anyone was wondering, I passed my creative writing class in college with flying colors. C+)

Your 33 Black Angels have wonderfully catchy licks and brilliant wry lyrics that would make David Berman proud. You’ll hear the low-fi sound familiar from the 90’s and a hint of more current garage rock. A couple of tunes that stood out amongst the rest on one amazing album were “Town & Country,” “Sue” and “So You Say You Want Love?.”

Lonely Street is a 12-song collection that sounds effortless. For a moment I thought I might be able to make a disc like this. My lack of musical skill, inability to keep a beat, and voice that sounds like a cat on pills brought be back to reality. Check out the tracks below and visit them on MySpace to purchase the album and hear more Your 33 Black Angels. - Hearya.com

A reader sent us an e-mail recently telling us to check out the band. A quick trip to their MySpace page and I was hooked almost immediately. About a week later, Lonely Street by Your 33 Black Angels arrived, courtesy of a fine Chicago postman.

I slipped Lonely Street into the player on the way to work and was almost giddy. It was like discovering super-chunk peanut butter for the first time. Regular peanut butter is good but super-chunk is great. Most of the bands I listen to are good, but Y33BA is great. (In case anyone was wondering, I passed my creative writing class in college with flying colors. C+)

Your 33 Black Angels have wonderfully catchy licks and brilliant wry lyrics that would make David Berman proud. You’ll hear the low-fi sound familiar from the 90’s and a hint of more current garage rock. A couple of tunes that stood out amongst the rest on one amazing album were “Town & Country,” “Sue” and “So You Say You Want Love?.”

Lonely Street is a 12-song collection that sounds effortless. For a moment I thought I might be able to make a disc like this. My lack of musical skill, inability to keep a beat, and voice that sounds like a cat on pills brought be back to reality. Check out the tracks below and visit them on MySpace to purchase the album and hear more Your 33 Black Angels. - Hearya.com

A few things you should know about Your 33 Black Angels: (1) They hail from Brooklyn; don’t confuse ’em with Austin’s Black Angels. (2) They are nominally “indie rock,” but with a twist, because, for every quirky Pavement-y twist or lo-fi GBV-ism, there’s a corresponding Velvet Underground choogle and burst of Yo La Tengo luminosity—in fact, songwriter Josh Westfal’s fragile-but-friendly vocals recall YLT’s Ira Kaplan’s. (3) From strummy/twangy “This Is the Road…” and gangly power-popper “Once I Dreamed the Future” to the twisted, Ween-like funk of “Sue” and the outrageous geek anthemry of “Psycho on Your Side” there’s not a wasted—or repeated—move here. (4) Y33BA initially released Lonely Street last spring in a ridiculously limited vinyl edition of 250; only much later did they think to have CDs manufactured to meet the growing demand. (5) Lonely Street was the only 2007 release for which HARP personally called up the band and pleaded for a review copy—such was the street buzz on it. Guess what? That buzz was dead-on.
By Fred Mills - HARP MAGAZINE

A few things you should know about Your 33 Black Angels: (1) They hail from Brooklyn; don’t confuse ’em with Austin’s Black Angels. (2) They are nominally “indie rock,” but with a twist, because, for every quirky Pavement-y twist or lo-fi GBV-ism, there’s a corresponding Velvet Underground choogle and burst of Yo La Tengo luminosity—in fact, songwriter Josh Westfal’s fragile-but-friendly vocals recall YLT’s Ira Kaplan’s. (3) From strummy/twangy “This Is the Road…” and gangly power-popper “Once I Dreamed the Future” to the twisted, Ween-like funk of “Sue” and the outrageous geek anthemry of “Psycho on Your Side” there’s not a wasted—or repeated—move here. (4) Y33BA initially released Lonely Street last spring in a ridiculously limited vinyl edition of 250; only much later did they think to have CDs manufactured to meet the growing demand. (5) Lonely Street was the only 2007 release for which HARP personally called up the band and pleaded for a review copy—such was the street buzz on it. Guess what? That buzz was dead-on.
By Fred Mills - HARP MAGAZINE

"...recall the early psych-rock of Roky Erickson and The Seeds." - Consequence of Sound

"...recall the early psych-rock of Roky Erickson and The Seeds." - Consequence of Sound

Your 33 Black Angels (not to be confused with Austin’s own Black Angels) is a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based psych-rock group. Unlike the great-but-gloomy Texan band with whom they share a similar name, Your 33 Black Angels temper their lead-heavy psych with plenty of pop and folk touches.

The sometimes-octet has a fluid lineup that fluctuates in membership. The band has four records under their belt since their 2007 debut Lonely Street, and number five, Moon And Morning Star, was just released last week. Album standout “Pop” has the dirge-y vocals and eastern, lysergic dissonance you’d expect from heavy psychedelia, but also a peppiness that you wouldn’t. There’s a strong backbeat, and the drumming is quick and muscular. With big, triumphant choruses, at heart, “Pop” really is a catchy tune. - WKUT Austin

Your 33 Black Angels (not to be confused with Austin’s own Black Angels) is a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based psych-rock group. Unlike the great-but-gloomy Texan band with whom they share a similar name, Your 33 Black Angels temper their lead-heavy psych with plenty of pop and folk touches.

The sometimes-octet has a fluid lineup that fluctuates in membership. The band has four records under their belt since their 2007 debut Lonely Street, and number five, Moon And Morning Star, was just released last week. Album standout “Pop” has the dirge-y vocals and eastern, lysergic dissonance you’d expect from heavy psychedelia, but also a peppiness that you wouldn’t. There’s a strong backbeat, and the drumming is quick and muscular. With big, triumphant choruses, at heart, “Pop” really is a catchy tune. - WKUT Austin

With three guitars and a keytar jostling over the rhythm section, the potential for chaos was high. Perhaps that’s why the group started with slower, tidier material that suggested either the Doors (if it was stately and keyboard-driven) or the Rolling Stones in their Gram-Parsons-is-my-personal-guru period (if it was twangy and a little wasted). For such examples of the latter mode as “Modern Girl” and “English Accents,” it didn’t hurt that tambourine-twirling lead singer Josh Westfal matched a Jagger-like vocal weariness to a look that was pure Brian Jones: fur coat, scarf worn like a tunic and a shoulder-length mop of light-brown hair.

Although Westfal’s voice has been compared to Lou Reed’s, the Angels’ affinity to the Velvets was most obvious when they locked into a “Foggy Notion”-style vamp. None of the songs lasted as long as the near-epic numbers on the band’s brand-new album, “Moon and Morning Star,” yet the interlocking guitars sometimes surged into what seemed like an eternal groove. - Washington Post

With three guitars and a keytar jostling over the rhythm section, the potential for chaos was high. Perhaps that’s why the group started with slower, tidier material that suggested either the Doors (if it was stately and keyboard-driven) or the Rolling Stones in their Gram-Parsons-is-my-personal-guru period (if it was twangy and a little wasted). For such examples of the latter mode as “Modern Girl” and “English Accents,” it didn’t hurt that tambourine-twirling lead singer Josh Westfal matched a Jagger-like vocal weariness to a look that was pure Brian Jones: fur coat, scarf worn like a tunic and a shoulder-length mop of light-brown hair.

Although Westfal’s voice has been compared to Lou Reed’s, the Angels’ affinity to the Velvets was most obvious when they locked into a “Foggy Notion”-style vamp. None of the songs lasted as long as the near-epic numbers on the band’s brand-new album, “Moon and Morning Star,” yet the interlocking guitars sometimes surged into what seemed like an eternal groove. - Washington Post