Dead Leaf Echo - Pale Fire

I'm only now getting acquainted with Dead Leaf Echo, a fantastic shoegaze band from New York. The band consists of LG (vocals, guitars), Mike DiLalla (bass), Liza B (keys, vocals) and it appears they might still be looking for a full time drummer. Perhaps? Anyways, The Pale Fire EP is their second release. I have not heard their first (entitled Faint Violet Whiff) so I've got nothing to compare this to, but this one is incredibly impressive. The EP opens with a little song called Warm Hands which is exactly that ... little. But you'll notice as the album progresses that this is just the dynamic that the band likes to deliver, dolling themselves out bit by bit, until they charge straight ahead with a steady charge of captivating guitars and tantalizing vocals. The second and third tracks are Thought Talk and Tears, which are both beautiful voyages in themselves, showcasing dense sounds, coupled with thought provoking lyricism. It's on the fourth song that things get really interesting. This one is called Cry The Sea, and it's a slightly upbeat little anthem with a driving drum sound and sweeping guitars. The last two songs, Pale Fire and Reflex Motion, take up more than half of the running time of this EP, but they are also the most satisfying songs of the lot. The first song is mixed by Ulrich Schnauss (yes, THAT Ulrich Schnauss) and it nails that shoegaze sound, in the same way that Serena-Maneesh did a couple of years ago. Both of these songs believe in the 'steady build' approach to song craft, which leaves me feeling slightly exhausted at the end, but in the same way that a huge delicious meal makes me feel. The fact is, Reflex Motion is about six and a half minutes long, but I found myself never wanting it to end. Dead Leaf Echo's Pale Fire EP has already been garnering a lot of rightfully deserved praise, and seeing as they completely sold out of the first pressing, you might want to snatch yourself up a copy of the second pressing before that's gone too.

Download: Pale Fire mp3

Myspace: Dead Leaf Echo