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***Clipd Beaks is the P.M. Dawn of noise-rock. So concludes singer Nic Barbelin, who adds, "We'll never really fit in... we've always done our own thing." The band brings innate pop sensibilities and intense personal charisma to a genre typically known for alienating listeners. Where others abuse, Clipd Beaks soothe. Their static is far from monochromatic. The band began in 2003 in Minneapolis, Minnesota when five friends playing in two bands dropped their guitars and joined forces. They established a thick sound defined by analog synth drones, propulsive beats, and layered vocals delivered in the ecstatic tones of street preachers. The addition of ambient and orchestral loops and experiments with lo-fi sampling carried their creations to even higher transcendent planes. Times were good. They moved into a Victorian mansion, recorded their first record, Gang Caves, and partied with the cream of the indie-noise scene. Before long, local pressures brought the party to an end. Vilified by their snooty neighbors as "low-born jagoffs" and derided by the Minnesota rock mainstream, the band upped and migrated to Oakland, California. Recorded in late 2004, Preyers documents the anxiety of five boys growing into men in the last strange days of the American Empire. Each of the six songs offers a kaleidoscopic view into their collective mind, a sonic galaxy of claustrophobic psychedelia encompassing krautrock, Factory Records, This Heat, and acid-damaged raps about Abu Ghraib. Letting go of their fear, with eyes open wide, Clipd Beaks embrace the true freedom found in creative expression and community. Preyers is a split release between Tigerbeat6 and Deleted Art Records and is the band's first for both labels. |
