Radio K presents ZOO ANIMAL CD Release
ZOO ANIMAL
A paradox is not an impossibility. Zoo Animal, the band’s self-titled second record, reveals itself to uphold such a maxim with a sharp yet subdued sound that is informed by equal measures of classical minimalism and ‘90s grunge. This contrast is just one of many as Zoo Animal’s stark, articulate pop music vacillates between gentle and aggressive, volatile and peaceful, light and dark. It’s graceful, hushed, soul-stirring music, yet it rests atop traditional rock instrumentation – simply guitar, drums, bass – that can turn visceral at the drop of a drumstick.
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The Minneapolis trio formed in the winter of 2008 as songwriter Holly Newsom shifted her reclusive solo work into a rock lexicon that now includes bassist Tim Abramson’s melodic counterpoint and the taut structures from drummer Thom Burton. Newsom gives her songs a heightened sense of conviction as her pensive words and private thoughts fold over and drape around warped pop styles and abolished rock band stereotypes. The lyrics pour out in a variety of ways – sometimes gushing forth in torrents, often crawling out in little more than a whisper – but they are always tethered to melodies that emotionally and elementally guide each song. These particular contrasts and disparities have been wrought into a definitive album which, fittingly, left the band no option but to name it after themselves. Produced by Tom Herbers (Low).
RED PENS
Seeing the Minneapolis duo Red Pens is like witnessing a demonstration. A demonstration in raw sonic bliss. Howard Hamilton III is a string bending master and knows how to make feedback work to his advantage. His confident vocal stylings coupled with drummer Laura Bennett's all or nothing kit pounding are about as uniquely refreshing as it gets these days.
HIS AND HER VANITIES
His and Her Vanities on Myspace
Madison, Wisconsin-based His & Her Vanities developed when Ricky and Terrin Riemer began writing music together in their basement while their infant son was asleep at night. With Terrin playing around on bass and Ricky on drums, the couple worked up entire song arrangements, recorded them, and layered other instruments and vocals on top. After amassing a collection of slightly angular, post-punk/pop-rock songs this way, the couple decided to bring the songs to the stage with a full band.
HILDUR VICTORIA
Minneapolis Indie Quartet Hildur Victoria began as a solo project under the name of writer/vocalist Margaret Lane in 2007. With the addition of dynamic local musicians Jeremy Hanson, Joe Clark, and Jef Sundquist, the group began to evolve into a sonorous collective. By early 2009, the quartet started honing in on their distinct amalgam of rock, folk, and ethereal/ambient music.
