Just like some bands don’t know how to put out bad records or play bad shows, some booking agencies just don’t know how to bring bad bands to our lovely city. Paper and Iron Booking seem to love Thrill Jockey Records more than I do, which is saying something. I love them so much that once I forgot my girlfriends name and simply called her Thrill with a puzzled look on my face as I held the record cover of some Thrill Jockey classic like Jack Rose or Mountains or Trans Am or or or…ah, too many to mention. Thrill is now my ex-girlfriend needless to say.
So with continued amazement at the quality of shows which is preventing me writing anything about the band so far, I’ll let Thrill Jockey speak for me and yes, it is my pleasure. Thank you Thrill Jockey and thank you Paper and Iron.
Click here to listen Original Colours in all its glory.
High Places is poised to release its third long-player Original Colors this fall on Thrill Jockey. The album’s ten tracks are full of driving bass pulses, syncopated dance rhythms, and the binding force of Mary’s mezzo-soprano vocals. Recorded in the band’s home studios in Los Angeles, Original Colors is dotted with sun drenched references to Australia’s inimitable foliage, the expansive desert of Northern Mexico, and the crystal, blue waters of the Indian Ocean. Such allusions are presented over a bed of swirling stereo rhythms and infectious melodies. Each track possesses a unique texture and emotion that serve to create a variegated yet unified album of some of High Places’ finest work to date.
High Places is Rob Barber and Mary Pearson. Throughout its nearly five years of existence, the band has traveled extensively and performed in a multitude of environments. Whether performing at the Guggenheim Museum in Manhattan or in an industrial warehouse in Santiago, Chile, High Places’ enveloping sound and propulsive energy allow the music to translate to a variety of venues. Visual art plays an important role in Mary and Rob’s collaboration. The two make video projections for their stage shows, keep a photo blog that documents their travels, http://hellohighplaces.blogspot.com, and create their own album artwork. In this way and others, Mary and Rob challenge the conventional parameters of a rock band and instead give us a multi-sensory aesthetic partnership that continually defies expectations.
Here’s a couple of their videos, Sonora and Sophia off Original Colours:
