The Emerald Down (4-Song Demo 1999, Cassette)
From Aural Innovations #9 (January 2000)
Recently relocated from Olympia, WA to Columbus, OH, The Emerald Down plays Shoegazer-styled spacerock. While the music certainly has the ethereal quality of that style the instrumentation is far more distinct then a lot of Shoegazer bands I've heard. It's simultaneously aggressive and floating with the guitars often producing a wall of drone that is harsh, but not in an over-the-top style. The two main members are Jason Markin and Rebecca Basye, with Basye's vocals adding an equally floating, as well as haunting feel to the music.
I don't have any song titles for this demo, but I hear multiple droning spacey guitar and bass sounds that are joined by the prominent drums and Rebecca's chanting vocals. When the full band hits, it's a gorgeous wall of sound that is aggressive but maintains a trippy element. One pretty straight-forward tune that sounds like it could get radio play has the guitars laying down a basic strumming rhythm while bells play the melody. The last song is another simpler rocker but has a melody that really grabbed me and includes more varied guitar development as the song progressed.
The Emerald Down would appeal to fans of song-oriented guitar driven shoegazer or melodic drone spacerock. The band is currently looking for new members to help complete a full-length release.
For more information you can email The Emerald Down at jmarkin@columbus.rr.com.
Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz