See more posts like this on Tumblr
#kelly #exclaim.ca #tera melos #patagonian rats #live #sargent houseMore you might like
REVIEW: Exclaim Canada / Tera Melos
Tera Melos
Patagonian Rats
(Sargent House)
By Scott A. Gray
“Once in a rare while an album comes along that’s so fresh and ingenious it redefines what’s possible in a field of music. It’s been some time since a trio armed with guitar, drums, bass and vocals have shattered the boundaries of convention and pushed the limits of their instruments and compositions like a graceful tsunami of invention. Patagonian Rats is Tera Melos’ second full album, but first experimenting with vocal-based, pop song structures. Expanding upon their mathematical punk-jazz precision, which was a somewhat esoteric, mind-altering listening experience to begin with, the band find a window of accessibility without sacrificing creative density. Guitarist/vocalist Nick Reinhart has become a master song craftsman, with the support of a most prodigious rhythm section. Tera Melos bend the complexity and virtuosity of Hella and Battles to support the epic psychedelic pop energy of The Flaming Lips, fierce originality of Syd Barrett and dissonant grind of Polvo with a revolving mass of tastefully filtered influences from an astonishingly broad palate. With every note and beat a jaw-dropping highlight, Patagonian Rats impacts like a meteor promising extinction for the less evolved.
The Needle Drop Reviews: Tera Melos’ “So Occult/Kelly” Video
When combined, the two opening tracks on Tera Melos’ 2010 album Patagonian Rats make for one of the more pop-sensible and instantly likable moments in their discography. In this video, the stage-setting “So Occult” serves as the soundtrack for the introduction, which features a masked skateboarder bearing an upside-down cross on his shirt. Soon after he falls, the intro ends and “Kelly” begins, and things only get weirder from there.
Tera Melos’ sound on “Kelly” is so expansive and anthemic that it manages to make a masked dude in a robe smashing soda cans with a baseball bat seem incredibly meaningful and important. They probably could have put whatever they wanted in this video and it would still look awesome. - The Needle Drop
Patagonian Rats is out now on Sargent House. Download it on the band’s bandcamp page for $5.
Tera Melos Live: Kelly, Skywatch, Aped
Tera Melos performing the songs Kelly, Skywatch & Aped from the album Patagonian Rats. We’ve got this whole live show recorded and will be releasing them a song at a time. It was filmed while on their most recent tour with Marnie Stern at the Backbooth in Orlando, Florida on Feb 27, 2011. Thanks to Erick R. Wilczynski and his gang for shooting it and cutting it for us.
MAGNET MAGAZINE: MP3 At 3PM / Tera Melos
MP3 At 3PM: Tera Melos
Tera Melos has turned its experimental denseness into melodic infection on its upcoming album, Patagonian Rats, due September 7 via Sargent House. First single “Frozen Zoo” is packed with contagious vocals, rhythms and beats that are too audaciously complex to be pop and too systematic for the band’s label of “noise rock.” Tera Melos has unleashed layers of new expectations for itself with Patagonian Rats while completely creating something new for fans.
“Frozen Zoo” (download):
Alarm Magazine Names Tera Melos Album Best of Week
This Week’s Best Albums: September 8, 2010
Tera Melos: Patagonian Rats (Sargent House)
Due to limited touring, a shuffling lineup, and shorter releases, eccentric math-rock trio Tera Melos has kept an undeservedly low profile.
Nevertheless, the group garnered acclaim for its progressive prowess and unconventionality — first with an untitled full-length debut and then a split EP with By the End of Tonight, a separate 2007 EP, and a 2009 covers EP that deconstructed pop tunes by the Beach Boys, Pixies, Weezer, and The Clash.
Along the journey, guitarist/keyboardist Nick Reinhart experimented with vocals, tucking them in and around his maniacal but hook-tinged riffs. The cover EP, Idioms Vol. 1, furthered the vocal presence, but Reinhart really perfected his delivery in Bygones, his wild rock collaboration with Hella's Zach Hill.
With Reinhart’s newly sharpened vocal chops and a new tech-pop balance, Patagonian Rats marks the true arrival of Tera Melos. The album lands somewhere between the band’s old schizophrenic yet directed mayhem and the mathy yet melodic accessibility of Bygones. The chaos is carefully controlled, erupting at opportune moments or manifesting itself in layers of outlandishness.
The entire album is rooted in a punk energy, however, powered by spastic drums, guitar noodling, and driving bass distortions. With the addition of a touring fourth member, Tera Melos should be more accurately reenacting these songs on stage, which should be even more outstanding than listening to Patagonian Rats
.
Tera Melos: US Tour, Japan Tour, Patagonian Rats!
In celebration of it’s Sept 7th release, Tera Melos will be taking their Patagonian Rats out on tour. Lot’s of surprises in store at the Tera Melos live show, so our advice is definitely not to miss them when they come through your town. The Double gate fold 12" Vinyl (which comes with 3 bonus tracks only available on Vinyl!) and their CDS are now in, so all orders taken from their online store will ship on Monday, August 23rd, that’s right you will get it early! So please support this great band and check out their insane good deals on their bundles.
Tera Melos USA Tour
09/09 Sacramento, CA @ Sol Collective
09/10 Seattle, WA @ The Vera Project
09/11 Portland, OR @ The Artistery
09/12 Reno, NV @ HSS Rainshadow
09/14 Englewood, CO @ Moe’s
09/15 Omaha, NE @ The Slowdown
09/16 St. Louis, MO @ The Firebird
09/17 Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
09/18 Kalamazoo, MI @ The Strutt
09/20 Toronto, ON @ The Shop at Parts and Labour
09/21 Montreal, QC @ Bar St. Laurent II
09/22 Binghamton, NY @ Bazooka/Bazooka
09/23 Brooklyn, NY @ Death By Audio
09/24 Richmond, VA @ Exit 76
09/25 Durham, NC @ Duke University
09/26 Columbus, SC @ The Whig
09/27 Atlanta, GA @ Wonderroot
09/28 Mobile, AL @ Alabama Music Box
09/29 New Orleans, LA @ The Big Top
09/30 Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s
10/01 Dallas, TX @ The Nightmare
10/02 San Antonio, TX @ The Korova
10/03 Austin, TX @ Mohawk
10/05 Phoenix, AZ @ Trunk Space
10/06 Los Angeles, CA @ Bootleg Theater (W/Skinwalker)
10/07 San Francisco, CA @ Bottom Of The Hill (W/Skinwalker)
Tera Melos Live: Frozen Zoo, Manar The Magic, In Citrus Heights
Tera Melos live, playing Frozen Zoo & In Citrus Heights from the album Patagonian Rats and Manar The Magic from the EP Zoo Weather. Shot in Orlando at the Backbooth Theater on February 27, 2011 by Erick R. Wilczynski
Tera Melos 3+1 = 4 Piece for Tour (VIDEO)
A Message from Tera Melos:
“now that you’ve listened to patagonian rats a hundred times, you may have noticed that it’s densely layered with goodie bits. there’s lots of skronky blip sounds, electro snare rolls and melodies hidden all over the place. we thought it’d be fun to recreate as much of the record as we could live. so our friend evan will be touring with us, helping to provide the pieces that make up PR. tera melos as a four piece!? (GASP). we met evan on the very first night of our very first tour ever- some show in san jose where a girl punker, wearing pirate stockings, got shanked in the belly. if you squint your eyes evan could almost be related to jeff. check out evan’s band, Worker Bee.
the songs sound awesome as a 4 piece. we’re real excited for everyone to hear them. we’ll also be opening the TM vault and playing a few songs that have never been played live. rad.
here’s an early 4 piece rehearsal of “FROZEN ZOO”, thanks Terroreyes.TV for the video.
More Great Reviews for Tera Melos’ Patagonian Rats
“From start to finish, Patagonian Rats is a wild and chaotic ride that ultimately is nothing short of a masterpiece. Between maintaining this site and actively searching for the best new music/bands, I listen to an enormous amount of albums, day after day. Before we go any further, it demands to be said… Tera Melos’ Patagonian Rats is one of the absolute best new releases I’ve heard in a very long time. Prior to the release of this album, I was aware of the Sacramento trio, appreciated their sound, but had never considered myself much of a fan. Let that speak volumes for this album, and the transitional growth Tera Melos have engaged over the past several years. The math rock warriors have always had a penchant for the bizarre, showing an undeniable gift for spastic and explosive time signature manipulation seemingly capable of auditory epilepsy. Their musicianship travels on another plane of existence from your average punk, post-rock, or even prog band, but there was always the lingering question whether the band could stay in one place long enough to write a succinct “song”. While the thought of trying to put vocals over their musical contortions seems daunting to say the least, Patagonian Rats proclaims not only are they capable of adding vocals to their music, they damn well excel at it.” - EXPLODING IN SOUND (click for full review)
“Totally coolio!! Way to describe Tera Melos’ new full length album, Patagonian Rats, released September 7 on Sargent House. Lead by the genius Nick Reinhart, the three-piece from Roseville, California incorporates a blend of experimental, rock, jazz and even *drum roll* pop music elements, creating a fairly accessible math-rock record. Why so accessible? It’s very simple. Math-rock is an emerging genre, it’s enrolling fans from a very broad palette of genres including post-rock, jazz and even punk. That being said, I would expect a lot of people to nourish an interest for the new genre.
This is a very innovative album, a sort of noise meets pop at a jazz concert, constantly jumping back and forth in a pleasantly abrasive way. Even after 3 complete listens, every song got me surprised at some point. Sometimes you’re just wondering what’s going on, if you should head bang or dance, or simply tap to the beat with your feet. But no matter what, this cacophonous mess is still a cohesive assortment of consistent songs, with their hooks and punches.