duggup

Artist: Picastro
Website: http://www.myspace.com/picastro
Track Name: Hortur
Playback: mp3
Download?: Yes

This one snuck right under my guard, Picastro (a band I hadn’t heard of until today) have released a new album, and “Hortur” is one of those songs that just hit my ears and messed up my brain.

This is another song in the “hard listening” category, it is chock-full of interesting arrangements and production. The effect can be off putting and somewhat chaotic (me, I like chaos… you should see my desktop) but the band is worth persevering with.

Here is some hype from the Polyvinyl Record Co. website…

Commanding influences as varied as gypsy field recordings, Greek rembetika, Russian folksongs, Faces, and Black Sabbath, Toronto’s Picastro craft starkly discordant soundscapes where murmured vocals cascade alongside a rich panorama of dissonance and string-laden dynamics.

Picastro formed in 1997 at a time when the Toronto music scene was predominately catering to loud rock bands. Early Picastro sets consisted solely of acoustic guitar and eventually cello. This early arrangement attracted the curious due to the strong dynamics produced from the relatively unusual musical pairing of cello and acoustic guitar.

Picastro have a unique take on music and it’s limits. Give them a listen and try to approach it without preconceived ideas of what indie music is supposed to sound like. I am looking forward to rummaging through the back catalogue.