Re: School of Seven Bells

I have a chance to see this band on Saturday. Anyone here seen them? Any comments? Thanks!

I have liked individual singles but never heard a whole album, or seen them in concert. Based on the ornate arrangements of some of the tracks, it strikes me as one of these things that might be transcendent - or in a live setting, might lose some of its subtlety. I would definitely try to catch them if given a chance though.

I saw them about a year and a half ago, less than a week after co-vocalist Claudia Deheza quit in the middle of their tour. At that point, they were clearly trying to adjust to her absence. Even so, it was fun watching all the sounds Ben Curtis is able to coax out of his guitar, and Alejandra Deheza's a pretty unique singer, with or without her twin sister...and she's exceedingly easy on the eyes. Plus, they've since supplemented the live band with a female keyboardist who's singing a lot of the parts Claudia Deheza used to handle.

I'd definitely recommend checking them out.

Incidentally, School of Seven Bells has a 7" coming out for Record Store Day this Saturday. It's a cover of Siouxsie and the Banshees "Kiss Them for Me":

[www.youtube.com]



Post Edited (04-17-12 08:31)

Man, I've been searching like mad all over the Internet to find a source for tickets to see SoSB this weekend in Salem. Finally, I find out the band is part of an all-day bill at Willamette University's "WUlapalooza" festival. (The other bands are YACHT, Helio Sequence, Craft Spells and The Lower 48.) And there are no tickets on sale, because the fair is free. Guess I'd better be prepared to hit the road earlier than I thought on Saturday!

Don't forget to swing thru Portland for Record Store Day on your way down. Actually, there is (or was) a pretty good record store in downtown Salem too, so you could potentially hit it instead.

We'll catch a show or a beer sometime in Portland....

"(The other bands are YACHT, Helio Sequence, Craft Spells and The Lower 48.) "

Helio Sequence is a band I'd love to see as well. . .

Wow, nifty Siouxsie cover.

The WUlapalooza festival was excellent. Full report after I get some sleep.

Delvin wrote:

> The WUlapalooza festival was excellent. Full report after I get
> some sleep.

Sleep is for WUlapaluzers.

TP report comes in late, due to my workload this week (half my office is out with the flu):

WUlapalooza was a ton of fun. The bands (in order of appearance) were The Lower 48, Craft Spells, The Helio Sequence, School of Seven Bells and Yacht. Each band was better than the last, right up until the last one (and Yacht still was pretty good). With the exception of So7B, all the bands were from Seattle or the Portland area.

So7B definitely rocked the house. They had their amps, keyboards, etc. all done up in black with hot-pink trim. Their sound was mostly shimmer and texture, but with a firm beat and enough melody to keep it absorbing to me.

Craft Spells probably was my big surprise of the day. To me, they sounded like Vampire Weekend performing Chameleons covers. (That description may be an instant douse to some, but it worked better than you might think.)

I definitely was the "old guy" at the concert, though. By half-way through the show, the quad was very muddy, so I was watching my step ... while all around me, the good rockin' students of Willamette University were walking barefoot, not caring one whit about how muddy they might get. And when I asked the guitarist of Helio Sequence if they'd brought any CDs, he was surprised by the question; he finally said, awkwardly, "It's all on iTunes, man."

Still, the bands were great, the weather was fantastic (especially after six weeks of Washington State rain), and I was surrounded by college coeds who had dressed to make the most of the sunshine. Plus, I found a good brewpub right near the campus after the show. What's not to love.

Well, there's not a ton else to love about Salem, except for maybe that record store downtown (which I hope is still there) and a great Indian buffet nearby, so I'm glad you found all the good stuff.

That's sad that bands are now not even bothering with CDs at the merch table. Maybe because it was an outdoor show and a merch table would have been more difficult?

There was an information table under a tent, at the opposite end of the quad from the stage, but it was manned (or womanned, actually) by WU students. They were there to tell people where the nearest rest rooms were, not to sell merch. I did buy CDs from The Lower 48 and Craft Spells, but the musicians sold those to me right from the stage after their sets, out of their backpacks.

At the end of So7B's set, I asked Ben Curtis if his group had t-shirts for sale. (I already have their CDs.) He said yes, but after that, the band loaded up its gear fast and hit the road.

Must have been a helluva show for a more seasoned show-goer such as yourself, Delvin. Nicely done, sir!

What did you think of Benjamin Curtis's guitarin'? As a noodler meself, I spent a great deal of time trying to figure out what he was doing when I saw their show.

The rest of these bands bear checking out. YACHT!