Bipolar music: dark lyrics about love, longing and loss coupled with bright, layered sound

8 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, POP: Quirky



Details:
Art, architecture, longing and loss. With their CD Attachment Disorder, Phoenix-based band psych 101 expands on themes and sounds from bands as diverse as Joy Division, radiohead and Interpol, while crafting new musical textures to support moody but often humorous lyrics. Comprised of veteran musicians Steve Evans, George Catone and Jeff Miller, the CD opens with the relationship deconstruction of "New Construction" before moving to the eBow-driven sounds of "Watching Paint Dry." "Train Wreck" is as loud as one might expect, sonically underscoring personal derailment. The lyrics of "Nah" could be fairly summarized as "multiple hopeful sentiments expressed sincerely and immediately denied" but set to a bouncy riff which gives little hint of the lyrical cynicism.

When asked "How much do you love me" who hasn't thought the words never expressed: I love you enough. Here they're expressed in the ultimate honest love song.

The band stuffed a microphone down the horn of an old Victrola for the intro to "Even Now" before speeding the song up to an almost unplayable speed. Just when it is completely unexpected, the synth swirls of the intro to "NOLBY" ("No One Left But You") segueway into a driving dance beat coupled with acid guitar and a linear set of lyrics.

The album ends with the most musically layered and complex piece, "Transcendence," ironically pairing eastern-influenced sound with absolute nonsense philosophical lyrics.

Psych 101 is hard at work on its second CD of all orginal music, expected to be released in early 2008.