This week's review is a bit unusual - mostly because the subject of the review is pretty unusual itself.
On August 8, local bands Ohio Knife and Skeleton Hands were paired together on the Fountain Square stage as part of the Midpoint Indie Summer celebration. To help promote this event, and to celebrate local music in general, Jason Snell, lead singer of Ohio Knife and creator of the downtown branding company We Have Become Vikings, decided to cut a limited-edition 7" dual single and release it on white vinyl.
Ohio Knife's "No Clear God" occupies Side A while "Pride" by Skeleton Hands is on Side B.
I am always happy to hear about new material coming from Ohio Knife. I've have been a long-time fan of the band and have seen them in several different incarnations. Over the years, the band has evolved from a 3-piece (featuring Snell on guitar, Andrew Higley on keyboards and Joe Suer on drums), to a 2-piece while Higley was occupied in Nashville, TN recording with such big names and Eric Burdon. The 2013BunburyMusic Festival showcased a new-and-improved Ohio Knife, enhanced by the addition of Scotty Wood on bass. Whether Ohio Knife brings two, three or four bodies to the stage, what they always manage to deliver is a large, loud and amped-up sound full of blues-based power mated with Seattle-Sub-Pop grit.
"No Clear God" is a droning, drop-tuned stomp that is, as the title may imply, as dark as it is heavy. Snell has an emotionally-packed throaty voice that is raspy, soulful and engaging. When he sings of pain, he makes you feel it. Sonically, the focus of "No Clear God" is on the bottom-end which brings Suer's drums and Wood's bass to the forefront as major characters. This is a newer departure for the band musically, and not what I would call truly indicative of the band's 'sound' - per se. It is a bit more morose and sedate than what I think of as an Ohio Knife song. To wit, if this is your first (or only) exposure to Ohio Knife, I recommend you check out their original EP, Ohio Knife is OK, or visit their website for more. They are fairly prolific songwriters and always manage to surprise me with their talent and spectrum of sound.
From the first note of the flipside, Skeleton Hands' "Pride" will transport you back to the golden-age of electronic house music. One is immediately reminded of New Order or Joy Division. Going by the names Lazer-Bat and Astro-Wolf, the goth-synth duo mesh keyboards, drum-loops and guitar flawlessly to create a sound that will embrace you in its joyful darkness.
I must give big kudos to Jason Snell for pairing these two vastly different sounds on opposing planes on white vinyl. As incongruous as this partnership is, it does serve to illustrate the great diversity that is inherent in the local music scene. There probably is something out there for just about everyone to enjoy and claim as your favorite - be it rock, punk, post-punk, folk, hip-hop, electronica, Americana, post-wave, neo-primitive or whatever it is that stirs your emotions.
I am always grateful to folks like Jason and the other Superfriends out there who consistently champion the cause of local music in Greater Cincinnati.
You can sample the spilt-release 7" at bandcamp.com.
