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Reverse X Rays Vinyl Release Party [Album Review and Show Preview]
Reverse X Rays is somewhat of a KVRX lovechild - Owen McNally (guitar, bass, vocals), Ethan Smith (guitar, bass, drums, synthesizer), and Dan Gentile (synthesizer, melodica, trombone) each hosted shows on KVRX for several years before the band took shape. Gentile says, “Five years ago Ethan answered an email Owen sent out to the KVRX lovelist looking for a female vocalist, multi-instrumentalist who was into Stereolab. He's a weirdo, but it was kind of serendipitous. He liked the music Owen mentioned and is generally a fairly outgoing individual about playing with others, so he stepped up to the plate.” Shane Wood (guitar, bass, affected vocals, percussion) joined in and after a couple transitional players Joey Fitchett (formerly of Magic Jewels) took residency on the drums with the band to round out their eclectic, dynamic sound.
The local quintet’s new EP RXR offers a unique fusion of lo-fi beach vibes with brass accents. With minimal vocals, their instrumentals are driven by traditional elements of heavy percussion and the occasional trombone, but incorporate the psychedelic presence of modern electronics (e.g. the synthesizer). Album opener, “To The Stars Through Difficulty” offers a layered structure of trombone, percussion, and guitar that builds in intensity and then chills out with synthed-out vibes, while “dqpb” sounds more like a lo-fi bedroom project. Though the experimentation of their sound sometimes borders on organized chaos, the outcome is engaging and enjoyable. The five song album reflects the band’s creative growth in vision and instrumentation since their 2008 EP, Situation Island.
At Saturday’s release party you can purchase the limited edition vinyl press of RXR, which includes a b-side of three previously unreleased songs. These special multi-colored, marble-print records are available for $7 for this one night only. The packaging is 3-D and comes with red/blue glasses. If you prefer a digital copy, the five song EP is on bandcamp for $5.
Also playing at De Ville Saturday is Bodytronix which features Erich Ragsdale, a former/founding member of Reverse X Rays, along with J Duke, Slugbug, and a special early DJ set from Dr. Zaiss. Later this month, Reverse X Rays will be opening up for Capillary Action at Mohawk and Nat Baldwin (the bass player from Dirty Projectors) at Club 1808.
Reverse X Rays: [Bandcamp]
