IamIs

IamIs
...it's what life feels like when you're lost out here...
Debauchery Records
2 CD Set

There's an otherworldliness to the style of the trio IamIs, with their unique mix of dissonance and atmospheric melodies. It's disjointed and somewhat sloppy, undercut with smatterings of indie pop thrown in for good measure.

Basically it sounds like a trainwreck of genres and sounds, but in a good way---sort of like The Shins colliding with The Cocteau Twins. Now there's something you don't hear every day.

MISH MASH Mandate: Musical Impact - Mish Mash Indie Music Reviews

...it's what life feels like when you're lost out here...
IamIs (Debauchery Records)

At one point in my second listen through this double album (specifically, Disc 1 Song 3), I had to go to the bathroom. As I saddled up at the urinal, I whistled a new but familiar tune. I kept whistling, kept digging on it aloud, through hand-washing and back to the office. This is a rare thing, this whistlg aloud. I do it exclusively with obsessions - which for me are few and far between. But this band is so whistle-friendly it's mind-blowing. Their psychedelic folk-pop is mesmerizing and enchanting, and for god's sake it's happy! The IamIs brand of flower pop for the 21st century is as light and touching as the Youngbloods' classic "Get Together," but highly proficient and talent-driven to boot. The record is a better upper than Adderall is for the unafflicted. "A Sea of Reddish doesn't stand out too much further than the others, but it's indicative of the whole album: thoughtful lyrics, comforting tunefulness, infecting in its catchiness, and pure pop beauty from a lost era. The album came out yesterday and is available at local record stores that are not chains. - Stephen George

BY BRENT OWEN
Trance Inducer is an aptly appropriate title from local experimental outfit IamIs. Jason Cox and Shawna Dellecave mastermind a gripping collection that seems to slide all over the place while moving in a cohesive direction. There is a feeling of natural, unrefined talent here, like something echoed in early albums by The White Stripes. Shawna’s voice is stellar and intense on “Rat Race,” where she sings, To pick my ass up and fight and say ‘fuck you,’ you can’t make me. There are fine points of stripped-down opulence that contrast beautifully with the lo-fi approach Cox uses at other times throughout the album. The bombastic riff on “Pretty Noises, Pretty Voices” is a nice juxtaposition to the soft intro of “With Great Courage,” and the offbeat weirdness of “Dear Daniel, Number 4: The Afflicted Person,” an homage to Daniel Johnston, is a shining moment among 14 other shining moments. - Leo Weekly