The Gazettiers
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2008 | SELF
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When I stare at the short list of bands that have inspired me, introduced me to music, or encouraged me to keep writing, I’m always surprised at how many duos are on there – The White Stripes, Death From Above 1979, Japandroids, Lightning Bolt, The Black Keys. There’s something mysteriously powerful, effective, and intimate about two people creating music together, something that other ensemble structures lack. With Sunspotting, the Gazettiers have introduced me to another genre that duos flourish in: acoustic indie. Quite frankly, I’m surprised this concept isn’t more widely practiced.
Released in December of 2011, the Sunspotting EP offers six songs from the Milwaukee-based duo featuring the talents of Shane English and Jared Guess. It kicks off with “The Channel to a Better Mood” and finds the two “wandering the valley/ searched to crack post-modern love,” a hint at the imagery found in their lyrics throughout the record. Harmonies dominate the songs, as opposed to the two swapping verses on each track, and there seems to be a real emphasis on dissonance and leading-tone chords in the guitar work, which the theory nerd in me is really geeking out about.
The lyrics in these songs are surprisingly tongue-in-cheek and self-deprecating, like the opening verse of “A Farewell to Somebody Lovely” and bear strong resemblance to the songwriting styles of Jesse Lacey and Isaac Brock. I wasn’t too shocked when I saw Brand New and Modest Mouse on their list of influences.
Each tune really retains its singular identity with the help of subtle, supplemental instrumentation, like the samples on finale track “What Good Are You?” and the Fleet Foxes setting of “Painted Grey Birds.” “Pockets of Nothing,” easily the best song on the record, opens with a finger-picked guitar line very akin to Mumford & Sons. Again, the magic of a duo is evident as the Gazettiers create intimate gems of songs with great personality. Yeah, it’s nothing groundbreaking or revolutionary, but it’s still aesthetically pleasing, to say the least.
Check out Sunspotting Ep on the Gazettiers’ Bandcamp page, where you can stream the record and/or download it for just three dollars. That’s fifty cents a song. Definitely worth it.
Gazettiers are yet another Wisconsin band proving they can write intelligent, meaningful music. I’m just going to flat-out declare it: 2012 is going to be a damn good year for the local scene. - Playground Misnomer
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
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Bio
The Gazettiers are a 3 piece band from Milwaukee that sounds like a mix between Elliott Smith and Brand New. Their main focus is lyrical with music built on top to highlight the story or emotions of each song. Shane and Jared met in college and began making music almost immediately and it has since consumed their creative lives. As multi-instrumentalists, they have worked for a few years as a duo and have recently added Rob as a full time drummer/percussionist. Playground Misnomer said each song, "retains its singular identity with the help of subtle, supplemental instrumentation," and said the band, "create[s] intimate gems of songs with great personality...proving they can write intelligent, meaningful music." The band is currently in the studio working on it's third full length album that will be titled, 'Division'.
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