Austinist Capsule Reviews: Casados and Nano & The Afternoon

Passages – Casados

Casados hail from Illinois and feature two permanent members, Nic and Heather Dillon. Nic’s songwriting shines through on their EP, Passages, while Heather’s vocal assistance along with assorted instrumentation provide the structure for Nic’s lyricism to take center stage. Passages was recorded after Casados played close to 50 shows and the EP’s precise musicianship bears the fruit of the many performances. Opener “Panama” could well be the first song on any mix for an introspective road-trip, with desires of worry-free travels to the Southern Hemisphere’s spring being the object of Nic’s affection. Nic fluctuates between story-telling and personal plight throughout the EP. Lyrically, “Take It Slow” and “Letting Go” portray a certain passiveness to life, emphasized by soft sprawls of folk instrumentation. The anecdotal “Unraveling” is accentuated by soothing pedal steel and mandolin while “Twenty Four” ends the EP on a somewhat down note with refrains of “24 years and I’m on my own / Oh I’m alone.” Passages could easily be perceived as a downer, instead we found solace in Nic’s words -- lyrics that present life’s trials and tribulations and one's varying attitudes towards them.

Casados: [official] [myspace]

Nano & The Afternoon EP – Nano & The Afternoon

Nano Whitman has been coining witty lyrics for a while now on the local scene with able support from The Afternoon (comprised of Shane Kullberg, Will Wike, Charlie Jones, and Will Krause). Nano & The Afternoon’s eponymous EP starts off with an ode to a girl (“Girl You”). We’re not sure whether the words bleed sincerity or mirror the Flight Of The Conchords but Nano generally keeps things light hearted lyrically which translates to a relaxed feel throughout the recordings. “I Can’t Feel It” seems fit for a beach vacation -- the song is paced by a reggae beat and a soaring guitar solo before culminating with a multi-layered and inspirational chorus. Most of the EP is girl inspired, with “Just To Kiss You” hitting the mark with its country-folk ambiance while “Dragon Eyes” could easily fit on many radio station rotations in town. Once staple performers at The Paggi House, Nano & The Afternoon have also played venues such as Trophy’s and Flipnotics in the past, and have a gig lined up at the Lucky Lounge in October.

Nano & The Afternoon: [myspace]