Thee Oh Sees, “An Odd Entrances”
Available: Friday, Nov. 18 via Castle Face Records digitally, on compact disc, standard black vinyl, and a limited run of Coke bottle green-colored vinyl which includes a flexi-disc with a downloadable non-album track.
If you happen to be a regular reader or even a quick skimmer of my column here, you’re likely aware of the rather high esteem and regard I have for Thee Oh Sees vocalist and guitar slinger John Dwyer, his various recording projects and the record label he co-founded and operates. The ethical and aesthetic approach to Castle Face reminds me of all the perceived positive and mythologized memories I associate from my youth with labels such as SST, Dischord and Touch & Go. After a handful of conversations over the years, he’s also just one hell of a stand up, no-bullshit, forthright and generally good guy.
Case in point: The band plans on donating half of its profits from the first pressing of this latest LP to Elizabeth House, a local charity in Pasadena, California that specifically helps homeless women with children get back on their feet. You can read more about the important work that is being done at www.elizabethhouse.net
“An Odd Entrances” is the companion piece to the full-length released this past August, “A Weird Exits.” While “Exits” displayed the honed garage-psych scuzz, “Entrances” is the mellower sonic come-down, a perfect complement to the band’s dynamic approach and varied influence, incorporating moments of flute and the occasional cello, alongside the loops and keyboard elements heard in Dwyer’s solo Damaged Bug project. It’s a six-song effort you want to put on repeat, as it wistfully alternates between instrumental and lyric’d jams. If and when considering the two records rightfully together, you’ve got one of 2016’s finest.
Recommended for the established fans of Thee Oh Sees, Roxy Music, The Herms, Minutemen, The Entrance Band or many of the extensive and varied Castle Face Records roster.
Jon E. Lynch[email protected]
