Now It's Overhead
Jun. 29th, 2008 02:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
urgencytobleedNow It's Overhead
Now It's Overhead is essentially Andy LeMaster. He is the band's frontman in every way imaginable - aside from singing, he also happens to be a talented songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and visual artist (all of NIO's album covers are created by him; I adore this one though I'm not really sure why). He has worked with everyone from fellow Saddle Creek artists like Bright Eyes, Azure Ray, and Art in Manila to bands like Drive-By Truckers, R.E.M., and more. Is there anything he can't do? It doesn't seem like it.
Anyway, I first listened to NIO about a year ago (and even posted a couple of songs) but never really went deeper than a handful of listens to their newest album before completely forgetting about them for awhile. After listening to Maria Taylor's new EP a lot over the past week, I've realized that I kind of really love Andy's voice and needed to go back to his band again. So I've been listening to them quite a bit lately and have come to the conclusion that I like them a lot more than I originally thought I did. I'm terrible at describing music half the time, but I'll try anyway. There are a lot of shoegaze-esque layered, slightly distorted vocals and a good amount of electronic elements, but their music doesn't really fall completely into either of those categories - it has more of an indie rock feel overall and is often very catchy, especially their more recent material. And then there's Andy's voice, which is unique without being annoying and impressive in a very simple, subtle way. Basically, it's just really good music, though it might take a few listens to actually sink in and worm its way into your brain. And I'm still extremely in awe (and jealous) of how much talent Andy possesses.
As for the picture I used, I don't think Maria and Orenda are really in the band anymore or at least aren't as big a part of it, but come on, they're so much prettier to look at than any of the guys. Except for Andy... he's pretty, too.
* = most highly recommended
Anyway, I first listened to NIO about a year ago (and even posted a couple of songs) but never really went deeper than a handful of listens to their newest album before completely forgetting about them for awhile. After listening to Maria Taylor's new EP a lot over the past week, I've realized that I kind of really love Andy's voice and needed to go back to his band again. So I've been listening to them quite a bit lately and have come to the conclusion that I like them a lot more than I originally thought I did. I'm terrible at describing music half the time, but I'll try anyway. There are a lot of shoegaze-esque layered, slightly distorted vocals and a good amount of electronic elements, but their music doesn't really fall completely into either of those categories - it has more of an indie rock feel overall and is often very catchy, especially their more recent material. And then there's Andy's voice, which is unique without being annoying and impressive in a very simple, subtle way. Basically, it's just really good music, though it might take a few listens to actually sink in and worm its way into your brain. And I'm still extremely in awe (and jealous) of how much talent Andy possesses.
As for the picture I used, I don't think Maria and Orenda are really in the band anymore or at least aren't as big a part of it, but come on, they're so much prettier to look at than any of the guys. Except for Andy... he's pretty, too.
* = most highly recommended
