Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s about to get a little weird up in here. I’ve been away for awhile, with editor duties at SB Nation Bay Area taking up a good portion of my time and FX’s Justified taking up the rest, but more than anything, I’ve been a little lethargic about what’s been going on lately in music. Nothing all-that interesting has released over the last month or two, but I’ve finally found something that’s … perfect.
Avant-garde is an oft-abused term that’s narrowly defined, but still easily applied correctly in some cases. For instance, no, Serj Tankian of System of a Down doesn’t make avant-garde music, nor does he engage in “art rock.” Friends don’t let friends make up superfluous genre names and mis-use other ones. Seriously.
Anyway, I bring up avant-garde because the band I’m going to be talking about falls firmly into the avant-garde category – Diablo Swing Orchestra. They’re actually avant-garde rock, but are quite experimental in their nature. I don’t know how I discovered this band at all years ago, but it was honestly probably the name. I heard the name and immediately had to check them out. I was not disappointed.
It’s a band unlike any other in my music library. Closest comparisons would have to be bands like unexpect, Stolen Babies and Pin-Up Went Down, but given the nature of the genre, your experience may differ entirely. That being said, if you like something ultimately complex, hard-hitting and just a little bit (a lot) out there, then you need to check out Diablo Swing Orchestra.
Their latest release, Pandora’s Piñata is a captivating listen that I’m only halfway through. But as evidenced by my long absence, I don’t have nearly as much time as I’d like to have lately (but do keep an eye out for some new contributors on the horizon) to write, but I did want to get this quick post up. Below, I’m embedding track two from the latest album. It’s called “Guerilla Laments,” and I think it’s my favorite one. If you’re turned off by the vocal style – it does change pretty rapidly from time to time, so maybe check out another song, but for now, this is the one I’m going with.
Diablo Swing Orchestra – Guerilla Laments
