As usual, things always happen faster in New York, and this week's Breaking Sounds feature shines the spotlight on a group of three upstart females who have taken the noisy pop mantra and dipped it in pure gold, the Vivian Girls. If you're familiar with outsider artist/Chicago janitor Henry Darger's bizarre paintings (he coined the term 'Vivian Girls') that have turned the art world on it's ear over the past decade, it's prime time for those oddly alluring innocent nuances to be absorbed and reconfigured in a most pleasant musical format, contrary to the similarly-named bands HERE and HERE.
With their debut 7" on their very own Plays With Dolls Records already sending out waves of panic and adoration to the outer limits of the underground pop contingent, they have become the newest breakout sirens of the New York loft-pop brigade. Within seconds of hearing their seductive three-part vocal harmonies lushly interwoven with chest-pounding rhythms of beautiful feedback, it's obvious that their songs are hard to resist, especially if you find yourself keen on the mid-80s noise pop trifecta of Jesus And Mary Chain, Black Tambourine, and most notably, The Shop Assistants.
As anticipated, the Vivian Girls' debut LP surfaced this month on Mauled By Tigers Records, and is available from the band on their current nationwide tour for an essential pop platter that your bummer of a summer won't be complete without. Swirling noise topped with sweetly angelic vocals is practically a can't-miss concoction, so expect your fruity neighbors and your attention-starved friends to chime in with unabashed praise. As a matter of fact, In The Red Records has already snatched up the 'Girls with plans to reissue their debut album within the coming months, after the first MBT pressing inevitably sells out. With another action-packed tour in the works for August along with cohorts, Crystal Stilts, look for the Vivian Girls to be everywhere you want to be this year, and catch them live before they blow up like their predecessors. Fanning the flames of their grassroots support circuit, the added help of extra publicity from the similarly-titled play As Told To The Vivian Girls (which just ended a month-long run in Chicago by the Dog & Pony theater group) pushes their presence ever further to the forefront of modern pop.
Pick up the LP from Mauled By Tigers, right HERE or better yet, buy it from the band on the West coast this week, and on throughout their Midwest tour next month for a lethal dose of female-powered raw pop perfection that breaks out like few others have before them.
tour dates....
May 27 2008 Shady Pines with The Pharmacy and Japanther Eugene, OR
May 28 2008 The Twilight with Eat Skull and The Heaves Portland, OR
May 29 2008 The Backspace with Silent Majority, The Vonneguts, Magic Johnson Portland, OR
May 30 2008 Craig’s House with The Old Haunts Olympia, WA
May 31 2008 The Astoria with Japanther Vancouver, Canada
Jun 1 2008 The Funhouse with Telepathic Liberation Army and Little Claw Seattle, WA
Jun 3 2008 The Badlander with Holiday Missoula, MT
Jun 4 2008 The O’Farrell House Boise, ID
Jun 5 2008 TBA Salt Lake City, UT
Jun 6 2008 TBA Denver, CO
Jun 7 2008 Love Garden Sounds with Shearing Pinx and Weird Wounds Lawrence, KS
Jun 8 2008 O’Leaver’s Pub Omaha, NE
Jun 9 2008 Vaudeville Mews Des Moines, IA
Jun 10 2008 The Alamo House Minneapolis, MN
Jun 11 2008 Mint Mint Chocopocalypse with Tenement and Sundowners Milwaukee, WI
Jun 12 2008 Peoples Projects with Sundowners, Sass Dragons, Grass Widow Chicago, IL
