Thousandaires

Land Seal Demo (2008)

dlangl4

Since 2006 or 2007, online independent music depot If You Make It has released as free downloads a handful of EPs and full-length albums from various bands. The three-song Land Seal Demo by the group Thousandaires was one such release featured in 2008. Not surprisingly, Thousandaires sound a lot like other IFMI acts Get Bent and Halo Fauna, and also the band Bridge and Tunnel currently on No Idea Records. Why is all of this not surprising? Because Thousandaires feature members hailing from all three bands.

However, where Get Bent and Bridge and Tunnel would have opted to have a handful of slow moments and tracks amidst their overall faster sound on their albums, Thousandaires never let their foot off the gas. Because of this, Thousandaires sound more like a catchy/healthy blend of Bridge and Tunnel and Hot Water Music than anything else. The result is that Thousandaires deliver an inspired albeit short release that has a tendency to grow on the listener over time.

The downside(s) of the EP relate mostly to the lack of hooks and melodies, but again, this could also be seen as a plus to those who can appreciate a band that can make music worth listening to without having to delve into the overuse of melodies. And since the music sounds fine how it is, I don't know if this is a con of the album so much as it is just a reality.

One significant plus I noticed was that the lyrics were packaged with the digital download. This is something that more bands should consider doing in the future. As a digital only release, I doubt I would have been able to find the lyrics anywhere else. The content of the lyrics appear as if they were originally written as poems without the intent to add music to the background. This can be a good or bad thing depending on whether you like poetry. Either way, you can't go wrong by giving this band a chance.