The Rest... Sleeper hit of the year?
The Rest- The Close Western (Link 2)If you read a selection of the more prominent blogs- my own core selection includes PMA, Hypeful, Gorrilla Vs. Bear and Stereogum- you generally get a comprehensive list (but by no means complete) of stuff that you're probably either listening to, or should be. Sometimes we miss stuff once or twice, but another blog will happily fill you in. And very, very occasionally, the collective blogosphere misses something altogether.
One of the few bands that full under this category (in my short time blogging) are The Rest. They emailed me a couple of weeks ago, bringing themselves and their debut album 'Atlantis, Oh Our Saviour' to my attention, even including a quote which addresses the above situation:
"…a seemingly seasoned performance which may be one of the biggest indie rock sleepers from the past couple of years…considering the band's apparently overlooked status in the blogging community."- Joe Tacopino- PopMatters.com
I try to take most submissions as they come, and not get over excited. I did the opposite, after being really impressed by one of the three songs on their Myspace: 'The Close Western'. The only thing I can really compare it to is the Arcade Fire, 'Funeral' era. The vocals from Adam Bentley are truly outstanding, and actually bring on chills; they're really reminiscent of Alec Ounsworth from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah mixed with Win Butler, and the 7 piece band's sound is complex, building from the smallest of openings into a full blown instrumental accompaniment.
The band have just released their sophomore album, 'Everyone All At Once', whilst debut 'Atlantis, Oh My Saviour' can be downloaded for free on the band's Myspace (although I suggest you pay for it!). I can't recommend them enough- great band's get overlooked, but I feel as if this time around, we're in a privileged position to change that. Lend a hand.
