Friends
of
Sound - Rock-Ola
If
we were to have a slogan for the record, it would be something
like, "Hear these
songs? Don't they seem simple?"
One day a cassette tape arrived
in an envelope accompanied by a polite introduction and self
addressed stamped envelope. There was something about the
music and the neatly, almost drawn-as-art, handwritten note.
The Galaxie 500 influence was apparent but not overtly obvious.
A man sung. A woman sung. And it was music of a home studio.
Private.
And
over the next two years a quarterly pattern set in. A new
tape accompanied by a new
name, with more band members. A new tape accompanied by a
new name, with fewer band members. And back again. We liked
some more, some less. But that thing that we originally heard
was still there and growing. Then…six months of silence.
Did they break up? Get another deal? Get tired of waiting?
When the songs that make up Rock-Ola
arrived, it was the sound of all the previous disparate pieces
coming together. We're not quite sure how they did it. Maybe
settling as a duo made everything clear. Friends of Sound
(aka Leslie and Reed Lochamy), live in Birmingham, Alabama
and create fragile indie-pop music that gains its strength
from the sum of the parts. Some bells, guitars, some drum
machine.
Rock-Ola
gives meaningful exposure to both the simplistic and untrained. "T.V. Shows" includes
a special guest appearance by Friends of Sound's amateur
(at best) trumpet playing cousin who happens to be eleven
years old. Lyrics to the song "So Mean" were written
by another five-year-old cousin. Leslie, who had never touched
a banjo before, plays a banjo solo on "Stay Here." Reed,
not to be left out, recently purchased his first clarinet
at a thrift store for 15 dollars, for his part on "Manhattan."
Sounding
like early classic Sarah Records 7" singles filtered through a late model weirdometer,
Rock-Ola contains sparkling lullaby-pop, and iridescent melodies
carried by co-ed vocals and a slinky electronic flourish,
augmented with a twisted Deep South gothic sensibility. Not "southern
fried" by any means, the sounds on this record could've
been created in the mid-90s Bristol England scene as much
as Birmingham AL. Influences and comparisons include Luna,
Yo La Tengo, Galaxie 500, and The Magnetic Fields (or any
Stephin Merritt project for that matter)…
"Birmingham, Alabama-based
Friends of Sound (aka Leslie and Reed Lochamy) make lo-budget
guitar and drum machine indie pop. Their debut album subverts
lullaby melodies (including contributions from five and 11-year-old
cousins) with warped Deep South gothic sensibilities creating
16 songs with hidden stings." -Paul Johnson Uncut
"Reverb can be a treacherous
effect when used to mask a guitarist lack of proficiency.,
but added to the requisite solid songwriting, it enlivens
even the simplest of melodies. One Friends of Sound’s
debut, Reed Lochamy get it right, bathing his three-chord
riffs in an affable retro sound. Good thing, too, because
this Birmingham, Alabama duo skirts along the exceedingly
thin line between cloying twee and intelligent pop, especially
when lifting line from Sesame Street or borrowing lyrics
written by a nine-year-old cousin. One most other tracks,
Reed and his partner Leslie Lochamy settle into a safer territory,
summoning a quaint atmospheric pace and peppering the lyrics
with hopeful upbeat sentiments --- like “lovers in the
movie never really go away / Why can’t we be like them
/ Won’t you ask me to stay?” - seemingly written
while holed up inside on a rainy Sunday. Aside from the echoing
guitar, the duo augments the midtempo sway with banjo, toy
percussion and a standard bass/drum/keyboard foundation.
It’s all pleasantly reminiscent of early Galaxie 500
or the Magnetic Fields, though it never falls into outright
mimicry. Chalk this up to the Lochamy’s unfettered vocals
and a mild yen for pop experimentation that renders Rock-Ola
as playful as its name suggests." -Richard A. Martin CMJ
New Music Monthly
"Despite
the complex neurological processes it involves, and the unfathomly
deep levels of
the subconscious it can pierce, the process of hypnotism
involves a simplistic practice that stands juxtaposed with
its results. The lulling wave of a stopwatch. The snap of
a finger. These are the gateways to a world of untold complexity.
Friends of Sound follows the same path. Its naïve pop is sophisticatedly
simple yet daringly unfettered, sucking you into an imagination-fueled playground.
Rock-Ola, the debut from Birmingham based due Leslie and Reed Lochamy, includes
a melange of instrumentation and the varied palate gives the listener plenty
of aural treats to uncover amidst the unconventional pop hookery and laconic
vocals. The monotone nature of said vocals, the least impressive aspect of
Rock-Ola, stand in stark contrast to their unorthodox musical background. Even
so, the understated delivery doesn’t detract from some cuts. It also fits
some others perfectly, as the voice move aside to allow the listener to concentrate
on the compositions. The vocals also work nicely when studio tweaked on some
cuts.
Still, experimental music rarely works one hundred percent of the time, and
such is the case on Rock-Ola. Oh well. Better to veer from brilliant to boring
than stay the middle course and be utterly forgettable." -Amplifier
"If
you go to enough theatre, whether your local high school productions
or the Royal Shakespearean
Company, you'll eventually stumble onto that blue-moon coincidence:
the two lead characters that are in love in real life. When that
happens-- and if you are fortunate enough to pick up on it--
everything about the play changes. The subtleties and double
entendres become more prevalent and pronounced. The performances
are imbued with the kind of magnetic passion that can neither
be faked nor hidden.
It's wonderful and rare.
Friends of Sound is the husband and wife duo of Reed and Leslie Lochamy, who,
if their relationship is anything like their music, never have a dull moment.
Rock-ola is the product of the several years-long courtship of their record label.
Periodic experiments with lineups and additional musicians just served to confound
what was there in the Lochamy's Birmingham, Alabama home studio all along. And
with their debut on Hidden Agenda, they've now taken the stage.
Honest lyrics about relationships (oxymoronic "romantic realism") are
wedded to a flaky, 100-layer Harry & David baklava of sound. The closets
were cleaned out to yield a whole spectrum of instruments-- banjo, horns, reeds,
drums, drum machines, keyboards and a whole boxful of elementary-school, grab
bag percussion: sticks, shakers, maracas, blocks, bells, tambourines-- in addition
to the ubiquitous guitar and bass. Reed's voice bathes in natural-sounding, bathroom
reverberation, taking turns at the melodies with Leslie's meek squeak. And such
melodies! Friends of Sound blurt out song after song that each ring with the
grace of Astaire & Rogers. Even when delivering the most banal of rhymes
("mad" and "sad," e.g.), the Friends of Sound never seem
trite. Overlapping, trading, harmonizing vocals, the duo suggests a Galaxie 500
influence, and then meet the
expectations of those willing to make that comparison.
The carefree opener, "Commitment," and the wide-eyed "4+4" recall
the too-brief heyday of Sarah Records. More evolved than your run-of-the-mill
twee, the two songs sound like richer, more sophisticated
Heavenly. "T.V. Shows" confesses, "You're always worried/ I'm
always mad/ I can't remember the drinks that I've had/ You don't think I care/
Under your breath I hear you swear." The lines are delivered unflinchingly
to a creaking bounce accompaniment. The sing-song and slinky "Think It
Over," and the breezy "Dallas Palace," match many of the great
indie pop songs released in the last decade-- as if all of Stephen Merritt's
unrequited loves suddenly found their soulmates.
Novelties of innocence appear in turns such as a Sesame Street cover
("Dressed for Tea") and the guest trumpet playing of an 11-year-old
cousin. Reed and Leslie each give their debut attempts on never-before-played
instruments (clarinet and banjo, respectively). But the threat of pretense is
dispelled by their sincerity, and the stigma of "too-cute" avoided
by innateness. You can't fault a fuzzpuff Easter chick for being overly lovable--
it really can't help it.
Listening to Rock-ola, I feel like I'm having an out-of-body experience, secretly
and anonymously peeking inside my own marriage. One that's far from perfect but
far from boring-- filled with love letters, peeves aired like laundry, counseling
sessions, professions of fidelity, shared experiences, fights, and goofy antics.
Smart and carefree, like a musical interpretation of a Woody Allen movie or riding
a bike through a warm summer rain shower, the Friends of Sound play songs of
realism without pessimism, sweetness without cloying, and beauty without artifice.
They're not just acting; there's love here. Love for each other, love for fans
of rich pop treats, and above all,
love of sound." -John Dark--Pitchfork
A message from Friends Of Sound:
Hi, this is Reed and Leslie Lochamy from Friends of Sound. We just wanted to
let you know that our debut record, Rock-Ola, has just been released
on Hidden Agenda. The record includes sixteen tracks that we wrote and recorded
here in our house. The songs are simple (three chord progressions), and they
draw from our infuences which include Luna, Galaxie 500, Yo La Tengo, The Magnetic
Fields, and The Velvet Underground. The lyrics are straightforward but have a
rich subtext. We've tried to make the record interesting by using as many thrift
store bought instruments as possible, and we enlisted our 11 year old ameteur
cousin to provide a trumpet solo on one track. If you are or ever have been a
Sesame Street fan (and who hasn't) then our cover of a Sesame Street song will
be enough to pique your interest. We hope that you will enjoy listening to it
as much as we enjoyed creating it. If you want to know more about Friends of
Sound, then you can take a look at our cmj website. The address is http://friendsofsound.cmj.com.
While visiting the webpage you can evan sign our guestbook to let us know what
you think. We would like to thank you in advance for purchasing our record. We
commonly suggest that people buy at least 10 or 12. They can be used as coasters
around the house, or even to
straighen that leaning or wobbly chair.
Thanks again.
reed and leslie. |
