Dasha

Do You Feel At Home? #08

Dasha

    Dasha was a midwest emo/indie/math-rock quintet based out of Rochester, New York, and were active from 2007 to around 2010. Members included: Colleen Vasey on vocals, Chris Bonawitz and Nick Fiske on guitar, Nick Maynard on bass, and Tommy Vollmer on drums. Now, though they're not from the midwest, I've seen them labeled as midwest emo a decent amount, and I think I'm inclined to agree, as I believe that umbrella is the most appropriate and apt one for them to be under. Although, knowing the emo/music landscape during the time which they were active, I suppose you could also throw them under the "revival" umbrella without too much of a hitch either. So, I guess you could call them a "midwest emo revival" band? I don't know, seems unnecessary to me. Anyway, my personal opinions aside, this blog is dedicated to every branch of emo, and just music that I love in general (which just so happens to be mostly emo), so Dasha would not be, and is not out of place, not even in the slightest.

    Referring to their old mySpace page, the band described their sound as, and no this isn't a joke, "john madden playing guitar hero". I mean, fuck it, if they think it checks out then I think so too. With that said, the band is, as just mentioned, often placed under the "midwest emo" umbrella, and I think for good and immediately understandable reasons. The bands influences ring very true upon listening, with those influences being; The Appleseed Cast (god forbid), Ghosts And Vodka, No Knife, Lil' Mama, Hey Mercedes, Karate, Murder City Devils, Owls, The Promise Ring, Band of Horses, and of course Lil' Wayne... wait, what? Nevermind. Anyway, skimming through all the bands listed, I'd put big emphasis on the Kinsella acts, Karate, The Appleseed Cast, and Hey Mercedes, which should give you an accurate idea of what you're signing yourself up for.

Quick interlude:

  
  Here's a small collection of band photos, (as well as live performances) all of which were uploaded to last.fm in or around 2009. (Excluding the image featured all the way up top, which was taken from their old mySpace page.)

And one more on Vimeo for good measure!

   
Now onto the actual music.

    You can thank Thomas (Dasha's drummer) for this, that being Dasha's demo! Previous rough versions of songs is a treat I always love to feast upon, and this demo is certainly no exception. For your listening pleasure, I've gone ahead and included a download link below, as per usual, and have uploaded it onto YouTube. Enjoy, and kind regards from Dasha!

Demo

1. The Future Mrs. Olivia Benson
2. The Bonj
3. This Robot Leaks, Fix Her! Fix Her!
4. The Progression Of Decomposition

 

    After the release of their demo, Dasha would release their sole "full-length" effort, that being their 2009 mini-album "Damned If We Do". (Well, sorta. They did have a very short run of custom printed tapes for their four song demo, which contained previous versions of songs that would later be featured on this disc, however, those are nowhere to be found, according to the band. Though, Chris suggested there may have been an old PureVolume upload, but we all know how that goes...) Anyhow, this record was released both digitally and on CDr, courtesy of Whaleplane Records (here's a sampler CD they uploaded to Bandcamp, with one of the tags underneath it being "retired", which I find pretty amusing.), and this release confidently stands as one of my personal favorites--though, nowadays, the disc itself doesn't turn up... Anywhere. It was $5 at shows, and $6 + shipping online via Whaleplane back in the day, but as the unstoppable march of time encroaches and consumes all, I assume that most of them have now drifted into obscurity. So, if any do start to turn up, I sincerely recommend and urge you to get one. As for the material present, it's some absolutely wonderful female-fronted midwest emo, as I've already described throughout this post. Their influences from the Kinsella family tree and the handful of other acts I distinctly emphasized reflect in the bands fantastic instrumental work, and with Colleen's vocals on top, makes for one beautiful and remarkably powerful helping of twangy indie/emo goodness, all with a very welcome "mathy" kick. It's quite the polished record, and as far as I'm concerned, it has stood the test of time, though it hasn't been too long since it was released (it's only been, what... 14 years?). I don't think there's much in the way of a dull moment to be heard on here, at least to my ears anyway. The bands performances really are nothing short of stellar, and Colleen's songwriting is absolutely fantastic, hell, it's quite uplifting, and almost anthemic at times! I'm more than positive that anyone who's even remotely a fan of the genre will enjoy this--it's a tad bit short, with a rather diminutive run time that clocks in just above 21 minutes, but it's certainly sweet, and I think it's more than deserving of peoples attention. Please, if you haven't, go give it a listen--definitely a great record for the fall/winter season! (I myself have listened to it hundreds upon hundreds of times!) You can find it on Bandcamp for free (though I wish it was at least "name your price"), and it is also available on streaming. I've included scans of the CDr package below. Thanks for reading.

Damned If We Do

1. Little Ghosts
2. The Progression Of Decomposition
3. Admiral
4. Leather Sweater
5. The Future Mr. Olivia Benson
6. The Bonj
7. Oneders
8. This Robot Leaks, Fix Her! Fix Her!
9. We Are In The Dark


I have also transcribed the record in full over on Genius.

^ Instagram Post ^

A massive and very special thank you to Chris Bonawitz & Nick Friske (as well as all of Dasha) for being such awesome and wonderful people!

The Remington

Do You Feel At Home? #07

The Remington

 
This post will be relatively short.

    The Remington, also known simply as Remington, was an emo/indie-rock band from southern Michigan (I believe Detroit) that existed briefly during the tail end of the last century. The bands lineup consisted of Ryan Allen on guitar and vocals, Robert Byrd on drums, Adam Kempa on bass (as well as finger cymbals), and Martin D "MD" Smith also on guitar (and tambourine). Members of Remington, namely Ryan Allen and MD Smith, would go on to join/form Thunderbirds Are Now! and Red Shirt Brigade. Kempa would move on to The Pop Project, and he also hosts his own website that details many things he's been a part of, as well as general history regarding him and a plethora of other things.

    While info and history regarding the projects proceeding Remington are pretty abundant, comparatively at least, info regarding Remington themselves is sparse, as there's pretty much none. What I do know, however, is that the band played shows with the likes of Stillwell, Notaword, The Ivy Crown, and Last Days Of August! 

    The Remington play a tried and true style of emo/indie-rock, with vocals that distinctly call to mind the band Recess Theory. Since The Remington were only around for so long, it's understandable that their output is very limited, consisting of a self-titled CD EP, a split with Long Island's very own Last Days Of August, and a singular compilation contribution.

Onto that music.

 

    For starters, we have their self-titled CD EP, released in 1998 on Deco Recordings International, which I speculate was a one-off label made solely for the release of this EP. My description of their sound just earlier basically describes the meat & potatoes of their recorded works. Now, for this being the bands first release, it's quite a pleasant little offering, and though Ryan Allen's vocals on here aren't fully ironed out yet, they're more than serviceable, and lend to this record a certain "teenage punk-rock charm" that is always more than welcome. I'd say give it a listen!

Remington.

1. Cancer By X-mas
2. Toledo Opera
3. B.C. Two-Hander
4. Set The Curve
5. Matrix

    Next, we have their split 7" with Last Days Of August, released in 1999 on Eudora Records. The bands sound has noticeably developed on this song, and is pretty darn great all around- and seeing as their sound had quickly matured between releases, it certainly gives them a spot on my long, long list of "Bands I wish put out a full-length". Though, maybe there is a full-length floating around somewhere, and I just haven't found it... I doubt, but I definitely hope that I'm wrong!

Split 7" w/ Last Days Of August

Side A:

Last Days Of August - Six Ways From Sunday

Side B:

The Remington - Our Founder Saves The Day


(Thank you to Beginners.)

    As for other material by this band, there's just two more things- one being the track "I'm A Violent Person (In Theory)" which was a part of the compilation CD "Reveal The Character", released by Elkion Records at the start of another lousy millennium (also known as the year 2000). I believe this was either just before the band broke up/moved onto new projects, but there's a good chance it was put out well after that. Either way, it rips, so I recommend checking it out via the embedded link below. Oh, and one last thank you to Beginners, you rock, dude!

"Reveal The Character" Compilation Track

    Lastly we have this 5-song cassette, or "Woodshed '98". I missed this tape the first time around writing this as I didn't think to check Bandcamp for any remnants of them, so for that I apologize! When I said I hoped for a full-length from these boys, this definitely gets close, as it rocks! It features the "I'm A Violent Person" track, as well as "Our Founder Saves The Day", but the other three tracks on here are the real stars of the show. Probably some of their best material, and it's a shame they seemingly ended after this, though that's just about how it typically goes, eh? You can give it a listen/download for free via the Bandcamp link below.

Woodshed '98

1. Set My Hand On Fire
2. I'm A Violent Person (In Theory)
3. Our Founder Saves The Day
4. Arthur Miller
5. Head On Into The Door Of A Moving Car

 

 

See you soon!

The Hillary Step

Do You Feel At Home? #06

The Hillary Step

    Formed by ex-members of the band Grovel, The Hillary Step was an emo/post-hardcore band from Kansas City, Missouri that was formed in 1998. The band consisted of three sole members, those being; Brad Hodgson on guitar and vocals, Brian Frisbie on bass, and Danny McConnaughhay on drums. (Both Brian and Brad were former members of the aforementioned band Grovel.) The band would quickly, and unfortunately dissolve in 2002 when Brad moved away to Texas. Though the band was around for about 4 years, there isn't a lot in the way of information regarding them, as the band never had their own website, and Urinine (the label they were on) never gave too much info on theirs. So be it, this band is pretty great regardless.

    From their short run comes a wholly short output, with just one singular full-length CD; titled "The Second Time Means Nothing", released on Urinine Records in 1999. Urinine themselves is a pretty seldomly talked about label, but they had some great stuff back in the day, namely The Sunflower Conspiracy and The Capsules (both of whom were great shoegaze adjacent outfits). Now, though it's only one release, that's still pretty darn good, as a lot of bands seem to never be able to get to that point. That's okay though, as what's given here is mighty fantastic, and is a mildly underappreciated disc of its time. This here is 9 tracks of ripping post-hardcore (plus a dash of post-rock) with swell guitar and vocal work that reminds me of Christopher Crisci of The Appleseed Cast (except this time I can actually tolerate it), and the drumming featured throughout is pretty damn tight. Front to back, definitely a disc that I could see many falling for, no doubt. It's a shame there wasn't any more releases proceeding this, because this stuff is pretty remarkable. I think it's plenty deserving of a humble looksee.

The Second Time Means Nothing

1. You And Me And This
2. No Good Reason
3. Damn The Luck
4. One Year And A Day
5. All Signs Gone
6. Our "We" Day
7. Refined, Regrouped & Reassured
8. Kimmie Joe
9. She Dreams Of Oceans

    Following The Hillary Step, Brad Hodgson would form In The Pines, a fairly remarkable folk project that has seen modest popularity and some appraise. (Reminds me of Chris Simpson's Zookeeper in that sense) He would also form Biarchy with a Mike Myers , which was an abstract electronic/synth-pop project, though it has laid dormant for over a decade. Mike himself was a part/is a member of a plethora of different bands, like the slowcore outfit The String And Return, the emo/indie band Everest, and formerly of the awesome Season To Risk. Quite an accomplished musician, as is Brad!.

Io

Do You Feel At Home? #05

Io

    I've said it before and I'll say it again, Pittsburgh had so many good bands back in the early 00s, and Io is no exception. Another band on the Hope Records/Hard Travelin' roster, Io was a 4 piece emo-hardcore act that existed from somewhere around 2000 to about 2004. They played plenty of shows with their label-mates, as is sometimes tradition, and toured a good handful of different places across the U.S while they were at it. As far as I've been able to find the shows aren't on Youtube, which sucks. Even so, I'm sure they were amazing, as other Hope bands like Pikadori and HTML put on great performances. EDIT: I guess Youtube just decided I wasn't gonna see them that day, but JD informed me of two performances that are up on Youtube!

Here's a link to the second one!

    Io was an absolutely explosive band, and carried with them some of the many attributes of what makes this era of the genre so amazing. While their run was unfortunately fairly brief, the trail of dead willow trees left an infallible mark, and is one that more people should take a look at. They certainly weren't pioneers, but that doesn't mean they were any less incredible.

    As alluded to, their output was fairly sparse, with only three real releases. However, it's about quality, not quantity, and boy are they quality. The music really speaks for itself here, as just about every fan of the genre, new and old will adore these guys. It's a genuine shame there isn't more, as I'd totally kill for it. (Hell, maybe one day we'll get some vinyl reissues, that'd be sweet- I'd love to see their only full-length on a 12"!) In their time they put out; a CDr demo EP, a full length CD album, and a two song 7".

    The demo CDr contains 4 previous versions of songs that would later be featured on their first proper full-length. Even though the songs are still in development here, they're already quite fleshed-out, and of course they absolutely rip. For a look at a band in its infancy, it's a strong demo, and certainly was a sign of great things to come. Give it a listen!

Demo

1. Byberry
2. The Branks
3. Reigned
4. Acquainted With The Night

    Their next outing, titled "The Willow Snag", is undeniably one of the more underappreciated albums in 2000s emo/hardcore/whatever, ever. Released in the spring of 2002, "The Willow Snag" is a superb representation of what makes this genre so painfully astounding, and that's a trait that many records like this one here share. It's a dense listen, bursting at the seams with boiling, blood red anger and raging conviction, but always staying quick-witted and never tripping over itself. 10 tracks long, but still relatively short, this disc is one in a forest of many that exemplify some of the many things I love about this genre. If you'd like to give it a listen, you can check it out on Bandcamp! (Though I'm sure it's up on YouTube somewhere).

The Willow Snag

1. Byberry
2. Ghosts
3. Acquainted With The Night
4. Techtonics
5. Dichotomy
6. Reigned
7. The Branks
8. Catalogue
9. In Late Blue Autumn
10. Whatever You Hold Dear

If you would like to see the 16 page booklet, check this discs release page on Discogs linked here.

    Lastly we've their posthumous 7" EP "Charred Timeless". Released about a year and a half after the bands previous (or what was intended to be their "last") show, this disc is essentially the bands epilogue, as well as a fiery and, in honest, melodious send-off. Seeing as this material would be their final output, they decided to host a brief reunion/release show, and this thing sold like hot cakes. That's not the end of the world though, as it's easily accessible and able to be heard, again via Bandcamp! An utterly phenomenal outro for this equally as phenomenal Pittsburgh band.

Charred Timeless

Side A. Charred Timeless

Side B. This City Is A Wick


Thank you to Q. from Hard Travelin' for being so kind!

The William Tell Routine

Do You Feel At Home? #04

    The William Tell Routine was a four piece emo/indie-rock band from Allentown, Pennsylvania that existed between 2001 and 2002. Members consisted of: Eric Eisenberg, Kevin Werkheiser, Cory Schnaufer, and Jason Ei. Not much really is known about this band and their history, and the only real information I've found is on the projects that followed. Despite that, it's not as if there was a lot to find anyhow, as their run was incredibly short. They played a good handful of shows during their time though, performing with the likes of Okay Paddy, a beloved local band at the time- but, like I said, that's about the gist of what I was able to learn, which is a shame. Oh well!

    The band abruptly broke up in early 2002, as made clear on their long since defunct website, stating that "The William Tell Routine Is Dead". Eric gave some info, as well as some important closing thoughts, of which I will leave here:

"The most important thing I learned through all of this is how important it is not to
try to make this your job. There are some shitty things we did and said. We
worried so much about opinions and impressions, and in the end it became more
important for me to still want to play five years from now than to try to sell
records. My best advice to anyone out there is that if you're doing this for anything
other than self-expression, get out now. On that note, we'll see you around."

    Short was their run, and short is their discography, only putting out one self-titled CD. (Though, there's a split with The Jazz June that is rumored to exist, and I pray that it turns up somewhere, someday.) What they did come through with, however, is awesome. Released on Double Decker Records in 2001, this 9 track EP/mini-album is filled with some impassioned emo-pop that scratches that joyful itch I'm sure many have. To put it simply, this is a short, sweet, and above all fun EP. If you are at all a fan of bands like Hey Mercedes, or The Anniversary, who are unsurprisingly some of their primary influences, I recommend giving this a listen!

Here's the artwork from an advance copy of this record, with scans courtesy of 4010!

The William Tell Routine

1. Floyd Lloyd's Conscience
2. The Processing Phase
3. Macroscopic/Socio/Econo
4. A Hopeless Lesson
5. Cosette
6. One Over F
7. At Least A Fight Is A Start
8. Jules' Rules
9. Untitled (Hidden Track)


Also, fun fact: I accidentally deleted this whole post like a total moron.