After canceling their US tour a couple of months back resulting from a bike accident injury to member, Matt Hartman, Sic Alps have picked up their reins and hit the road last weekend. Hitting Minneapolis, Chicago and Memphis over the weekend, the San Fransisco-based two piece is setting the bar for the hoards of bands milking the gruff, modern psych/folk sound. What sets Sic Alps apart from the rest is their unique ability to mash the rough edge of the folk strum, cutting songs with razor sharp candor, and artfully landing somewhere between flowery optimism and filthy regret. Stylistically, they're are all over the place too, incorporating jazzy freak outs, the sincere tinkering of piano keys, and muddy, down-trodden rhythms.
Sic Alps recently released their back catalog on CD format as Long Way Around To A Shortcut on Animal Disguise Recording, containing their their out-of-print and hard to find singles, 12" EP and cassettes released over the past couple of years. Released in a limited addition of a thousand, this testament to the bands brilliance is still available directly from Animal Disguise here. And if you catch them on tour over the next couple of weeks, be sure to pick up their tour-only one sided 7", on Important Records, of them covering Throbbing Gristle's "Untitled." This further proves the size of their huge nuts for delving into musical territories that are miles apart from what would seem to be their comfort zone, and coming up with something completely new. Due out next week is their debut LP on the revered Siltbreeze label entitled U.S EZ, so check our radio player to the left to hear a track, "Bathman" and be sure to pick it up here.
Catch Sic Alps Saturday in Chicago at Enemy with Wet Hair, Magic Missle and Druids of Huge and Sunday in Memphis with Twin Pilot.
Check out this Sic Alps video for "Bells (w/ Tremolo and Distortion)"
