Tuesday Is For Tunes: Local Natives

Presenting: Local Natives, this week’s featured music-makers. In what is becoming a completely coincidental trend, this week’s featured music-maker is once again on Frenchkiss Records. I’d don’t know what to say. It’s completely unplanned. Every time I find a new band to like they’re on Frenchkiss. I’m just unconsciously smitten with this record label.

In early 2007 when I was interning at a label in SoCal, the intern I became best friends with was Sally. Back then Local Natives were known as Cavil At Rest, and Sally loved and promoted this band like it was her job. They always sounded promising to me, but tracks they’ve previewed from their new album, Gorilla Manor, set to release February 16th have really blown me away. They are pulsating with creativity. Such rhythms! Such structure! Such noises! Not to mention some evocative vocal harmonies with delicious amount of reverb. If you don’t already know about Local Natives, you need to make yourself familiar with their music. I am fully expecting them to be considered one of the breakout bands of 2010.

Since I felt that she could describe Local Natives and the appeal of their music far better than I ever could, I took a few minutes to interview Sally about why she loves this band. Sally was kind enough to sacrifice her work break from her college’s library to talk to me via cell phone, while I attempted to transcribe her beautiful, descriptive, effervescent words into type. Hopefully, I haven’t butchered it too much.

“The first time I heard them I could tell they were genuine, and I liked that the lyrics were smart and different. But, the first time I saw them I was awe-inspired. They got super in to it, and you could tell they loved what they were doing. I would feel so good after their shows; I could feel it in my bones. Also, they’re really nice people, who appreciated me as a fan and a friend. I still love them, because I know how hard they’ve worked, how passionate they are about their music, and how they’ve persevered to be themselves and not a cookie-cutter band. They will always be deeply rooted in my heart. They deserve where they are, and they still give me the same feeling when I listen to them. What I’ve heard from the new album I really enjoy. It’s genuinely infectious without being sugary sweet. It’s sincere. I can still hear the sincerity in their work, and that’s very important to me.”

I think that about sums it up. Sally really quantified some of the most enjoyable essences of Local Natives’ music that my cold-beleaguered, sleep-deprived brain could not. They sound genuine. Their music is infectious, but intelligent. I especially love the song Wide Eyes, and it makes me feel good all over when I listen to it. Plus, there is a great dynamic between the band members, which is particularly apparent in their live performances, and clearly shows how much they love to play music together. Check this video to see just what I’m talking about. If you like what you hear, pick up Gorilla Manor on February 16th by Local Natives.