Heliotropes may be based in Brooklyn, but two of the all-female trio's founding members - Claire Beaudreault and Amber Myers - are natives of West Virginia. Myers has since parted from the band, which later recruited Anna Sale, another Mountain State expat, who provided violin on the the group's recently released first EP entitled III.
With a sound described as "doomy pop" - containing elements of shoegaze, goth and classic psych metal - Heliotropes blend influences from Spacemen 3, Spiritualized, Black Sabbath and My Blood Valentine. On this lo-fi EP, the guitar riffs are murky, the drums are bludgeoning, and the shrills of the violin are haunting. But it is California native Jessica Numsuwankijkul's detached, wistful vocals - which bring to mind Richard Ashcroft meets Mazzy Star - that turn spacey dissonance into beautiful hypnotic rock.
Contemporary independent music has recently shed light on a number of all-female, lo-fi groups including Vivian Girls and Dum Dum Girls (both of which fail to live up to a standard set years earlier by Black Tambourine), as well as female-fronted and -inclusive surf groups like Best Coast and Male Bonding. This is not a bad thing for anybody. In fact, it is good timing for Heliotropes, which is going steps beyond the creative attempts of some of the aforementioned bands. Heliotropes is not just a good all-female band. They are not just a good lo-fi band. Simply, they are a good band. III is an EP that shows a lot of potential for a group of talented musicians and songwriters, who are sure to carve out their own space in an exciting, emerging (and hopefully lasting) trend in independent music.
Artist: Heliotropes
Album: III
Year: 2010
For fans of: Spiritualized, Black Sabbath, My Bloody Valentine
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