Indie rites of passage
Olin and the Moon hold down residency at Tangier this month
By Bliss 09/04/2008
“Indie-pop-folk rock ‘n’ roll” is how Idaho transplants Olin and the Moon describe their music, a sputtering mouthful that says as much about today’s niche-market fragmentation as it does about the songs in question. But as multi-hyphenate tags go, it’s also accurate, conveying their down-to-earth indie status and pop sensibilities while paying sincere homage to artistic heroes.
Olin and the Moon’s five mates certainly aren’t the first aspiring rockers to sport their influences on their sleeve, but few match scruffy boho aesthetics with such a refreshing lack of attitude. No self-conscious irony or disdainful pose filters their unabashed embrace of vintage rock.
Frontman/songwriter David LaBrel connects with listeners by simple virtue of his own vulnerability; witnessing his emotional candor inspires listeners to lower their own walls and receive what’s offered.
LaBrel, guitar-playing bro Travis and drummer Marshall Vore (the band’s resident wisecracking Ashton Kutcher) first played together in their native Idaho, before migrating south to the Silverlake area — probably as close as they’ll get in LA proper to the idyll evoked in their song “Home” (“Where it is simple and the people know your name and you can lay out in the grass all day”). They’ve found a welcoming haven and musical kinship with other Eastside bands like the Parson Red Heads and My Imaginary Friends.
“Home” is one of the 12 tracks on the self-titled album Olin and the Moon released last year, a promising, lo-fi platter of melodic sweetness and rustic imagery cradled in piano runs and subtle waves of pedal steel. The band’s new EP is sonically richer and less jangly, and boasts even stronger hooks and pop melodies with engaging songs like “A Place to Hide” and “Turn Me Into Money.”
They’ve also crammed their expanded, five-man lineup into a tiled shower (and a dumpster) for another indie rite of passage: shooting their own video. “Open Air California” plays like an amusing home movie as they strum their instruments and warble along while a baseball-hatted counterpart goes through the waking-up motions of starting his day.
That unpretentious humor and heart is key to Olin and the Moon’s appeal. The mellow grooves and dusty backroads feel of their songs are a throwback to the ’70s era of Laurel Canyon jams and hoot nights at the Troubadour. Imagine Neil Young and The Band’s Rick Danko communing with the ghost of Elliott Smith around a campfire, with the Avett Brothers and Conor Oberst chiming in, and you’ll get the idea.
Olin and the Moon perform at 10 p.m. Wednesdays in September in the lounge at Tangier, 2138 Hillhurst Ave., Los Feliz; free admission. Call (323) 666-8666 for details. www.myspace.com/olinthemoon.
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