Black Books
"...2013 is set to be a brighter place with Black Books filling the airwaves" - Echoes & Dust
"Glazing muscular space rock with dream-pop pastels, this Austin, Texas ensemble perform their chemistry at full throttle."- Earmilk
"Blending heavy doses of psychedelia with sun-soaked melodies and huge, anthemic soundscapes, theirs is a music that is both timeless and atmospheric."- Loud Horizon
“Black Book’s immense hooks and soul-stirring orchestrations sweep you into the cosmos with their inter-galactic beauty.” - My Old Kentucky blog
Black Books are: Kevin Butler- guitar, recording engineer, producer, Clark Curtis - keys, artist, Meg Gilfillan - keys , vocals, Ross Gilfillan - drums, lead vocals, and Mike Parker – bass.
Black Books began creating their heady, atmospheric 'mix of dreamy, visionary pop and epic southern rock in their hometown of Austin, Texas back in 2010. The Austin Chronicle had hailed them as "Top Ten Locals to Watch in 2011" while Indie Darkroom Magazine went one step further declaring them: "No. 1 New Artist of 2011". A wash of influential US blog attention ensued with complimentary comparisons to respected contemporaries such as Grandaddy, My Morning Jacket and Band of Horses plus nods to iconic Godfathers of subtle psychedelic rock, Pink Floyd.
Black Books debut Aquarena EP, released in February this year, premiered exclusively on The Line of Best Fit who called their sound "wildly inventive and exceptionally charming psych rock", while the video for EP track 'Favorite Place' premiered in Wonderland Magazine. Stateside the EP plus accompanying videos found themselves posted across Huffington Post, Spinner, Earmilk, My Old Kentucky Blog, AV Club (to name only a few). Their self-titled full length album has finally been released this month, celebrated by a live in-studio performance at KUTX-Austin and a string of shows across Texas and CMJ in New York City to be followed by their third SXSW appearance. The album is gaining momentum with features in Uncut Magazine, Interview Magazine, and Magnet Magazine.
Black Books are young school friends who act as a self-sufficient, close-knit creative family. Guitarist and professional recording engineer - Kevin Butler produces all of the band's music, while keyboardist - and artist - Clarke Curtis creates their artwork and gig posters. The closeness of the musicians could explain in part why Black Books' ambient, anthemic shoegaze has an experimental edge and maturity that stands them apart from their contemporaries. Black Books create an evoking and enveloping wall of emotion that seems as intimate as it is epic, with sprawling, mesmerizing psychedelia and sun-soaked melodies blended into something driven and tightly charged with Ross Gilfillan's warm throaty drawl of a vocal. It could also be explained in the album's recording - completed as it was in a record breaking Texas drought of 2011, shortly after singer Ross Gilfillan and wife Meg (keys/vocals) became parents for the first time. Black Books' debut is therefore the child of a stifling, claustrophobic heat and an overpowering awe inspiring feeling of love.
RIYL: Band of Horses, The Besnard Lakes, Slowdive, My Morning Jacket
TRY: #1, 2, 4, 9
Full Album Available Here:
https://www.piratepirate.com/downloads/
More Info Here:
http://blackbooksmusic.com
https://www.facebook.com/blackbooks
https://twitter.com/blackbooksmusic
http://www.youtube.com/user/blackbooksaustin