Vir

Vir puts its fuzz pedals to the metal, creating a driving, distorted ambiance. In many of the band's songs, the vocals sound like they're underneath the layers of instruments, delivering haunting yet beautiful melodies.

Vocalist/guitarist Sam Sloane came to San Francisco from New Zealand 10 years ago. He got a job at a movie theater in Berkeley, where he met drummer Jeff Paul and bassist Natasha Arens in November 2003. Their mutual admiration for all things film-related brought them together as friends and ultimately led to performing together as Vir. The Oakland band's first show was in August 2008.

Vir's third record, "Engineers," was released in May.

Lineup: Jeff Paul, drums; Natasha Arens, bass; Sam Sloane, guitar, vocals.
What is the main theme of your music?

SS: Each record has an overarching theme relative to whatever is going on in our lives or the lives around us. I'm from Christchurch originally, which was devastated in a series of fatal earthquakes almost two years ago. So the last record was deeply rooted in the experiences I had in being removed from my family and friends. I went back to be with my folks and then saw what was left of my hometown. Everybody's shared experiences and my own surrounding those events inherently found their way into the songs I was writing at the time.
How does living in the Bay Area affect your music?

SS: We're lucky to be part of a thriving music community here in the Bay Area, and thankfully it's an incredibly diverse musical landscape. We'd never want to establish ourselves in a music scene where everyone expects you to sound a certain way or stamps you with a label based on your geographical proximity. The fact that the Bay Area music scene has never been about genre is a huge indicator that it's thriving.
What's the most important aspect to putting on a live show?

SS: To entertain our audience. You're there to put on a show and people pay to see you, so you owe it to them to put on the best show you can. Within that, though, there's no point of going up there unless you love what you're doing. I think our best shows are when we forget where we're playing and just enjoy ourselves. Folks can tell when you're totally immersed in what you're doing and loving it.
If your band could collaborate on a song with any person, living or dead, who would that be?

SS: I've always said Mark Sandman from Morphine. That guy was from another time.

-Tony DuShane
- SF Gate

Vir puts its fuzz pedals to the metal, creating a driving, distorted ambiance. In many of the band's songs, the vocals sound like they're underneath the layers of instruments, delivering haunting yet beautiful melodies.

Vocalist/guitarist Sam Sloane came to San Francisco from New Zealand 10 years ago. He got a job at a movie theater in Berkeley, where he met drummer Jeff Paul and bassist Natasha Arens in November 2003. Their mutual admiration for all things film-related brought them together as friends and ultimately led to performing together as Vir. The Oakland band's first show was in August 2008.

Vir's third record, "Engineers," was released in May.

Lineup: Jeff Paul, drums; Natasha Arens, bass; Sam Sloane, guitar, vocals.
What is the main theme of your music?

SS: Each record has an overarching theme relative to whatever is going on in our lives or the lives around us. I'm from Christchurch originally, which was devastated in a series of fatal earthquakes almost two years ago. So the last record was deeply rooted in the experiences I had in being removed from my family and friends. I went back to be with my folks and then saw what was left of my hometown. Everybody's shared experiences and my own surrounding those events inherently found their way into the songs I was writing at the time.
How does living in the Bay Area affect your music?

SS: We're lucky to be part of a thriving music community here in the Bay Area, and thankfully it's an incredibly diverse musical landscape. We'd never want to establish ourselves in a music scene where everyone expects you to sound a certain way or stamps you with a label based on your geographical proximity. The fact that the Bay Area music scene has never been about genre is a huge indicator that it's thriving.
What's the most important aspect to putting on a live show?

SS: To entertain our audience. You're there to put on a show and people pay to see you, so you owe it to them to put on the best show you can. Within that, though, there's no point of going up there unless you love what you're doing. I think our best shows are when we forget where we're playing and just enjoy ourselves. Folks can tell when you're totally immersed in what you're doing and loving it.
If your band could collaborate on a song with any person, living or dead, who would that be?

SS: I've always said Mark Sandman from Morphine. That guy was from another time.

-Tony DuShane
- SF Gate

Oakland's Vir defines itself as post-punk pop and receives comparison to My Bloody Valentine, but it's the trio's Manchester sound that initially drew me in: the driving percussion of Doves, the space rock of The Stone Roses, and a little Joy Division (because what band isn't influenced by Joy Division these days?). The band's third album "Engineers", shows it masterfully combing drone and dance. Vir's dark, melodic and ever catchy songs will set the mood for "An Evening of Horror", the official and all ages Halloween party of the "Art Beat Foundation" - Whitney Phaneuf - East Bay Express

Oakland's Vir defines itself as post-punk pop and receives comparison to My Bloody Valentine, but it's the trio's Manchester sound that initially drew me in: the driving percussion of Doves, the space rock of The Stone Roses, and a little Joy Division (because what band isn't influenced by Joy Division these days?). The band's third album "Engineers", shows it masterfully combing drone and dance. Vir's dark, melodic and ever catchy songs will set the mood for "An Evening of Horror", the official and all ages Halloween party of the "Art Beat Foundation" - Whitney Phaneuf - East Bay Express

Vir, Engineers

It's probably intentional that the guitars on this album drown out Sam Sloane's murmuring vocals, which are certainly dynamic and theatrical, but which tend to hover in the background — like a hawk whose wings get blotted out by the nearest ponderosa pine. Sloane is so quiet and shuddery that it's easy not to realize that his voice actually is the linchpin of every song. He can ride a single chord forever and still make it rise. (self-released) - EBX

Vir, Engineers

It's probably intentional that the guitars on this album drown out Sam Sloane's murmuring vocals, which are certainly dynamic and theatrical, but which tend to hover in the background — like a hawk whose wings get blotted out by the nearest ponderosa pine. Sloane is so quiet and shuddery that it's easy not to realize that his voice actually is the linchpin of every song. He can ride a single chord forever and still make it rise. (self-released) - EBX

Take a listen to a new song, “Joy in Space,” courtesy of Oakland post-punk/noise pop/psych trio Vir. “Joy in Space” is one of the first tastes from the group’s forthcoming album, Engineers, which is slated for a May release. Engineers will be the band’s third LP, and their second on Vibraphone Records.

Vir recently played Noise Pop, opening for Bob Mould‘s performance of Copper Blue at Bottom of the Hill. - The Bay Bridged

Take a listen to a new song, “Joy in Space,” courtesy of Oakland post-punk/noise pop/psych trio Vir. “Joy in Space” is one of the first tastes from the group’s forthcoming album, Engineers, which is slated for a May release. Engineers will be the band’s third LP, and their second on Vibraphone Records.

Vir recently played Noise Pop, opening for Bob Mould‘s performance of Copper Blue at Bottom of the Hill. - The Bay Bridged

Oakland-based trio Vir—self-professed lovers of “fuzz pedals, loops and lots of delay”—recently released a video for the first single off their upcoming full-length Engineers, a track entitled “Joy in Space” that we originally brought you back in March. The video is a visually-arresting abstract stop motion of the band in action, an ideal visual representation of the song’s dirty psychedelic shoegaze sound. Check it out: - The Bay Bridged

Oakland-based trio Vir—self-professed lovers of “fuzz pedals, loops and lots of delay”—recently released a video for the first single off their upcoming full-length Engineers, a track entitled “Joy in Space” that we originally brought you back in March. The video is a visually-arresting abstract stop motion of the band in action, an ideal visual representation of the song’s dirty psychedelic shoegaze sound. Check it out: - The Bay Bridged

Fresh off a gig at Bottom of the Hill last Saturday, Berkeley’s Vir is giving back to their fans in the form of a free download of the title track from their third and most recent record Engineers. A psychedelic shoegaze journey to the center of the universe, “Engineers” (the song) is supersaturated with the band’s typical dose of fuzz, loops, and delay – ebbing and flowing, soaring and crashing, and freaking out for more than six beautiful minutes.

Stream “Engineers” below, and then grab a free copy over on Vir’s SoundCloud page. We should be seeing new material from the band relatively soon, as they recently said on Facebook that they’re going to “hunker down to write and record for the winter.” - The Bay Bridged

Fresh off a gig at Bottom of the Hill last Saturday, Berkeley’s Vir is giving back to their fans in the form of a free download of the title track from their third and most recent record Engineers. A psychedelic shoegaze journey to the center of the universe, “Engineers” (the song) is supersaturated with the band’s typical dose of fuzz, loops, and delay – ebbing and flowing, soaring and crashing, and freaking out for more than six beautiful minutes.

Stream “Engineers” below, and then grab a free copy over on Vir’s SoundCloud page. We should be seeing new material from the band relatively soon, as they recently said on Facebook that they’re going to “hunker down to write and record for the winter.” - The Bay Bridged

Vir
Oakland shoegaze trio Vir describes its sound as a collision of My Bloody Valentine and Doves, but it's groovier and more psychedelic than that comparison might suggest. Yes, there are buckets of distortion and reverb, but songs have a tendency to build into climactic noise jams, such as on "Joy in Space" off the band's new album, Engineers. A lot must be said for bassist Natasha Arens, who not only keeps the foundation solid but also sounds interesting underneath all the feedback, fuzz, and delay. The band opened for Bob Mould at Noise Pop earlier this year, and is now promoting its third album. Catch it at The Starry Plough on Friday, July 20, with Portland's The Blacklights and fellow Oaklanders James and Evander. 9:30 p.m., $7-$12. StarryPloughPub.com — Kathleen Richards - East Bay Express

Vir
Oakland shoegaze trio Vir describes its sound as a collision of My Bloody Valentine and Doves, but it's groovier and more psychedelic than that comparison might suggest. Yes, there are buckets of distortion and reverb, but songs have a tendency to build into climactic noise jams, such as on "Joy in Space" off the band's new album, Engineers. A lot must be said for bassist Natasha Arens, who not only keeps the foundation solid but also sounds interesting underneath all the feedback, fuzz, and delay. The band opened for Bob Mould at Noise Pop earlier this year, and is now promoting its third album. Catch it at The Starry Plough on Friday, July 20, with Portland's The Blacklights and fellow Oaklanders James and Evander. 9:30 p.m., $7-$12. StarryPloughPub.com — Kathleen Richards - East Bay Express

Vir

While "on" Vir, I can't decide if I'd rather take mass quantities of psychedelics and, well, gaze at my shoes, or embark on an epic, intergalactic quest with a few of my closest tribesmen. Luckily, these options aren't mutually exclusive. This Oakland-based experimental noise pop trio originally hails from New Zealand and cites Kiwi post-punk groups Gordons, Bailter Space, and HDU as chief influences. Characterized by driving, tribal beats, sardonic, echoing lyrics, and ample fuzz pedal, Vir's music is, at times, like marching through a lush jungle-like space field and, at other times, like My Bloody Valentine. Could it get much better? (Sullivan) - SFBG

Take a listen to a new song, “Joy in Space,” courtesy of Oakland post-punk/noise pop/psych trio Vir. “Joy in Space” is one of the first tastes from the group’s forthcoming album, Engineers, which is slated for a May release. Engineers will be the band’s third LP, and their second on Vibraphone Records.

Vir recently played Noise Pop, opening for Bob Mould‘s performance of Copper Blue at Bottom of the Hill. - the Bay Bridged

"Finally, someone makes this shoegaze revival thing work. Oakland's Vir, formerly called Montana, lays U2-size vocals, melodies, and song structures over sinister, flatline backdrops à la Joy Division. The resulting tension, anchored by singer Sam Sloane's excellent guitar work, creates songs that don't stale" - Nate Seltenrich, East Bay Express - East Bay Express

"Finally, someone makes this shoegaze revival thing work. Oakland's Vir, formerly called Montana, lays U2-size vocals, melodies, and song structures over sinister, flatline backdrops à la Joy Division. The resulting tension, anchored by singer Sam Sloane's excellent guitar work, creates songs that don't stale" - Nate Seltenrich, East Bay Express - East Bay Express

Featuring maybe the most expansive animated dystopia we've ever seen in a local music video, this clip from East Bay post-punk outfit Vir fully portrays the kind of scarred landscape evoked in the song. It's pretty dark stuff -- giant robots bark orders, and humans turn into workaday robots -- but there is a bright spot at the end. - SF Weekly

As soon as “Down By Law” started, the six-minute opening track, I knew that I was going to really like this album. Even if the other nine tracks turned out to be some terrible disco-glam-funk workout, based upon the late and not great eighties, I knew that I could forgive them almost anything - because here were six magnificent minutes of total spaced-out psyche. It was so good, on that very first time of hearing, I immediately thought we were in Colour Haze territory. Now there’s a place to be!

As it happens the glorious racket continues throughout the album, with leanings towards a more endless boogie approach, rather than continuing to be spaced out indefinitely. With a short stab of Zeppelinesque alt. metal cropping up occasionally as well, adding to the musical menu quite handsomely, this band could almost claim to be the next big thing. I did say ‘almost’, because there is a little bit of a problem, and that is the vocals of Sam Sloane. He can obviously deliver, so that’s not a problem in itself. The worry lies in the fact that he appears to venture into U2 terrain rather a lot, and the longer the album goes on the more he does it. For me, one Bono is more than enough (as is one U2), and it becomes a bit of a let down when Sam appears to emulate him. If he could be a little less ‘Bono’, maybe, a little less driven…?

You see, the real driving force here keeps the band on course, and that is most definitely the utterly glorious rhythm section, comprising of Natasha Arens on bass guitar, and drummer Jeff Paul. These ‘guys’ really know how to put it over and pull it off, and from start to finish first prize goes to their incredible virtuosity.

So, chaps, next time around why not veer (‘vir’?) a bit more towards the instrumentation and drop the vocals down a notch or two in the importance stakes. Are you up for that, Sam? I sure do hope so. I doubt that I would be alone in wanting this, but if I am, then so be it. I won’t be the first to express disappointment, when, in actual fact, being at the feet of an angel… - Leicester Bangs

As soon as “Down By Law” started, the six-minute opening track, I knew that I was going to really like this album. Even if the other nine tracks turned out to be some terrible disco-glam-funk workout, based upon the late and not great eighties, I knew that I could forgive them almost anything - because here were six magnificent minutes of total spaced-out psyche. It was so good, on that very first time of hearing, I immediately thought we were in Colour Haze territory. Now there’s a place to be!

As it happens the glorious racket continues throughout the album, with leanings towards a more endless boogie approach, rather than continuing to be spaced out indefinitely. With a short stab of Zeppelinesque alt. metal cropping up occasionally as well, adding to the musical menu quite handsomely, this band could almost claim to be the next big thing. I did say ‘almost’, because there is a little bit of a problem, and that is the vocals of Sam Sloane. He can obviously deliver, so that’s not a problem in itself. The worry lies in the fact that he appears to venture into U2 terrain rather a lot, and the longer the album goes on the more he does it. For me, one Bono is more than enough (as is one U2), and it becomes a bit of a let down when Sam appears to emulate him. If he could be a little less ‘Bono’, maybe, a little less driven…?

You see, the real driving force here keeps the band on course, and that is most definitely the utterly glorious rhythm section, comprising of Natasha Arens on bass guitar, and drummer Jeff Paul. These ‘guys’ really know how to put it over and pull it off, and from start to finish first prize goes to their incredible virtuosity.

So, chaps, next time around why not veer (‘vir’?) a bit more towards the instrumentation and drop the vocals down a notch or two in the importance stakes. Are you up for that, Sam? I sure do hope so. I doubt that I would be alone in wanting this, but if I am, then so be it. I won’t be the first to express disappointment, when, in actual fact, being at the feet of an angel… - Leicester Bangs

No one quite knows for sure what the letters VIR stand for in the name of this San Francisco shoegaze band. Well, maybe the band members do, but they're not saying. "The name VIR has been a source of speculation amongst our friends, so we decided to never give it up," says guitarist Sam Sloane, who came to the Bay Area from New Zealand. Initially Sloane, Natasha Arens and Jeff Paul were in a band called Montana, aiming for a "big, glacial, dynamic American landscape soundtrack ... thing." When they couldn't find that big sound, they opted instead for the vibrant, intriguing and rad tones of VIR. "I came over from New Zealand all green, wide-eyed and spouting English literature," says Sloane, who first bumped into drummer Paul in the Bay Area. "We used to hang out at an old movie theater and basically bonded over film before we bonded over drinking, reverb and space rock." VIR just finished recording its debut album, "Shadow of Mountain," and alleges that the musicians "are looking forward to the next full length, due on Columbia Records in 2021." Until then, there will be some local VIR shows, including Friday at the Uptown in Oakland. - SF Gate

No one quite knows for sure what the letters VIR stand for in the name of this San Francisco shoegaze band. Well, maybe the band members do, but they're not saying. "The name VIR has been a source of speculation amongst our friends, so we decided to never give it up," says guitarist Sam Sloane, who came to the Bay Area from New Zealand. Initially Sloane, Natasha Arens and Jeff Paul were in a band called Montana, aiming for a "big, glacial, dynamic American landscape soundtrack ... thing." When they couldn't find that big sound, they opted instead for the vibrant, intriguing and rad tones of VIR. "I came over from New Zealand all green, wide-eyed and spouting English literature," says Sloane, who first bumped into drummer Paul in the Bay Area. "We used to hang out at an old movie theater and basically bonded over film before we bonded over drinking, reverb and space rock." VIR just finished recording its debut album, "Shadow of Mountain," and alleges that the musicians "are looking forward to the next full length, due on Columbia Records in 2021." Until then, there will be some local VIR shows, including Friday at the Uptown in Oakland. - SF Gate

SF shoegazing rock band Vir just released this imaginative animated video for the song “Down by Law,” the opening track from the band’s latest album, Gillespie. The band will be performing at the Red Devil Lounge on Thursday June 23rd, with My Second Surprise and Never Never. - the Bay Bridged

SF shoegazing rock band Vir just released this imaginative animated video for the song “Down by Law,” the opening track from the band’s latest album, Gillespie. The band will be performing at the Red Devil Lounge on Thursday June 23rd, with My Second Surprise and Never Never. - the Bay Bridged

San Francisco's Vir delivers blustery, massive shoegaze while frontman Sam Sloane channels Bono

I don't envy aging rock stars. It seems like, for the vast majority, aging in the music business is a lose-lose situation. Most likely an aging rock star will never make music that's as creatively satisfying - or "good," as we'll call it - as the music they made when they were 20. Of course, this sobering fact won't stop them from trying (and repeatedly failing) to do so.

And if our aging rock star passes on the first option, the possibility always remains of giving themselves over to the ravenous beast that is show business and becoming a whorish husk of your former self.

Either way, always approaching fast from behind are the New. These young artists are hungry, innovative and, in some cases, able to do an aging rock star's shtick better than the aging rock star could ever hope to.

As I type these words, it's my hope that Bono is peering timidly over his shoulder at San Francisco's Vir. Chief among my reasons for making that statement is lead singer Sam Sloane's at times quite striking vocal similarity to the personally insufferable U2 frontman.

Though the rest of Vir's qualities are not immediately reminiscent of U2, it's not hard to imagine the band filling a stadium with their sound. It‘s massiveness these two bands share, with Vir delivering it in an almost shoegaze-y way.

"We try to reject the watery, washy kind of association of shoegaze and try to create something a little more aggressive, noisier and a little more experimental," says Sloane. "A lot of that 4AD stuff, in our opinion, sort of sounded wimpy, and there's not a lot of ethos to it. So, we try to bring something a little more blustery."

Vir's songs are dark, vaguely ominous tension-builders created out of relentlessly pulsing bass lines and bathed in guitar fuzz. They are rhythmic in that way that might inspire you to bob your head and tap your toe in the dim light of a venue. And when the tension is released, it should be enough to scare the leather pants off of Bono. - Weekly Volcano

San Francisco's Vir delivers blustery, massive shoegaze while frontman Sam Sloane channels Bono

I don't envy aging rock stars. It seems like, for the vast majority, aging in the music business is a lose-lose situation. Most likely an aging rock star will never make music that's as creatively satisfying - or "good," as we'll call it - as the music they made when they were 20. Of course, this sobering fact won't stop them from trying (and repeatedly failing) to do so.

And if our aging rock star passes on the first option, the possibility always remains of giving themselves over to the ravenous beast that is show business and becoming a whorish husk of your former self.

Either way, always approaching fast from behind are the New. These young artists are hungry, innovative and, in some cases, able to do an aging rock star's shtick better than the aging rock star could ever hope to.

As I type these words, it's my hope that Bono is peering timidly over his shoulder at San Francisco's Vir. Chief among my reasons for making that statement is lead singer Sam Sloane's at times quite striking vocal similarity to the personally insufferable U2 frontman.

Though the rest of Vir's qualities are not immediately reminiscent of U2, it's not hard to imagine the band filling a stadium with their sound. It‘s massiveness these two bands share, with Vir delivering it in an almost shoegaze-y way.

"We try to reject the watery, washy kind of association of shoegaze and try to create something a little more aggressive, noisier and a little more experimental," says Sloane. "A lot of that 4AD stuff, in our opinion, sort of sounded wimpy, and there's not a lot of ethos to it. So, we try to bring something a little more blustery."

Vir's songs are dark, vaguely ominous tension-builders created out of relentlessly pulsing bass lines and bathed in guitar fuzz. They are rhythmic in that way that might inspire you to bob your head and tap your toe in the dim light of a venue. And when the tension is released, it should be enough to scare the leather pants off of Bono. - Weekly Volcano

Vir brings us a sound that we here in the Coachella Valley are desperately trying to find in the local scene. The guitar riffs added with a strong rhythm section creates a solid foundation for trance inducing black magic. - Indie Win - Indie Win

Vir brings us a sound that we here in the Coachella Valley are desperately trying to find in the local scene. The guitar riffs added with a strong rhythm section creates a solid foundation for trance inducing black magic. - Indie Win - Indie Win

Vir sound like the second coming of Gene Loves Jezebel, which is definitely a compliment. Between the swooping guitar riffs, the clever bass lines and the slightly rough, spaced-out vocals, Gillespie has an epic sound. Vir are classic indie rock with a slight gothic edge and hints of Primal Scream. Keep an eye on this band. (Vibraphone Records) - East Bay Express

Vir sound like the second coming of Gene Loves Jezebel, which is definitely a compliment. Between the swooping guitar riffs, the clever bass lines and the slightly rough, spaced-out vocals, Gillespie has an epic sound. Vir are classic indie rock with a slight gothic edge and hints of Primal Scream. Keep an eye on this band. (Vibraphone Records) - East Bay Express

This CD came with a friendly, hand-written stickie from frontman Sam Sloane , whom I’ve not met, describing his group’s music as “post-punk, shoegaze from the SF Bay Area.” Given my warm feelings for his region’s many contributions to late ‘80s/early ‘90s dreampop, largely, sadly unknown to the general public (e.g. Belladonna, Orange, Rosemarys, the early Brian Jonestown, etc.), that’s enough to give his trio’s second LP Gillespie a spin in quiet curiosity. But it does not in fact tap into that dangled legacy. What it does offer, actually, is a recollection on how influential U2 were after 1983’s War , especially circa The Unforgettable Fire and Joshua Tree . Blindfolded, I’d not be certain that Mr. Sloane was not in fact the former Paul Hewson (to his Irish parents and his childhood friends), AKA Bono Vox, so much does he sing and sound like him. (Talk about your aural doppleganger.) And it doesn’t’ stop there; his guitar playing clearly also holds David Evans (ditto, that’s The Edge to you) in similar aural stalking. Fortunately, as copies go, Sloane is an advanced axe-man, and drummer Jeff Paul and bassist Natasha Arens are of a similar ability. So calling them an ‘80s-U2 tribute band—performing originals instead of covers—is not the distasteful disaster it usually is (and recall, that on their earliest, naïve singles, U2 themselves borrowed as wholesale from their prickly punk predecessors, Scotland’s The Skids). The raw matter is there if Vir can find a way to find their own way, tacking away from bald-faced replication (as the Edge himself did when he added Public Image’s Keith Levine’s weird, effects-encrusted atonal shimmer to his early mimic of The Skids’ Stuart Adamson’s spiky punk chording). A band that plays this well should be able to manage this requisite step if they can recognize its necessity. Otherwise, they’d need to pick a more obscure band to so nakedly impersonate next time. (thevir.com) - The Big Takeover

This CD came with a friendly, hand-written stickie from frontman Sam Sloane , whom I’ve not met, describing his group’s music as “post-punk, shoegaze from the SF Bay Area.” Given my warm feelings for his region’s many contributions to late ‘80s/early ‘90s dreampop, largely, sadly unknown to the general public (e.g. Belladonna, Orange, Rosemarys, the early Brian Jonestown, etc.), that’s enough to give his trio’s second LP Gillespie a spin in quiet curiosity. But it does not in fact tap into that dangled legacy. What it does offer, actually, is a recollection on how influential U2 were after 1983’s War , especially circa The Unforgettable Fire and Joshua Tree . Blindfolded, I’d not be certain that Mr. Sloane was not in fact the former Paul Hewson (to his Irish parents and his childhood friends), AKA Bono Vox, so much does he sing and sound like him. (Talk about your aural doppleganger.) And it doesn’t’ stop there; his guitar playing clearly also holds David Evans (ditto, that’s The Edge to you) in similar aural stalking. Fortunately, as copies go, Sloane is an advanced axe-man, and drummer Jeff Paul and bassist Natasha Arens are of a similar ability. So calling them an ‘80s-U2 tribute band—performing originals instead of covers—is not the distasteful disaster it usually is (and recall, that on their earliest, naïve singles, U2 themselves borrowed as wholesale from their prickly punk predecessors, Scotland’s The Skids). The raw matter is there if Vir can find a way to find their own way, tacking away from bald-faced replication (as the Edge himself did when he added Public Image’s Keith Levine’s weird, effects-encrusted atonal shimmer to his early mimic of The Skids’ Stuart Adamson’s spiky punk chording). A band that plays this well should be able to manage this requisite step if they can recognize its necessity. Otherwise, they’d need to pick a more obscure band to so nakedly impersonate next time. (thevir.com) - The Big Takeover

t isn't that often that we come across a spectacular music video, especially one made by a relatively small local band. But here we go: the clip for new single "Down by Law" from Berkeley postpunk/pysch outfit Vir. The animated vid shows a gloomy, sketched-out dystopia, with heinous monsters, apocalyptic cityscapes, and some stick figures representing the band members. The songs itself is a thick, prickly panorama of haze, whose dark clouds occasionally clear to reveal small moments of beauty -- sort of like the end of the video. Check it all out after the jump.

"Down by Law" is the opening track on Vir's upcoming album, Gillespie, and has been featured on the Seattle college radio station KEXP. According to the band, the video you see below wasn't easy to make: It "was a huge undertaking utilizing Photoshop and After Effects to bring about this bizarre and dystopic world," in fact. So check it out:

Vir plays with My Second Surprise and Never Never at the Red Devil Lounge on June 23. It's bass player Natasha's birthday, so there will be cake!

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Follow us on Twitter @SFAllShookDown, follow Ian S. Port @iPORT, and like us at Facebook.com/SFAllShookDown.
Tags:
video, Vir

- SF Weekly

t isn't that often that we come across a spectacular music video, especially one made by a relatively small local band. But here we go: the clip for new single "Down by Law" from Berkeley postpunk/pysch outfit Vir. The animated vid shows a gloomy, sketched-out dystopia, with heinous monsters, apocalyptic cityscapes, and some stick figures representing the band members. The songs itself is a thick, prickly panorama of haze, whose dark clouds occasionally clear to reveal small moments of beauty -- sort of like the end of the video. Check it all out after the jump.

"Down by Law" is the opening track on Vir's upcoming album, Gillespie, and has been featured on the Seattle college radio station KEXP. According to the band, the video you see below wasn't easy to make: It "was a huge undertaking utilizing Photoshop and After Effects to bring about this bizarre and dystopic world," in fact. So check it out:

Vir plays with My Second Surprise and Never Never at the Red Devil Lounge on June 23. It's bass player Natasha's birthday, so there will be cake!

----
Follow us on Twitter @SFAllShookDown, follow Ian S. Port @iPORT, and like us at Facebook.com/SFAllShookDown.
Tags:
video, Vir

- SF Weekly

Vir conjure up an almighty racket on their second album. Gillespie may scare off traditional shoegazers but this record provides the muscular presence the genre is so often criticised for lacking.

- Leonards Lair - - Leonards Lair

Vir conjure up an almighty racket on their second album. Gillespie may scare off traditional shoegazers but this record provides the muscular presence the genre is so often criticised for lacking.

- Leonards Lair - - Leonards Lair