BLOG: A Treat from the Desert
Dear Concert Goers,
TONIGHT ONLY: Desert Noises, The Old World, Lake Island and Soulway Spaceman bring you a splendid soirée, filled with the greatest of their own respective cultivated musics. Located at 814 E. 200 North, Logan, Utah, a free house show will commence at 7 p.m. for your aural enjoyment. We will hopefully see you there.
This week, in accordance with the festivities tonight, Sept. 16, I bring you a review on Provo-based Desert Noises’ latest release “Mountain Sea.”
I remember seeing Desert Noises for the first time, back in the fall-ish time of 2009 — it could have been a different time but for some reason 2009 sounds right — and a couple of other bands that I had been following, Drew Danburry and Seve vs Evan. It was a great show, with friends, strangers and surprises — the surprises equaling the first listen of a three-piece band calling themselves Desert Noises. I was instantly entranced by them and bought their EP. Being hit and miss, the EP didn’t sit well with me, so sadly Desert Noises fell off of my radar until about four months ago. Announcement of a new album and a new music video instantly got me excited.
Adding another guitarist to the band and a change or two in cast, Desert Noises has progressed in the best way possible. They crafted a new style while maintaining the integrity of the songwriting of the first EP. Their second release, on Northplatte Records, has a mature and tight feel, yet at the same time feels delightfully organic and spontaneous. Every track is bursting with some emotion, which is portrayed with great guitar lines and amazing vocals done by front man Kyle Henderson.
Desert Noises, at least in my mind, has always captured a full sound. With multiple layers and sometimes added keyboard, each song sounds full, from the slow trod of “Tell Me You Love Me,” to the intense build of the first track “Highway Cars.” From the first moments, to the last note on the album, each moment feels like it belongs. Like the Continentals’ release “Rhino,” each song builds to a complete-sounding album. It might seem weird to refer to the album as sounding complete or full, but “Mountain Sea” is an album that is just that. Each song stands separately by itself, yet they all help each other to form a unique guitar-based indie rock.
“Mountain Sea” has the “groove.” The “groove” is a mystical and illusive entity that lives in all of us yet exists without us. It’s what I can best describe as the ability of a song or thing to move the human spirit, or at least the human body. It’s the feeling you get when you hear a song and have the overwhelming feeling to get up and dance, or crack a smile because it just feels incredibly good.
In almost every song, “Mountain Sea” has captured the “groove.” In tracks like “Oak Tree,” when each part rolling along makes you smile; or at the end of “Highway Cars,” when you want to sing along with Henderson with all of your might; or “Hey Ah,” when you can’t help but move around singing along to the simple but catchy chorus. From the guitar romp “Up the Mountain,” where the vocal parts are just as invigorating as the powerful riffs, to the slower, yet tender beauty of “Smoke Breathing Monsters.” Like I said, the sound is something you can feel in your soul.
The album isn’t without its faults, however. It feels incredibly short and the lyrics aren’t easily accessible. The guitar parts, even in one of my favorites, “Oak Tree,” are sometimes a little sloppy, and it feels like a roller coaster, moving from fast songs to slow songs at the turn of a dime. Each song feels amazing, and the album as a whole feels good, but the balancing of songs feels off. Even though it sounds full, and every song feels a part of the same canon, the album veers off into the sidelines occasionally.
Bottom Line: “Mountain Sea” from Desert Noises is a great indie-guitar rock album that feels great and sounds great. If you enjoy reverb on vocals, great guitars and solid full-sounding rock, then pick up “Mountain Sea,” immediately. One song after another, each song feels like it is a single, yet at the same time feels a part of the last song and the song after it. If you like to move and “groove,” then what more do I have to say? I give “Mountain Sea” 8.56 lobsters from the tank, out of a possible 10 hanging out in there.
Regrettably,
Just Alex
— alexander.h.van_oene@aggiemail.usu.edu