THE EVIL TENORS
With The Evil Tenors’ debut, bandleader Nathan White marks a stark and definitive departure from his quirky pop band, Nathan Oliver.
White met Evil Tenors co-founder Roy Elturk, and inspired by common influences including The Raveonettes, Mazzy Star, Joy Division and Of Montreal (In fact, the band’s name was lifted from an Of Montreal tune), the pair started writing the songs that would become Peach Fuzz. Hungry for a more dynamic and aggressive sound, White and Evil Tenors co-founder Roy Elturk (of Detroit psych-rockers Oblisk), set out to create a leaner and more versatile sound with their new project. “We’re going for a stripped down, dynamic sound that’s overwhelmingly blown-up when loud, and beautiful and scarcely fragile when subdued,” White says. “No bells and whistles. No whimsical stuff.” And with the wiry surf-punk riffs and post-punk shivers of “You’re Not A Sharp Knife,” the eerie garage-psych gyre of “Haunted House,” and the punchy dance-punk of “My Love Goes Uh-Oh,” it’s clear The Evil Tenors have set off in a darker and more muscular direction that Nathan Oliver’s more whimsical pop songs ever dared. But, at the same time, there’s the hazy Rosebuds-esque ballad “Out of Reach” and the gently swaying “Your Love Is Instrumental” — which wouldn’t sound out of place in the Nathan Oliver catalog. All together Peach Fuzz is an engaging but uneasy 20 minutes; bitter, but optimistic pop tunes fueled by 90s indie grit and lo-fi gauze. The title reflects that. “Peach Fuzz is a reference to insecurity in many ways,” White says. “It pokes fun at and points to adolescence and teenage angst, shoe-gazer bands, and all of the music I grew up on.” To flesh out the songs they’d written for Peach Fuzz, White and Elturk enlisted the aid of keyboardist John Harrison (North Elementary) and bassist Mas Sato (The Sames), and producer Nick Petersen (Des Ark, Mount Moriah). Brian Paulson (Beck, Wilco, Slint) mixed the EP.
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PEACH FUZZ
CD / Digital ICELANDER
Digital |
