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Music
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1. Brainjar
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2. Exit Strategy
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3. Intergalactic Battle Cruiser
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4. El Viento
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5. Get Some
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6. Tiger Puss
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7. Tennessee Red
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8. The Hangar
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9. Clouds
Lindsey Elias - Drums
Shane Thomas - Guitars
Keith O'Dell - Piano, Synths, Organ, Lap Steel, Samples
Graham Jacobs - Saxophone, Flute, Synths
Patrick Pearsall - Bass
Biography
Empty Space Orchestra certainly knows how to fill a room. The Bend, OR quintet of impeccable musicians crafts a symphonic, melodic sound that seamlessly weaves together elements of space rock, prog-metal, noir jazz, post-rock and afro-punk all in one massive blast of energy. Their 9-song, 50-minute self-titled debut album is a hook-laden marriage of heft and harmony that veers far away from the navel-gazing jamming often associated with music of such explorative origins. Elements of The Mars Volta's most frenetic moments merge with soaring post-rock of Russian Circles, as well as hints of Deftones, Dub Trio and lilting chamber pop all colliding in brilliant synergy from one song to the next.
The group of classically-trained musicians is anchored by the stunning power and precision of drummer Lindsey Elias -- clearly a musician soon to hold rank amongst her most celebrated male counterparts. Guitarist Shane Thomas and bassist Patrick Pearall provide a balance of head-bobbing riffs interspersed with tasteful and inventive lines that weave like musical narrative throughout. Meanwhile, multi-instrumentalists Keith O'Dell (keyboards, piano) and Graham Jacobs (saxophone, flute, synths) add myriad melodic layers and cinematic moods that often deftly counterbalance heavy riffs with glissando piano melodies and swaggering horns.
The disc was recorded at the popular The Hanger Studios in Sacramento, CA with engineer Robert Cheek (RX Bandits, The Deftones, Tera Melos) and mixed by Matt Bayles (Mastodon, Pearl Jam, ISIS) at Red Room Studios in Seattle, WA. Since the band's inception in late 2007, ESO has built a devoted and rapidly growing fan base in the Northwest exclusively on the weight of their highly memorable live performances. While the album perfectly showcases the band's musical precision, it must be noted that ESO is an extremely loud band -- quite possibly the loudest band you will ever see with a saxophone on stage.
"I was spending a lot of time thinking about what Miles Davis used to say; ‘It’s not about the space you play, but the space you leave,'" explains Thomas. "That’s where the ‘Empty Space’ came from… ironically we don’t leave much space in our music." Nonetheless, the sum of Empty Space Orchestra's myriad parts never seem bloated, overblown or obtrusive.
Press Photos
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Precisely because they know how to let a good melody breathe without losing the appeal of virtuosic players bringing their considerable skills to bear, Empty Space Orchestra have created an album of progressive musical ideas that shoud be able to be processed and appreciated by a wide audience. - Exlclaim.ca
Rocking on like such progressive pundits as Tool and King Crimson, Oregon’s Empty Space Orchestra creates complex instrumental ensembles, sun-streaked solos, and hyperactive improvisations on their self-titled debut. -Electronic Musician
The songs on their new, self-titled, all-instrumental album often have a mocking, satirical bite that’s completely out of character in this genre. How cool is it to finally find a proggy-sounding band that doesn’t take itself seriously? – Lucid Culture
Part jazz, part The Mars Volta bizarro world, part stoner/spacey rock, part post-rock, Empty Space Orchestra is a band that don't want to pigeonhole themselves into anything, so instead they encompass everything -- and they do that on display in quite a loud fashion. - Redefine Magazine
They rock in an In the Court of the Crimson King-era King Crimson kind of way but with a sound all their own. These guys (and gal) have a kind of talent rarely seen outside of jam-band/festival circles. - SSG Music
If ever there were a band that should gain popularity, and with haste, it’s this one! - Flab Mag