The Horde and the Harem

Residing somewhere between the jaunty chamber-pop of early Decemberists and the folk-rock of Or, The Whale, Seattle’s The Horde & The Harem trades in uniquely pastoral urban folk. The band’s keenly observed songwriting evokes that sense of longing that the best indie-pop conveys. With just five players, The Horde & The Harem manages a much larger sound than the instrumentation would suggest, thanks to the male-female harmonies and the band’s well-wrought arrangements. After releasing two EP’s online, The Horde & The Harem are hitting the road to preview their first full-length album, which should be a release to keep an eye out for. - Santacruz.com

"The Horde And The Harem is a local quintet that is big on talent and sound. Between the male-female harmonies, guitar melodies, and piano/keys, The Horde And The Harem are a band to be reckoned with. The vocal harmonies will astound you and definitely set this band apart from the rest. They only have two EPs out at the moment, but I definitely foresee this band gaining popularity and putting out a lot more full-length albums."
- Seattle Show Gallery

In the tangled list of drop-down, drag-out music festivals in our country, there are three important ones that come immediately to mind:

Here in the Northwest, Bumbershoot reigns supreme and has been host to the likes of Ani DiFranco, Beck, BB King and the Wu-Tang Clan. Farther south in California, we find the legendary Coachella, where movie stars wander the matted valley grasses during April, listening to the sonic tribulations of pop kings and queens. And in one week, beyond the dunes of Death Valley, farther south than the Four Corners, and just off Interstate 35 in the city limits of Austin, Texas, you will find South By Southwest (SXSW).

SXSW isn't just a festival, though; it's a slam-dancing genre party where techies go to gab about the wild world of multimedia, where film junkies look for that big break and, with as many as 2,000 bands at 90 venues, where musicians and fans alike descend into what has become one of the largest music gatherings in the world.

But don't feel left out in the cold, Seattle. At least three of our own will be making the trek from north to south to represent our name in music:

Wild Orchid Children: Slightly theatric, though sonorously serious, WOC is a wave of straight rock pummeled with hail stones of tribal drums and folklike realism. Occasionally dabbling in Seattle's current hotbed, the band's guitar will sometimes drift in and out of rockabilly-esque episodes before, during and after their jam-band tendencies show themselves. Live, these guys tend to use up to three drum sets, leaving us to wonder just how big their van will have to be as they make their way south. You can catch their frantic set live, post-SXSW, at El Corozon, March 27.

Tea Cozies: Though these guys (well, three women and one man) don't hail originally from Seattle, this quartet of Colorado transplants are of near-local status musically. The Tea Cozies are all about fun: They act fun, they sound fun -- heck, they even play fun when they aren't being absolutely serious musicians who know exactly how to put on a good show. Their sound is pop with a side of rock, though what might be the coolest about them is that their songs are completely danceable. With the instincts of Joan Jett, the Tea Cozies drive an audience into silence when they need to and pound you into oblivion when they don't. And, hey, who doesn't like a band whose name reminds you of Grandma's snoring?

The Horde and the Harem: The Horde and the Harem is a band whose music continues to propel itself entirely on the enjoyment of playing. It is evident in the lyrics and the way in which they're sung, in the instrumentation and the way the musicians play, and it is evident in the quadratic core of four-part harmony present for the entirety of each song. If the dodging dirge of rhythmic mathematics could ever let you down, the drummer in this band certainly won't. He lets out gut-busting cadences that drive the whole thing down the street like a slumbering elephant, teetering to the brink of disaster before choreographed turns take him in a new direction. We think these guys will have the most fun on their trip to Austin. Tonight, find them at The Sunset for a 9:30pm set. - City's Best.com

Seattle songstress Helen Chance is releasing her debut album, Reservations, on Wed, Feb 9th at the Tractor Tavern in Downtown Ballard. Her effervescent piano melodies go well with a back of curacao, equally sweet as tastefully bitter, while lucidly baring the blues (think Regina Spektor and Fiona Apple with abundantly less glitter and goth). Sharing the stage will be also piano-driven rock quintet The Horde and the Harem, offering three and four part harmonies like choir boys who turn a deaf ear to shaving.

Their Harvest EP is available on itunes and at upcoming live performances like this one . The Exploding High Fives will also be a contributing kernel to a satiable evening of pop pleasure. - The Vinyl District

Seattle songstress Helen Chance is releasing her debut album, Reservations, on Wed, Feb 9th at the Tractor Tavern in Downtown Ballard. Her effervescent piano melodies go well with a back of curacao, equally sweet as tastefully bitter, while lucidly baring the blues (think Regina Spektor and Fiona Apple with abundantly less glitter and goth). Sharing the stage will be also piano-driven rock quintet The Horde and the Harem, offering three and four part harmonies like choir boys who turn a deaf ear to shaving.

Their Harvest EP is available on itunes and at upcoming live performances like this one . The Exploding High Fives will also be a contributing kernel to a satiable evening of pop pleasure. - The Vinyl District

Auburn’s Mary Olson Farm will be featured in a new music video by Seattle indie band, "The Horde and the Harem."

Filmed on a rainy Saturday on City of Auburn-owned property, the video is for the band’s song, “Gold Rush,” off their 2010 EP Harvest.

“We’re hoping that eventually it’s going to be more of a short film than a video,” said Ryder, the band's founder and lead vocalist. “The main story follows a guy who leaves his farm for the gold rush, whether it’s for this idea of longing or greed. He just kind of throws himself into this idea of getting money for his family and eventually loses his life.”

Ryder said the band decided to film at Olson Farm after checking out a couple of other local farms. After a spot in North Bend proved cost prohibitive for the band, Ryder was advised to try Olson Farm.

“The people with Auburn, (Olson Farm director) Patricia (Cosgrove) and everybody else were great to work with,” he said. “They were awesome, and gave us a tour of the place.”

Plans to shoot the video with director James Apollo soon were in place, and the band shot several scenes during a 12-hour session.

The band is working on a new four-song disc with band members Aura Barr, Geoff Tatro, Jack Chandelier and Noble Monyei. The band also plans to play the Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas in March.

Ryder said the video will be released as soon as the footage is edited. - The Auburn Reporter

On Thursday November 11th, the United States will be celebrating Veteran’s Day. In a bizarre twist of fate that the universe would describe as “scheduling”, Nectar’s will be hosting a benefit concert entitled Rock the Village. As a Sound on the Sound reader, why should you want to rock a village? Let me tell you.

In this country we take everything for granted. Loved ones, fast food, credit card debt. In America, if you can think about it, you can forget about it. U-S-A! U-S-A! One thing we take for granted that I failed to list is access to clean water. This concert, which features a couple of local acts that you should be excited to see this Thursday night, is a benefit concert for the Mohanam Cultural Center. The aforementioned cultural center is a small village school in Tamil Nadu, India that cleans water for most of its village of 2,000. The center helps maintain ancient cultural practices and traditions that are slowly being phased out of modern life. If you want to know more about the mission of the Mohanam Cultural Center, as well as background information on the rest of the concert, click here.

Who’s performing on Thursday night at Nectar? Four bands with semi-long names. The Horde and the Harem recently performed a concert this past Saturday to the delight of Full Tilt Ice-Cream patrons. Now they will be lending their services for the benefit of the Mohanam Cultural Center. Do you like “garage” bands? I don’t. Do you like garage bands that actually know how to write songs and play their instruments? Let me introduce to some friends of mine, Fox and the Law. I currently hold the opinion that they “rock.” Seattle “garage bands” bring your notebook on Thursday night. This is how it’s done right. Stop sending me crappy recordings of your boring songs. Thanks. If “alternative rock” was still a useful label (and it’s not) then Viva La Villains would be squeezed under this dead genre. They sound good….yeah. I’m not sure if I can genuinely get behind this. For the sake of this benefit concert let’s say I am enthused to see this band take the stage. I think many of you will enjoy this band, because you folks are not jerks like myself. James Lanman and the Good Hurt play doe-eyed innocent indie rock. No bells, whistles or gimmicks necessary. Stripped down songwriting in approach with vocals that the ladies surely adore (hey laaaaaadieessss). When it comes to this sort of thing I prefer my artist tortured and chemically imbalanced but that’s only because I enjoy unhinged company. They make for interesting dinner parties. I’m sure Mr. Lanman would make an excellent dinner guest as well.

Doors for the show at Nectar open at 8pm. The price of admission is $8. Don’t forget that all proceeds go to the Mohanam Cultural Center. Spare me the excuse of being broke, your money will go to folks who need it more than you do. Want even more information? Check out the events page on Facebook. Come on Seattle. Let’s Rock the Village. - Sound on the Sound

On Thursday November 11th, the United States will be celebrating Veteran’s Day. In a bizarre twist of fate that the universe would describe as “scheduling”, Nectar’s will be hosting a benefit concert entitled Rock the Village. As a Sound on the Sound reader, why should you want to rock a village? Let me tell you.

In this country we take everything for granted. Loved ones, fast food, credit card debt. In America, if you can think about it, you can forget about it. U-S-A! U-S-A! One thing we take for granted that I failed to list is access to clean water. This concert, which features a couple of local acts that you should be excited to see this Thursday night, is a benefit concert for the Mohanam Cultural Center. The aforementioned cultural center is a small village school in Tamil Nadu, India that cleans water for most of its village of 2,000. The center helps maintain ancient cultural practices and traditions that are slowly being phased out of modern life. If you want to know more about the mission of the Mohanam Cultural Center, as well as background information on the rest of the concert, click here.

Who’s performing on Thursday night at Nectar? Four bands with semi-long names. The Horde and the Harem recently performed a concert this past Saturday to the delight of Full Tilt Ice-Cream patrons. Now they will be lending their services for the benefit of the Mohanam Cultural Center. Do you like “garage” bands? I don’t. Do you like garage bands that actually know how to write songs and play their instruments? Let me introduce to some friends of mine, Fox and the Law. I currently hold the opinion that they “rock.” Seattle “garage bands” bring your notebook on Thursday night. This is how it’s done right. Stop sending me crappy recordings of your boring songs. Thanks. If “alternative rock” was still a useful label (and it’s not) then Viva La Villains would be squeezed under this dead genre. They sound good….yeah. I’m not sure if I can genuinely get behind this. For the sake of this benefit concert let’s say I am enthused to see this band take the stage. I think many of you will enjoy this band, because you folks are not jerks like myself. James Lanman and the Good Hurt play doe-eyed innocent indie rock. No bells, whistles or gimmicks necessary. Stripped down songwriting in approach with vocals that the ladies surely adore (hey laaaaaadieessss). When it comes to this sort of thing I prefer my artist tortured and chemically imbalanced but that’s only because I enjoy unhinged company. They make for interesting dinner parties. I’m sure Mr. Lanman would make an excellent dinner guest as well.

Doors for the show at Nectar open at 8pm. The price of admission is $8. Don’t forget that all proceeds go to the Mohanam Cultural Center. Spare me the excuse of being broke, your money will go to folks who need it more than you do. Want even more information? Check out the events page on Facebook. Come on Seattle. Let’s Rock the Village. - Sound on the Sound

This Sunday, Fated Empire’s very own Sarx and Name The Uncanny will be playing a show side by side with an artist that we’ve wanted to play with for some time, The Horde and The Harem (referred to hereafter as THATH). THATH is a five-piece indie-folk band hailing from Seattle proper with a sound all their own.

The group passes lead vocals between their members, singing down-to-earth anthems that reminisce of better times with just enough pop sensibility to get inside your head, but not annoy you. They released their latest EP, Harvest, in August, and it has since entered regular rotation for me. From the soulful opening track, Gold Rush, to the harmony soaked finale, Days When We Were Parched, the EP is truly without one extraneous moment. Every note here seems necessary to tell the stories of the music, and in a genre that is saturated with try-hards and hobby singer-songwriters that is exceptionally rare. - FatedEmpire.com

This Sunday, Fated Empire’s very own Sarx and Name The Uncanny will be playing a show side by side with an artist that we’ve wanted to play with for some time, The Horde and The Harem (referred to hereafter as THATH). THATH is a five-piece indie-folk band hailing from Seattle proper with a sound all their own.

The group passes lead vocals between their members, singing down-to-earth anthems that reminisce of better times with just enough pop sensibility to get inside your head, but not annoy you. They released their latest EP, Harvest, in August, and it has since entered regular rotation for me. From the soulful opening track, Gold Rush, to the harmony soaked finale, Days When We Were Parched, the EP is truly without one extraneous moment. Every note here seems necessary to tell the stories of the music, and in a genre that is saturated with try-hards and hobby singer-songwriters that is exceptionally rare. - FatedEmpire.com

A free concert was held last Wednesday at Chop Suey in Seattle; sponsored by Relentless and FILTER Magazine. The bustling venue quickly filled and the opening act, five-piece folk indie-rock band The Horde and the Harem, was greeted to a packed house.

The young outfit has thus far produced two EPs and a slew of encouraging attention. Although their first live show was a mere six months ago they were invited to play at both the Folk Life festival and the Capitol Hill Block Party earlier this year.

THatH is able to generate a relationship between vivacious energy and a carefully tethered force in the development their songs. The melody is not rushed, nor does it appear to be forced to fit an archetype; at the same time the liveliness of rock is tapped into – a facet that is mysteriously hard to find these days.

The wrestle between symphonic and toughened tonalities comes to a peaceful agreement through the harmonization of the components. The melody structures are adaptive; incorporating a swinging flow of nascent harmony with a precise construct of layering. Highlighting this is the relationship of the piano, which varies dramatically from following the rhythm of acoustic strumming to complimenting the pentatonic plucks from the electric guitar, while at times standing alone in a self-sustaining presence.

The guitar work itself supposes the ‘need’ of the song and integrates their style to most fit it. There is never a time at which the song becomes murky or over-burdened in hapless virtuosity. Room is always given for the other instruments to breath; even at moments of the guitar driving the song. The bass line is very smooth and able to adjust between what fits the tempo and what will foster the melody. Subtle moments happen when the bass departs from following the backbeat to procure an intensifying sensation.

The percussive structure is explorative and significant to the movements each song makes; involving itself with the timbre of the melody. Devon Wilkerson (drums) never settles for too long in a static pattern; constantly shuffling in tempo and resonance to portray a dynamism. From pseudo breakdowns amongst strutting triple meters to explorative tom drum use in a relaxed ride pace; the effect is not only innovative, but succinctly formed as well.

The vocal push of the band is one of the most intricately developed themes in their music. Both guitarists, the keyboardist and bass player contribute whether it is in harmonized choir or stand alone song. Commonly taking up the helm as primary vocalist is acoustic guitarist Ryan Barber; though both Aura Barr (keys) and Noble Monyei (electric guitar) have their fair share of soliloquies. The dynamics of their distinctive voices frequently join in melodious synchrony, in various amalgams of stress and texture.

Approaching the realm of indie rock can be an awkward endeavor due to the conformities that circulate it – even though indie music originally presented itself as a genre born out of creativity. However, the stylistic qualities of THatH seem to have been acquired rather than adopted. Even though it is possible for one to highlight a similar sounding band or artist; the final production of their music belongs to the band, not to the genre. - BestNewBands.com

A free concert was held last Wednesday at Chop Suey in Seattle; sponsored by Relentless and FILTER Magazine. The bustling venue quickly filled and the opening act, five-piece folk indie-rock band The Horde and the Harem, was greeted to a packed house.

The young outfit has thus far produced two EPs and a slew of encouraging attention. Although their first live show was a mere six months ago they were invited to play at both the Folk Life festival and the Capitol Hill Block Party earlier this year.

THatH is able to generate a relationship between vivacious energy and a carefully tethered force in the development their songs. The melody is not rushed, nor does it appear to be forced to fit an archetype; at the same time the liveliness of rock is tapped into – a facet that is mysteriously hard to find these days.

The wrestle between symphonic and toughened tonalities comes to a peaceful agreement through the harmonization of the components. The melody structures are adaptive; incorporating a swinging flow of nascent harmony with a precise construct of layering. Highlighting this is the relationship of the piano, which varies dramatically from following the rhythm of acoustic strumming to complimenting the pentatonic plucks from the electric guitar, while at times standing alone in a self-sustaining presence.

The guitar work itself supposes the ‘need’ of the song and integrates their style to most fit it. There is never a time at which the song becomes murky or over-burdened in hapless virtuosity. Room is always given for the other instruments to breath; even at moments of the guitar driving the song. The bass line is very smooth and able to adjust between what fits the tempo and what will foster the melody. Subtle moments happen when the bass departs from following the backbeat to procure an intensifying sensation.

The percussive structure is explorative and significant to the movements each song makes; involving itself with the timbre of the melody. Devon Wilkerson (drums) never settles for too long in a static pattern; constantly shuffling in tempo and resonance to portray a dynamism. From pseudo breakdowns amongst strutting triple meters to explorative tom drum use in a relaxed ride pace; the effect is not only innovative, but succinctly formed as well.

The vocal push of the band is one of the most intricately developed themes in their music. Both guitarists, the keyboardist and bass player contribute whether it is in harmonized choir or stand alone song. Commonly taking up the helm as primary vocalist is acoustic guitarist Ryan Barber; though both Aura Barr (keys) and Noble Monyei (electric guitar) have their fair share of soliloquies. The dynamics of their distinctive voices frequently join in melodious synchrony, in various amalgams of stress and texture.

Approaching the realm of indie rock can be an awkward endeavor due to the conformities that circulate it – even though indie music originally presented itself as a genre born out of creativity. However, the stylistic qualities of THatH seem to have been acquired rather than adopted. Even though it is possible for one to highlight a similar sounding band or artist; the final production of their music belongs to the band, not to the genre. - BestNewBands.com

The Horde and the Harem craft a melodic, keyboard-driven brand of softish indie rock. With their liberal use of two, three, and even four-part vocal harmonies, The Horde and the Harem set themselves apart from the countless other middling piano-rock bands out there right now.

The folkish warmth of keyboardist Aura Barr's voice intermixes perfectly to create that coveted male/female vocal dynamic, rounded out by melodic guitar leads and major-chord piano progressions that change and develop through the course of each song.

It's not all dreamy, rainy-day pop either, as their rhythm section isn't afraid to kick it into high gear for some more upbeat jams to keep things interesting. Just don't be fooled by their name, which sounds like it would be better suited for like, a Viking-themed metal band or something. - Ear Candy

The Horde and the Harem craft a melodic, keyboard-driven brand of softish indie rock. With their liberal use of two, three, and even four-part vocal harmonies, The Horde and the Harem set themselves apart from the countless other middling piano-rock bands out there right now.

The folkish warmth of keyboardist Aura Barr's voice intermixes perfectly to create that coveted male/female vocal dynamic, rounded out by melodic guitar leads and major-chord piano progressions that change and develop through the course of each song.

It's not all dreamy, rainy-day pop either, as their rhythm section isn't afraid to kick it into high gear for some more upbeat jams to keep things interesting. Just don't be fooled by their name, which sounds like it would be better suited for like, a Viking-themed metal band or something. - Ear Candy

Seattle’s the Horde and the Harem has the rare gift of being able to create music that propels itself on sheer enjoyment. The four bearded dudes and one non-bearded dudette who make up the band remind me of local favorites Church, but with a sloppy kineticism that moves its songs forward like a shambling caravan of gypsies. With an EP, nascent full-length, and headlining regional presence all created within its first year of existence, it’s clear that whatever the Horde and the Harem is packing is infectious to the extreme. - The Willamette Weekly

Seattle’s the Horde and the Harem has the rare gift of being able to create music that propels itself on sheer enjoyment. The four bearded dudes and one non-bearded dudette who make up the band remind me of local favorites Church, but with a sloppy kineticism that moves its songs forward like a shambling caravan of gypsies. With an EP, nascent full-length, and headlining regional presence all created within its first year of existence, it’s clear that whatever the Horde and the Harem is packing is infectious to the extreme. - The Willamette Weekly