Those of you who follow me on twitter already know that I failed to go to the "Alpinist" show, so no gig review today. Luckily, there will be a show which I will both attend and review and that is "Failed Suicide Plan", yet another screamoish band from Germany. And one other great thing is actually this very post. I was contacted by the very friendly guitar player Chris from "Broken Chords..." about posting their discography, pretty much on the day when I found out that I won't be seeing Alpinist, so this was really a medication on the wound so to speak.
And why is it healing? Well honestly, "Broken Chords Can Sing A Little" is a very much loved band by yours truly, yet I completely forgot about them in the past year. I remember being introduced to this band by the very end of 2008, back then listening to Prologue and Parts I and II being completely amazed. I was stunned by their completely raw, distorted sound and emotionally charged lyrics, all of that wrapped into releases which are purely flowing due to the fact that each song continues on one another. Yet somehow, I really neglected them and nearly forgot about the whole project, despite my jaw being on the floor while taking the first listen. As I said, luckily I have been reminded about them, won't turn my back this time.
"Broken Chords Can Sing A Little" are a quartet coming from Lancaster/Lemoyne PA, gathering together in the fall of 2008. They quickly released Prologue, Part I and Part II, being very lo-fi, followed by Part III, IV and V recorded in the winter of 2009. The latter releases are not as lo-fi as the first ones, bearing a much clearer sound since they were recorded in a professional studio in Reading, PA. Broken Chords revisited some of their old songs on newer releases, for instance the "Chapter I" track which is on both Part I and on Part III (Part III actually being a split with Giuseppe, a band found here) on which it has a different name, "Lightning Blinking Where They Land". Maybe a bit confusing, but it is very interesting when you hear it all at once and in retrospect. As I mentioned above, the first three sets of recordings are very lo-fi, basically representing an amazing amalgam of chaotic and gentle tunes. Their Last.fm description serves them well, stating that "music they give to the world is filled with emotion and desperation that is best described as beautiful." And yes, you can sense the sadness and heaviness of the melodies, but at the same time it is quite beautiful and gentle. Yet on the 2009 recordings go the other way around, carrying a lot more gentler tone with desperation and chaos being right on the next corner. It seems that these sessions inspired the band on a larger scale, since Parts III, IV and V bring a series of diverse melodies and song composition types, really managing to expand the band, so to speak.
Overall, we are gifted with twenty songs by "Broken Chords Can Sing A Little", a total of nearly 40 minutes of beautiful tunes. It is quite important to write down that both the lo-fi and the clear recordings fit perfectly with this band, since the amount of honesty, passion and emotion is definitely not injected less within the newer releases. Parts III to V are surely less chaotic, but here they gained an atmospheric trait and it suites them well. The gentler and calmer sections of songs really excel here, but despite the change you still know which band you are listening to, since their "style" can clearly be recognized, even with new additions.
As far as their myspace (found here) provides information, they are still alive and kicking, writing some new songs. Hopefully you will want to contact and support them after taking a listen to their tunes and reading this writeup, they definitely deserve your attention. I'd like to thank Chris for contacting me and being interested in "Natures With No Plagues", big hugs. Enough talk, listen and enjoy.
repost files pretty pls
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