High Places
Encyclopedia
High Places is a band originating from Brooklyn
, NY, recently relocated to Los Angeles
, CA. The band is a duo comprising multi-instrumentalist Rob Barber and vocalist Mary Pearson.
and Rob was working in visual art, teaching lithography and etching in New York. Both were performing as solo musicians at the time, Mary as Transformation Surprise, and Rob as the Urxed
. The two began collaborating under the name High Places in May 2006, after Mary relocated to New York.
The duo played their first show in may of 2006 in North Adams
MA, with Japanther
, after Rob, who was scheduled to play solo, didn't want to perform alone. A few weeks later they finished a six song demo CD-R, and left for their first US tour. They released a number of singles while contributing songs to a few compilations.
In the Summer of 2008, the duo signed with Chicago label Thrill Jockey Records. Their early singles and varied works were collected and released in July 2008 as 03/07-09/07
, and their debut S/T full length followed in September 2008.
High Places tours almost constantly, and have toured with such notable bands such as Deerhunter
, No Age
, Abe Vigoda
, the Blow
, Ponytail
, Soft Circle
, Lucky Dragons
, Yacht
, Dan Deacon
, and Hawnay Troof
.
” style of songwriting where they exchange ideas back and forth, challenging each other's ideas in an organic way.
In a live setting, the band creates their layered recordings with Mary singing and simultaneously manipulating her vocals with various delay and reverb pedals, while playing some hand percussion, recorders, and creating and controlling various loops. Rob handles the music, triggering a variety of percussive sounds with sampling drum pads and traditional samplers, as well as various percussion, wooden blocks with contact mics, and singing some ambient vocals.
High Places’ self-titled debut was recorded by Rob and Mary in their apartment in Brooklyn’s Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood between January and May of 2008. In making the album they employed a wide variety of instruments, including 12 string
guitar, banjo, shakers and rattles, bass, bells and Kalimba, as well as plastic bags, mixing bowls, wood blocks and other common household objects. Rob created the High Places artwork by using photos taken by both band members.
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, NY, recently relocated to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, CA. The band is a duo comprising multi-instrumentalist Rob Barber and vocalist Mary Pearson.
History
Pearson and Barber met while Mary was completing a music degree in bassoon performance at Western Michigan UniversityWestern Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
and Rob was working in visual art, teaching lithography and etching in New York. Both were performing as solo musicians at the time, Mary as Transformation Surprise, and Rob as the Urxed
The Urxed
-Bio:The name The Urxed has been used for various projects since he was a youth. The name originated as a Graffiti name in Philadelphia, where he was born and raised, and was a reference to the song "You're X'ed" by the early 80's Washington DC hardcore punk band The Faith...
. The two began collaborating under the name High Places in May 2006, after Mary relocated to New York.
The duo played their first show in may of 2006 in North Adams
North Adams
North Adams can refer to several places in the United States:* North Adams, Massachusetts* North Adams, Michigan...
MA, with Japanther
Japanther
Japanther is an art project, established by Matt Reilly and Ian Vanek, then students at Pratt Institute. Japanther was featured in the 2006 Whitney Biennial and the 2011 Venice Biennale, and has collaborated with a diverse pool of artists such as gelitin, Penny Rimbaud, Gee Vaucher, Dan Graham,...
, after Rob, who was scheduled to play solo, didn't want to perform alone. A few weeks later they finished a six song demo CD-R, and left for their first US tour. They released a number of singles while contributing songs to a few compilations.
In the Summer of 2008, the duo signed with Chicago label Thrill Jockey Records. Their early singles and varied works were collected and released in July 2008 as 03/07-09/07
03/07-09/07
-Track listing:...
, and their debut S/T full length followed in September 2008.
High Places tours almost constantly, and have toured with such notable bands such as Deerhunter
Deerhunter
Deerhunter is an American four-piece indie rock group originating from Atlanta, Georgia. The band, consisting of Bradford Cox, Moses Archuleta, Josh Fauver, and Lockett Pundt, have described themselves as "ambient punk," though they incorporate a wide range of genres, including noise rock, art...
, No Age
No Age
No Age is a two-person American indie rock group consisting of guitarist Randy Randall and drummer/vocalist Dean Allen Spunt. The band is based in Los Angeles and is currently signed to Sub Pop records...
, Abe Vigoda
Abe Vigoda
Abe Vigoda is an American movie and television actor. Vigoda is well known for his portrayal of Sal Tessio in The Godfather, and for his portrayal of Detective Sgt. Phil Fish on the sitcom television series Barney Miller from 1975–1977 and on its spinoff show Fish that aired from February 1977 to...
, the Blow
The Blow
The Blow is the moniker of Brooklyn, New York-based musician Mikhaela Yvonne Maricich, who has recorded several albums for K Records. Jona Bechtolt, aka Yacht, was also a member of The Blow from 2004 to 2007....
, Ponytail
Ponytail
A ponytail is a hairstyle in which most or all of the hair on the head is pulled away from the face, gathered and secured at the back of the head with a hair tie, clip or similar device, and allowed to hang freely from that point. It gets its name from its resemblance to the undocked tail of a...
, Soft Circle
Soft Circle
Soft Circle is the project of New York City based musician Hisham Bharoocha. His debut album, Full Bloom, was released January 23, 2007, on the Eastern Developments Music record label. His sound is characterized by looped guitar riffs, drums, and repeated vocals.In 2009 Ben Vida joined Soft Circle...
, Lucky Dragons
Lucky Dragons
Lucky Dragons is an experimental music group consisting of Luke Fischbeck and Sarah Rara. Based in Los Angeles, California, the band are noted for their unusual sound, described as having the ability to make "'everyday sounds' become alluringly other"....
, Yacht
Yacht
A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...
, Dan Deacon
Dan Deacon
Dan Deacon is an American composer and electronic musician based out of Baltimore, Maryland. Since 2003, Deacon has released eight albums under several different labels...
, and Hawnay Troof
Hawnay Troof
Hawnay Troof is the electronic indie solo project of Vice Cooler formed in late 2001.Regardless of the bands American punk and electronic background, many untraditional ideas have been incorporated into its sound...
.
Process
High Places' overall sound consists of bass-heavy yet crisp beats, lilting vocal melodies, syncopated rhythmic lines performed on folk percussion instruments, guitar duets turned into treated samples, and percussive lines created from the manipulation of household objects. The duo has an “exquisite corpseExquisite corpse
Exquisite corpse, also known as exquisite cadaver or rotating corpse, is a method by which a collection of words or images is collectively assembled. Each collaborator adds to a composition in sequence, either by following a rule Exquisite corpse, also known as exquisite cadaver (from the original...
” style of songwriting where they exchange ideas back and forth, challenging each other's ideas in an organic way.
In a live setting, the band creates their layered recordings with Mary singing and simultaneously manipulating her vocals with various delay and reverb pedals, while playing some hand percussion, recorders, and creating and controlling various loops. Rob handles the music, triggering a variety of percussive sounds with sampling drum pads and traditional samplers, as well as various percussion, wooden blocks with contact mics, and singing some ambient vocals.
High Places’ self-titled debut was recorded by Rob and Mary in their apartment in Brooklyn’s Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood between January and May of 2008. In making the album they employed a wide variety of instruments, including 12 string
guitar, banjo, shakers and rattles, bass, bells and Kalimba, as well as plastic bags, mixing bowls, wood blocks and other common household objects. Rob created the High Places artwork by using photos taken by both band members.
Albums
- 03/07–09/07 (Compilation) on Thrill JockeyThrill JockeyThrill Jockey Records is an American independent record label established in 1992 in New York City by former Atlantic Records A&R representative Bettina Richards.-History:...
(2008) - High PlacesHigh Places (album)High Places is the debut full-length from Brooklyn indie band High Places. The album was released September 23, 2008, by Thrill Jockey.The track "From Stardust to Sentience" was listed as the 417th best song of the 2000's by Pitchfork.-Track listing:...
on Thrill JockeyThrill JockeyThrill Jockey Records is an American independent record label established in 1992 in New York City by former Atlantic Records A&R representative Bettina Richards.-History:...
(2008) - High Places vs. Mankind (March 23, 2010)
- Original Colors on Thrill JockeyThrill JockeyThrill Jockey Records is an American independent record label established in 1992 in New York City by former Atlantic Records A&R representative Bettina Richards.-History:...
(2011)
7" EPs
- High Places (2007)
- Picture Disc (2007)
- Vision's the First... b/w Namer (2008)
Splits
- with AaAa (Big A Little a)Aa is a musical project from Brooklyn, New York. The core members are Aron Wahl, Josh Bonati , and John Atkinson each of whom play percussive instruments and synthesizers...
Wedding 7" (2007) - with Xiu XiuXiu XiuXiu Xiu is an American avant-garde group originally from San Jose, California. The band is the brainchild of singer-songwriter Jamie Stewart, who has been its only constant member since its inception in 2002. His current bandmate is Angela Seo...
Polaroid 7" (2008) - with Soft CircleSoft CircleSoft Circle is the project of New York City based musician Hisham Bharoocha. His debut album, Full Bloom, was released January 23, 2007, on the Eastern Developments Music record label. His sound is characterized by looped guitar riffs, drums, and repeated vocals.In 2009 Ben Vida joined Soft Circle...
12" on PPM Records (2009)
Compilations
- Grown Zone on States Rights RecordsStates Rights RecordsStates Rights Records is an independent record label founded in 2001 by Steve Schroeder. The Portland, Oregon label's premier release was "Come Along" by Little Wings. Later that year, the label released "Tongue and Tooth" by The Badger King. Bobby Birdman, Yacht, Lucky Dragons, The Blow, The...
(2007) - Mistletonia on Mistletone Records (2007)
- Love And Circuits on Cardboard Records (2008)
External links
- High Places at MySpaceMySpaceMyspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
- High Places blog
- Thrill Jockey's High Places site
- High Places Album Review at Pitchfork
- High Places 03/07-09/07 Review at Pitchfork
- High Places 7" Review at Pitchfork
- High Places at NPR Music