Despistado are at the root of all music I've heard that comes out of Saskatchewan. I first had a chance to see them when their EP, Emergency Response came out- it was (and still is) one of the most bitingly catchy records I've heard. Tribally structured drums fills and a twisty-turny bassline that jangles between two high-strung guitars that dance on a tightrope. Post-punk loveliness. Shortly after signing to Jade Tree Records in 2005, the band decided to call it quits. Their only full length record, The People and Their Verses is for sale on Jade
Tree's website.
First to rise from the ashes of Despistado was Sylvie, featuring Joel Passmore (Despistado's bass player/ supporting singer) on guitar. Sylvie focuses on a frantic approach to progressive rock- walls of guitar effects and a corset-tight rhythm section. Their video for the song 'Rise and Fall' from their album An Electric Trace is pretty durn wonderful:
Then Geronimo started touring- bringing the guitars of Dagan and Leif to a wound-up climax, harvesting the aggressiveness of Dagan's lyrical politics as an added barb in an already razor-sharp band. Their
EP Enlightenment in a Small Town is full of twang, breakneck dance breakdowns and a million notes of fury from the prairies.Anatta were the last to announce their inception- drawing a large amount of fantasticness from the drum acrobatics of Brenan Schwartz, Anatta build a background of strings and keys for both sets of male and female vocals to wax poetics amidst the frantic percussion, painting pictures of raised fists and unrest.
I fucking loved Despistado, but their parts apart are still pretty damn good. Reunion shows, though? Maybe?
Maybe.
2 comments:
Wow, nice article on Regina's indie music. You don't find many of these from people outside of Saskatchewan. On par with Halifax? That's very kind of you. I just thought I would point out that Joel from Sylvie also plays bass in Rah Rah, and Dagan also has another band called the Wardoves, both of which are quite good.
Regina is definitely deserving. I thoroughly enjoy Rah Rah! Songs for Pasquala is a fantastic record- Wardoves is news to me. I will absolutely have to look out for them. Thanks for the comment!
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