Blake Solomon
07/11/07, 03:39 PM
Overview – Forty-Four Stone Tigers EP
Record Label: Unsigned
Release Date: March 2007
One day, when I become unbelievably wealthy, I am moving to California. As it is now, I split time between the not-so-musical Meccas of Dallas, TX, and Columbia, MO. Sigh. There just isn’t a lot to work with. The dire circumstances of my geographical whereabouts are made even worse when I hear bands like San Francisco’s Overview. Heck, these guys are unsigned and already make better progressive indie-rock than most signed bands out there. Maybe they like it this way. I mean, paperwork can be a bitch.
As another testament to California’s large musical landscape, Overview have already played festivals and shows alongside the likes of Portugal. The Man, Birdmonster, and Cold War Kids. Not bad, not bad at all. And Overview deserve to be there. When people see a lack of label support, they usually think, “amateurs.” Not this time, especially with vocalist Spencer Drager leading things. His boyish tenor is soulful and pop-oriented. He is an experienced musician leading a talented posse of performers.
Overview display a wide array of styles throughout the seven songs on Forty-Four Stone Tigers. “Maybe Dead at 27” begins with a gloomy post-rock vibe before instantly morphing into a dancey toe tapper. The guitars command in a retro, heavily pedaled shred session, while the title track is instrumental and features a hypnotic bassline led by spacey electronics.
The mood set in each song can range from relaxed to frenzied to just plain odd. “The Two Headed Snake” is a rollercoaster ride of emotions. Handclaps lull the listener into a false sense of happiness, but the lyrics tell a different story:
Begs all day in the sun / For my money to buy smokes and rum / Searching for a new excuse / To reform his refuge / I walk by as he spits on my shoe / I said I’m working this god damn job for you.
Nothing about Overview is simple. Guitar riffs hit atmospheric levels, but then quiet so quickly it’s almost as if you dreamed the whole thing. Due to Drager's delivery, the lyrical content may seem juvenile. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Forty-Four Stone Tigers is about growing up, but it’s obviously written by someone who did so long ago. When Draber semi-preaches the line, “But everyone they want the same thing,” it just feels true. At my age I sometimes forget bad things happen outside of relationships, and Overview is hardly concerned with such “trifling” situations. Forty-Four Stone Tigers will easily find an audience in those tired of repetition and regurgitation. Three words come to mind: refreshing, refreshing, refreshing.
Recommended If You Like: Cold War Kids, Facing New York, knowing the difference between a dinner fork and a salad fork, Days Away, murdering guitarists
www.myspace.com/overview
Record Label: Unsigned
Release Date: March 2007
One day, when I become unbelievably wealthy, I am moving to California. As it is now, I split time between the not-so-musical Meccas of Dallas, TX, and Columbia, MO. Sigh. There just isn’t a lot to work with. The dire circumstances of my geographical whereabouts are made even worse when I hear bands like San Francisco’s Overview. Heck, these guys are unsigned and already make better progressive indie-rock than most signed bands out there. Maybe they like it this way. I mean, paperwork can be a bitch.
As another testament to California’s large musical landscape, Overview have already played festivals and shows alongside the likes of Portugal. The Man, Birdmonster, and Cold War Kids. Not bad, not bad at all. And Overview deserve to be there. When people see a lack of label support, they usually think, “amateurs.” Not this time, especially with vocalist Spencer Drager leading things. His boyish tenor is soulful and pop-oriented. He is an experienced musician leading a talented posse of performers.
Overview display a wide array of styles throughout the seven songs on Forty-Four Stone Tigers. “Maybe Dead at 27” begins with a gloomy post-rock vibe before instantly morphing into a dancey toe tapper. The guitars command in a retro, heavily pedaled shred session, while the title track is instrumental and features a hypnotic bassline led by spacey electronics.
The mood set in each song can range from relaxed to frenzied to just plain odd. “The Two Headed Snake” is a rollercoaster ride of emotions. Handclaps lull the listener into a false sense of happiness, but the lyrics tell a different story:
Begs all day in the sun / For my money to buy smokes and rum / Searching for a new excuse / To reform his refuge / I walk by as he spits on my shoe / I said I’m working this god damn job for you.
Nothing about Overview is simple. Guitar riffs hit atmospheric levels, but then quiet so quickly it’s almost as if you dreamed the whole thing. Due to Drager's delivery, the lyrical content may seem juvenile. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Forty-Four Stone Tigers is about growing up, but it’s obviously written by someone who did so long ago. When Draber semi-preaches the line, “But everyone they want the same thing,” it just feels true. At my age I sometimes forget bad things happen outside of relationships, and Overview is hardly concerned with such “trifling” situations. Forty-Four Stone Tigers will easily find an audience in those tired of repetition and regurgitation. Three words come to mind: refreshing, refreshing, refreshing.
Recommended If You Like: Cold War Kids, Facing New York, knowing the difference between a dinner fork and a salad fork, Days Away, murdering guitarists
www.myspace.com/overview