Own

Agenda Item 1 (Severed)
by Clarendon Lavorich

Well. Where to begin? Own. Okay, cello, violin, drums. And voice, of course. Of course. Rasputina? No, much more rock. Almost… Prog rock. But not so high falutin’. Only three people, but a really big sound. Never underestimate the power of a cello. Or the effects you can put on one to turn it into a monster. The voice? Very alterna-rock, a thick-throated alto, forceful without being harsh. Clever drums (there’s that prog thing again). There’s some intriguing lyrics (“Murder and mercy share a table for two”) and Jane, the violinist/vocalist, has a strong sense of melody and counterpoint. And when they go off exploring in the “progressive” sections, it doesn’t suck with the arrogant skill which brought the mighty behemoths ELP, Yes, and Brand X low. It’s actually experimental sounding, scraping the strings to the nth degree, playing with noise, like on “Appetite,” and in the mad energy of the title track. To create texture, the violin drops in and out, complimenting the vocals, swaying side to side, then jumping into some serious rock, thundering cello and smashing drums throwing all pretensions and preconceptions about how strings should sound aside. Yep, they rock. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.