The Echo Falls

The Do List on KQED Radio
Friday 10.2.09
6:30am/8:30am
"Featuring our picks for the best in arts and entertainment in Northern California" with David Wiegand, Arts Editor at the San Francisco Chronicle.

Sy Musiker:
"And David, you have a discovery for us now, a composer from the world of animated films."

David Wiegand:
"Alex Mandel - he was with a group called The Fingers, who did several CDs, and then several years ago he created a group called The Echo Falls...."

"I just love the compositions, I love the subtlety of his music, it's a great trio, and I think people are going to like it."

David Weigand, San Francisco Chronicle Editor on "The Do List"

http://0204e88.netsolhost.com/mp3s/The_Echo_Falls_on_KQED_100209.mp3
- NPR - KQED Radio

This is a very talented trio; singer-guitarist Alex Mandel has a versatile voice (slipping into subtle imitations of Neil Young, Cat Stevens, and Elliot Smith at various points) and considerable guitar chops, all the more so for his tasteful sense of restraint and discipline.

Alex is ably supported by the very talented rhythm section of drummer David Brandt and David Arend, whose double bass gives the album's sound an acoustic warmth that helps it really stand out...

....Standouts include: the warm, folky "Hummingbird;" "Watchtower," which skilfully echoes the virtuosity and post-punk tension of Nickel Creek; "Fire Down Below," which has great, image-rich lyrics to match the superb instrumentation (particularly Brandt's turn on vibraphone); "Little One," one of the best songs Cat Stevens never wrote; and the closer "Fall Asleep in the Sand," which has the best atmosphere of any song on the album--sumptuous, tranquil, but with an anxious edge.

This is a superbly talented band with a clear sense of their influences, both expected and unexpected (if you listen carefully, you can catch touches of Brazilian jazz rhythms in Brandt's drumming), and it's those times when they are most adventurous--and most reluctant to compromise themselves for the sake of pop accessibility--that they shine the brightest.
- CWG

Bay Area-based trio The Echo Falls is not the average band. Sounding like a mix of Cat Stevens, Gary Jules and Fleet Foxes, the folksy vibe of The Echo Falls self titled debut is reminiscent of Vietnam-era protest music. Front man Alex Mandel explicitly states, " My expectations are low and I don't want to be a rock star." A new breed of DIY rock is emerging everywhere, and more artists like The Echo Falls are making music to make music, albeit money or fame.

Relaxed and nonchalant, Alex Mandel's soothing lyrics span the lot of life, love and losing touch with reality....

The Echo Falls self titled album was meant to be listened to as an album, each song interlaced with the others, to form a progression of life experiences. "That's on great thing about vinyl," Mandel adds, "you can listen to an entire album without the songs getting lost in a sea of other songs, like on an Ipod. There is also the visual aspect of a record. A record is bigger, symbolic."

When it comes to the music, the end product of The Echo Falls is much like the influences and contemporaries that Mandel favors, like Gary Jules, Fleet Foxes, Elizabeth Cotton, and Bon Iver. Throughout the album, the use of double bass, double drums, and acoustic guitar embody the feel of a time that has long since past. Songs like "Hummingbird" and "Road to Parnassus" showcase the true essence of what today's indie folk rock has to offer.

Comprised of Alex Mandel on vocals, guitar, David Brandt on drums, vibraphone, vocals, and David Arend on double bass, The Echo Falls self titled debut will be released in November.
- Examiner.com

The night started off with a bang, as Oakland-based The Echo Falls took the stage. For a three-piece, acoustic-only band, these guys were an orchestra of sound! If you threw Weezer, Death Cab For Cutie, and John Mayer into a blender, you'd have Echo Falls, a subdued, but technically superior art rock act.

I was astounded and in awe of the crazy shit that came out of frontman, Alex Mandel's guitar. With a simple acoustic guitar, Alex's technique and ability to play rhythm and lead at the same time kept me hanging on to every note throughout their entire set. I've always preferred electric guitar to acoustic, as acoustic has always seemed so 'limited,' but Alex may have single-handedly changed my mind. At one point, I turned to my photographer and said, "That shit is HOT!"

A few more cool things about the band:

The bass player used an upright bass, sometimes playing with a bow. The drummer stopped playing the drums at one point to accompany the band on Vibraphone, and as a social experiment, The Echo Falls decided to offer their new self-titled record under the "Radiohead model," in which fans were asked to name their own price for a copy of the CD. - CWG Live Reviews

'Reflective Revealment'

June 2009 marked a milestone in a long musical journey for Bay Area-based trio The Echo Falls when the band brought its potent blend of indie-rock meets acoustic singer/songwriter music to San Francisco's Cafe Du Nord, opening for Gary Jules.

The Echo Falls may have started when at the tender age of four, Alex Mandel strummed his father’s 1948 Martin guitar on his lap and Dave Brandt banged on empty cans at the Brookline reservoir. Years later, more seeds were planted when David Arend contributed double bass to Mandel’s songs as they jammed in a Victorian they shared as students at Oberlin College in Ohio.

In fact, The Echo Falls was born six years ago when the three musicians gathered in their living rooms in the San Francisco Bay Area. No amps, no microphones – just that same Martin, an upright bass and bow, a vintage Gretsch set, vibes and a remarkable collection of songs. With natural chemistry, exploration, and time, the band became something greater than the sum of its parts. The three musicians brought their diverse musical experience to these informal gatherings.

With Mandel’s instantly likeable vocals, thoughtful lyrics and the band’s memorable and tuneful songs, this should prove to be many more than a few listeners.

Exclusive Magazine had the recent pleasure of chatting with Alex Mandel of The Echo Falls about the band, his Oakland living room, the bands debut night, his work for Pixar, ... and, of course, penguins!



Your music has a clear indie-rock style. Who were your musical influences growing up and how many still factor into your music today? "Some of my main influences on the songwriting on this album are Lennon/McCartney, Bob Dylan, Elliot Smith, the Police, Travis, Cat Stevens, Big Star, Beck's acoustic stuff. But the three of us in the group have very broad musical tastes - just as an example, Dave Brandt plays West African percussion , and David Arend performs with the SF Symphony, and plays electro-acoustic music with composer Mason Bates and the Acá trio. And all those influences are very much in play in the band's arrangements."

You came together as a band in one of your living rooms, correct? So, whose was it and what went down that night that was more special than any other living room gathering before it? "Let's see, I think we first played in my living room in Oakland. First, it was totally acoustic. No one was wearing earplugs, we could hear everything. We had a musical conversation that was really enjoyable -- West African, jazz, free improvisation. After a while, Dave and David started asking, hey what about that song you used to play on that old demo....So we started working on some of my songs, but brought that same loose spirit to the arrangements."

And where did the name The Echo Falls originate anyway? "We made long lists of names we thought fit the music. We all liked this one. I like that it has more than one meaning."



Indeed, how easy or hard is it to create a new, vibrant, wanted-by-the-public sound that both builds on and surpasses the musical wonderments and accomplishments that preceded it within the industry? "Very, very easy. No, not really! Honestly, when I write a song, I don't think about that, it would scare away the right state of mind you need to write a song. You get a certain feeling, go into a kind of trance for 15 minutes, the fog lifts and there's a song. Four of five times it's not so great. The last one, I keep. If Dave and David hadn't encouraged me to play these songs and said they were great, they'd probably still be in my notebooks and my head. I'm grateful they did."

Your first show as a collective unit was opening for Brett Dennen in 2006 at the Hotel Utah in San Fran ... how did it go? Any band-debut nerves within the band that night, perhaps? "Well, Brett Dennen has gone onto great success since that show on 6.6.06. But at the time he was relatively unknown, playing a small club, and I had just found his music on myspace and liked it. So Dave asked the club if we if we could open for him, and they said yes. We noticed that his fans were real fans, they hung on every word. Though I played hundreds of shows with my last band, The Fingers, I hadn't performed in a while, so I was a bit nervous, I think. But we had a good response that night. Brett's drummer borrowed Dave's drums and played really late and Dave waited and got a parking ticket."



It's been said that The Echo Falls' music recalls California's halcyon days of early '70s singer-songwriters. Why do you think this is? Is it intentional? "That music tended to be kind of laid-back, mostly acoustic, and the lyrics were introspective, like Neil Young, James Taylor, Tim Buckley. And there was something very California about it all. The northern Cal version of that - early 70s Van Morrison, Grateful Dead - probably had an even bigger influence on this album."

Your day job includes scoring short films for Pixar, including 'Your Friend The Rat' for 'Ratatouille. What other stuff have you recorded that was equally as known as that one ... and do you have any new stuff upcoming that we can watch out for? "'Your Friend the Rat' is probably the most widely distributed thing I've done, it went out on like 20 million Ratatouille DVDs. An amazing experience - having a 16 piece orchestra play my music at Skywalker Sound, while Brad Bird videotaped the proceedings!? Working with Jim Capobianco (the writer/director) was great, and we'll work together again, on his follow up to his short film "Leonardo"."

"My other Pixar score was for "Mr. Incredible and Pals" which is hidden on the Incredibles DVD. There's a movie called "Tracy" which I scored, written/directed by another Pixar guy, Dan Scanlon. It's hilarious; it's just starting to get out to festivals. Of course, The Echo Falls will be much bigger than any of that, he said confidently."

If asked to record one for charity, what '80s (and possibly cheesy!) pop/rock song would you love to cover today...and why? "'Jessie's Girl' by RIck Springfield. I love that he used the word "moot" to rhyme with "cute"."

Lastly, and throwing you a journalistic curve ball, Exclusive Magazine loves Penguins...do you? " Yes, yes I do love penguins, thanks for asking."

Interview: Russell A. Trunk

www.myspace.com/echofalls - Exclusive Magazine

The Echo Falls is a lesson in simplicity – the debut album from this San Francisco based trio features three guys (including front man and songwriter Alex Mandel) who will remind you of both ‘70s pop (think Loggins & Messina or Seals & Crofts) and current lo-fi hipsters (think Death Cab for Cutie). Delivering songs using only an acoustic guitar, upright bass and sparse drums and percussion will do that, but the tracks themselves have an endearing vibe that is a refreshing counterpoint to what passes for adult album alternative these days. Mandel waffles between tenor and falsetto and does it with ease, and the songs range from the triumphant kickoff “Road to Parnassus” to the (you have to hear this to believe it) They Might Be Giants-meets-Suzanne Vega quirky vibe of “Watchtower.” There’s other elements at work here too; breezy college rock (“Every Second Thought” and “You Have it All”) and ‘70s folk (“Fall Asleep in the Sand”). But the best track of all is “Love Over Time,” which could be the best guitar song Ben Folds never wrote. There’s enough to please many folks on this debut – it’s not like you can vary things a whole lot with sparse production, but the Echo Falls do a pretty decent job of it.

http://www.esdmusic.com/2009/11/12/the-echo-falls/ - Album Review 3.5 stars

The Echo Falls, 'The Echo Falls'

Even before this folk-rock debut from the San Francisco Bay Area trio, the group had opened for the likes of Brett Dennen and Gary Jules. If that’s not enough quick cred within the subgenre (and its Hotel Café-heavy crowd), we don’t know what is. Of the disc’s own merits, frontman Alex Mandel’s voice holds plenty of appeal, and the upright bass and drums/vibes accompaniments keep things simple and stripped down, in a good way.

(This ran on all Metromix sites across the U.S.) - losangeles.metromix.com

http://www.sunherald.com/152/story/1756955-p2.html

‘The Echo Falls,’ The Echo Falls (Vineland Records, 2009)
This November 17 CD isn’t a holiday album, but this San Francisco trio’s debut (Alex Mandel-vocals/guitar/songwriter, David Brandt-drums/vibraphone/vocals, and David Arend-standup bass) just might need to be added to your gift list. Even the cover art is cool!

Mandel’s “day job” includes scoring short films for Pixar, and his song “Your Friend the Rat” appears on the Ratatouille DVD. His fluid guitar phrasing is reminiscent of Richard Thompson or Mark Knopfler, and his skillful band mates provide a subtle, understated base for his likable playing/singing.

Highlights include the jangly “Love Over Time,” the love struck “Every Second Thought,” the bowed bass on “Watchtower” and the infrequent vocal harmony sections. This group and recording are hard to categorize, but it recalls the halcyon days of California singer-songwriters with a different musical twist . . . many listeners will enjoy it.
- Xmas presents delivered

When he isn't scoring short films at Pixar, Alex Mandel writes and performs gently ironic, lyrically surprising songs with his group, the Echo Falls. After releasing three albums with his previous band, the Fingers, singer-guitarist Mandel created the Echo Falls six years ago, with David Brandt on drums, vibraphone and vocals and David Arend on double bass. The 11 songs on this album are all acoustic gems, graced with exquisitely subtle instrumentation and Mandel's soft tenor. While there is a certain melodic similarity to some of the cuts, you probably won't notice as you're caught up in the quietly clever lyrics of each song ("I had a dream, I had a nightmare, you were in both of them," from "Watchtower" - echoed, so to speak, in "You Still Have it All": "You're the nightmare and the dream/ The climax and the scream").

THE ECHO FALLS

THE ECHO FALLS LABEL
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/12/04/PKI31APA51.DTL
- San Francisco Chronicle

The Echo Falls (self-released)

Lovely, gentle, introspective — this local folk-rock trio makes marvelously subtle music. Comprised of musicians trained at Juilliard and Oberlin, with one member who works with the SF Symphony and another whose day job is scoring movies for Pixar, the accomplished group of pros showcases its mellow, slightly wistful sound on its self-assured debut album.

http://www.eastbayexpress.com/EarBud/archives/2009/12/14/your-daily-lick-the-echo-falls
- East Bay Express