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Akron/Family | Review
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www.stylusmagazine.com | Ethan White Year end # 35 Dec 05 I'll try to keep this simple. Akron/Family aren't from Akron, nor are they related. Listening to their music is like laughing, crying, crooning, swooning, sleeping, freaking, creaking, waiting, rocking, running, swimming, flying, drowning, leaving, and arriving, all at once. Equal parts joyous campfire sing-along, country-folky-classic rock, and lo-fi experimentation (dig the chair-as-instrument on 'Italy'), their self-titled debut is a sparkling mish-mash of gorgeous contradictions, culled from bedroom taping sessions and cunningly touched up with the help of Michael Gira, who signed them to his own Young God label, then enlisted them to be his backing band as Angels of Light. He also claims they're the best backing band he's ever had. For comparison's sake, imagine the Beta Band circa The Three EPs but American, or a distinctly human Animal Collective; then put this on, sit back, and discover something else entirely. Like I said‹simple. ...
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Angels of Light | Review
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www.cokemachineglow.com | Peter Hepburn the quiet beauty of closer 'Jackie's Spine' show Gira at perhaps his strongest Dec 05 Angels of Light Sing 'Other People' (Young God) In the wake of Akron/Family's stunning debut record earlier this year it was somewhat understandable that Michael Gira's newest Angels of Light album, the fantastic yet thoroughly challenging Sing 'Other People,' could get overlooked. It's a decidedly dark, complex record - the sort that takes all sort of attention and repeated listens to really appreciate. What's not understandable is that some nine months later people haven't started to take notice. Gira was born with one of the most commanding voices out there. He manages to instill his gloomy, image-laden lyrics with a spiritual weight or at the very least a dark romanticism. With Akron/Family serving as his backing band, Gira builds up a musical backdrop that only furthers the effect. What results is really spectacular; while it may not have the playful experimentation of Akron/Family, it certainly has the song-writing chops down cold. Listening through, there's barely a bum song here, or at least not one without a seriously redeeming characteristic. 'On the Mountain' rises high with its charging refrain, the heavy religious......
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Akron/Family | Review
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The New Palz Oracle | Monica Ayres, Contributing Writer I never knew that singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" in a garage with 50 strangers could be so much fun.Dec 05 EXPLOSIVE AKRON/FAMILY SHOW AT BARD COLLEGE I never knew that singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" in a garage with 50 strangers could be so much fun. I never fully appreciated the magic that came with each rattle of an egg shaker. I had never tried to catch a crowd-surfing singer from a stage that was a mere twelve inches off the ground. I had never done any of this until I joined a small crowd of Bard College students at the Akron/Family show on Dec. 2. Akron/Family is a band from Brooklyn with a sound all their own. Their music ranges from melodic folk songs, complete with four-part harmonies that send chills through your body, to electronic noise that, well, sends chills through your body. Ryan Vanderhoof, Dana Janssen, Miles Seaton and Seth Olinsky each play a multitude of instruments ranging from the typical bass, guitar, and drums, to the xylophone, recorder and kazoo. Accompanying them on stage are also stuffed birds that chirp when squeezed and a......
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Akron/Family
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dustedmagazine.com | Nathan HoganEnd of the year 2005 Dec 05 5. Akron/Family - Akron/Family (Young God) One of the nicest surprises of 2005, and probably my favorite debut of the year, I liked Akron/Family's record from the moment I heard it, but wasn't prepared for how durable it would prove to be. Seeing these guys live (at a show in which they played maybe two songs from their only release) made their talent and adventurousness even more apparent. They're going to be fun to keep an ear on. ...
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Akron/Family
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www.popmatters.com | Mike Schiller Pop Matters end of year ListDec o5 42 Akron/Family, Akron/Family (Young God) It might be a desire to return to the simpler things that has fueled the folk revival amongst the indie rockers, but nobody told Akron/Family. The Akron/Family approach to songwriting is one of building from the formless mass and adding elements to elements until a song happens. If a sound or element can be added to make the song better, it will be. As a result, we get the Family's eponymous debut, an album that features long stretches of a cappella, tinkly synth noises, rocking chairs, and thunderclaps. Sure, there are drums, guitars, and the lovely broken vocals of Ryan Vanderhoof, but it is the "other" that Akron/Family brings to the table that makes it special. "I'll Be on the Water" is bar-none the most beautiful folk song that was released this year, and very little can approach "Shoes" for fun and freedom in musical form. Michael Gira was wise in signing them to his label ‹ now he gets to be a part of the evolution of one of the few bands for whom the possibilities truly seem endless. ...