New Band Alert!

Editor’s Note: “New Band Alert!” will be a regular feature that highlights up and coming artists. Stay tuned for more great new music.

“In the early 21st century men were but beasts ravaging upon what little sustenance God could afford them. The landscape was strewn thick with remnants of a civilization lost to the wiles of a wicked tribe. The Earth pined for a return to nothingness, awaiting her inhabitants’ cataclysmic demise. Man would soon be forgotten, time having proven an expanse too perilous to traverse. And in these last breaths of a race, it came to pass that listenlisten should be formed” And so reads the band’s “official” press release. Quite fitting, actually.

Proudly flying the freak-folk flag, this ragtag bunch from Houston play an assortment of instruments, ranging from piano to banjo and everything in between. With a spirit that conjures images of deep, dark woods from a bygone era, listenlisten’s sound is communal, often featuring a chorus of chanting voices bolstered by gently plucked guitars, swelling horns, and swirling strings. The band’s debut full-length album, Hymns From Rhodesia, bristles with a tasty combination of Neutral Milk Hotel’s Balkan bent and Incredible String Band’s Renaissance ramblings. It’s an adventurous set that reveals added surprises with each listen.

Stand-out tracks include “Funeral Dirge: Burial Service” and “Safe Home, Safe Home In Port!” Sample both below and check out listenlisten’s website to purchase Hymns From Rhodesia and to find more information about upcoming shows and other fun facts.

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