local minstrels #1: bodies of water

in which we focus on local artists. local to US, not YOU, unless YOU happen to live near US (then lucky you). honestly i find the concept of a "local band scene" anywhere kind of gross, as grouping bands together out of geography is lazy & stupid & usually has very little to do with their sound unless you're talking about manchester in the late 80s or seattle in the early 90s. but every now & then, a few slip through the cracks. this is their story:

it seems only fitting to start this new feature off with my favorite local band. i've been following these guys for some time & even interviewed them on a friend's podcast a few years back. two of them are a couple, two of them are not. they're a more spiritual arcade fire, a less creepy polyphonic spree & a sexier mamas & papas (just look at that cover......dammmmn). this very week they are celebrating the release of their long-in-the-works debut lp "Ears Will Pop & Eyes Will Blink". meet bodies of water.

unlike yr run of the mill locals trying to be "old school" & revive glam or reinvent punk (post or otherwise), BoW take it back to the oldest school possible: gospel. there was no music before god, rt? & god is music & music is god. but this ain't all fire & brimstone choruses, this is the new indie-gospel. with lyrics that sound too lierate to be sung (paging James Mercer) coupled w/compelling, complicated multi-instrumentalization & harmonizing to make Brian Wilson blush, BoW were made for these times. these & no other.

w/residencies at all the right spots around LA & true songwriting chops to accompany it, these guys WILL move to the national level, it is just a matter of time (i have december in the WMS office pool). seriously, i could post almost any track off the album that would impress, but here is the first song of theirs i fell in love with (& future nu-pimp anthem):

here comes my hand - bodies of water (zShare)

& here is one of their newer jams:

we are co-existors - bodies of water (zShare)

[BUY]

ps that 1st link has a few more songs if you like what you hear. check them out if they come through yr town & if you don't like them, you may submit yr receipt to us here for reimbursement.