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MP3 The Moviegoers - Or The Gun
6 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Shoegaze, ROCK: Modern Rock
Details:
Known at the time as Your Future in Plastics, The Moviegoers was formed in 2004 by Richard Hunter-Rivera, Jordan Heimer, and Jessica Monday, who met while attending Columbia University in New York City. Richard’s brother, Robert Hunter-Rivera, was roped into the project soon after. Formed initially as a recording project, the band began cultivating their indie rock sound with all members writing music and alternating on guitars, keyboards, bass, and vocals. Rhythm tracks were laid down using drum machines, samplers, and a variety of handheld percussion. In this manner, the band completed a large collection of songs by the end of 2004 and used five of those cuts to create its first EP, The Code is Obvious. While decidedly lo-fi, The Code is Obvious was a strong first step in the development of the band’s sound, which can be described as a bastardized amalgamation of their musical influences, which include The Beatles, The Kinks, Talking Heads, My Bloody Valentine, The Magnetic Fields, Philip Glass, and Radiohead.
After graduating, the band’s founders left New York for the South. Richard and Jessica moved to New Orleans, Jordan to Austin. The group continued recording together and spent the summer of 2005 working on new tracks in a sweltering attic in Shreveport, Louisiana, Monday’s hometown. Robert continued to participate long-distance, doing vocal and guitar overdubs once the trio had finished the basic tracks. Richard enlisted the help of Monday’s brother, Bobby, to play drums. During this time the band began writing songs in a more collaborative fashion. The recordings that ensued, though not released, were something of a turning point for the band, helping them to get comfortable incorporating their eager experimentalism with a more traditional indie rock aesthetic. Even more influences came into play during this period, including Sufjan Stevens, the Pixies, Stephen Malkmus, Bob Dylan, and Wilco. They realized that writing songs with catchy melodies and angular guitar riffs can be quite fun to play and listen to, which led them to pursue a more cohesive sound with a live performance component. Soon after that summer, Jordan moved to Los Angeles to pursue his screenwriting ambitions.
In September 2005, Hurricane Katrina forced Jessica and Richard to leave New Orleans. They decided to join Jordan in southern California in order to start focusing on the band’s live sound. Richard soon met Carlos Robles, originally from Mexicali, and the band finally had a drummer. In October 2006, Richard entered a songwriting contest with one of the songs from those steamy summer 2005 recording sessions. The song “Andy” won the grand prize: two 8-hour recording sessions at Studio West in San Diego. By February 2007, the band was in the studio recording its second EP, Or the Gun. Robert, who had decided to become an upstanding citizen of Durham, North Carolina, flew out to San Diego for the sessions and appears on the EP as a special guest guitarist and vocalist. The band changed its name to the catchier, but equally referential, The Moviegoers and released Or The Gun with Mangoose Records in March 2008. Because they tracked much of it live, instead of using lots of overdubs, the EP has a more cohesive sound, harkening back to great studio records such as Pavement’s Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain and The Replacement’s Tim. Featuring jangly guitars, upfront vocals, thick and spacey harmonies, and smart, soulful songwriting, Or The Gun represents the band’s most collaborative and complete piece of work to date.
The members of The Moviegoers are still living in Southern California, and are currently perfecting their live sound. With Robert dedicated to his 9 to 5 on the East Coast, Richard is fronting the band on guitar and vocals, Jordan and Carlos are holding down the rhythm section, and Jessica plays keys and sings. The band will be playing shows in San Diego and Los Angeles throughout the summer to support the release of Or The Gun.
People who are interested in Pavement Radiohead Pixies should consider this download.
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