Search - A New Dawn Fades :: I See the Night Birds

ON THE JOB TRAINING Having sold out a small stack of 7'' releases and CDEP's on their own Cherub Records, Richmond's A New Dawn Fades is set to release their album, I See the Nightbirds, on the Alone and NFI imprints this fall. The instrumental Richmond duo has been known for sticking hard to the road, where they've gained a reputation for wowing audiences with their improvisational and experimental performances. No stiff limbed-scarecrows on stage, the band forces the audience to take an interactive part in the music, throwing out makeshift instruments like pots, bits of sheet metal or car parts, the clamor of which, in no small way, influences the direction of the band's improvisational pieces. The boundaries between the performer and the audience are further blurred as both musicians often walk among the crowd, playing along with, and conducting the makeshift orchestra. Be warned: at an A New Dawn Fades show no unwitting audience member is safe from direct involvement in the performance. NIGHTBIRDS OF THE LATE VIRGINIA SUMMER Mastered by Chad Clark (Fugazi, Beauty Pill) I See The Nightbirds buzzes with pretty, singsong guitar lines that burst into noise and feedback, and rhythm that alternately paces the songs beautifully, or drives them to the teetering brink and back again. Mainly guitar and drums, the band augment their studio sound with bells, organs and trumpet, and even add a beautifully ethereal cello on closer, `The Neornithes Returns'. Though lacking a vocal narrative, the album does go places: its dark and restless tone suggests an all night drive on rural routes, speeding away from home; and the determination of the songs, like the triumphant title track, suggest never returning again. Joe Gavin in an advance review for Richmond Virginia Magazine suggests the album "to anyone who's a sucker for bands that don't need to say something to say something... ANDF have answered an atheist's prayers & given me one of my favorite albums of the year."