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Bastian
Fingerprints
2005, independent
Once upon a time, there was a ska band called Anti-Blue. I happened to come in contact with them through connections in the local band scene (which doesn‘t amount to a whole lot in central Illinois). They were decent enough at the time, although for a ska band, they didn‘t have quite the sound. I had the opportunity over a period of about three years (2000-2003) to watch them evolve, and the transformation was rather striking - they moved away from the ska sound, eventually dropping their two horns in favor of a more rock-oriented sound. In the course of this change, they dropped the rather juvenile Anti-Blue moniker and picked up a more respectable indie name, Bastian, an allusion to the main character of The Neverending Story.
In the two years that passed before I heard them again in 2005, they had undergone even more changes, the addition of a third guitarist and the replacement of their drummer. They got picked up for a tour with Number One Gun and eventually recorded the six-song Fingerprints EP with NOG‘s Jeff Schneeweis in Chico, CA (which consequently became the title of one of the EP‘s tracks). I had never heard Bastian‘s music recorded with any type of decent production value, so Fingerprints was already a big leap ahead of what I had previously heard.
But the resulting EP is more than just a well-produced record - it showcases the immense talent that is contained within this band. The frenetic three-part vocals that showcase countermelodies and tactful echoes rather than typical three-part harmonies, the intricate guitar work that makes the three guitar sound worthwhile, the thoughtful lyrical output - all of it comes together masterfully. At least one of their songs ("My Rushmore") is a reworking of a song that has been in their repertoire for several years, and yet they manage to keep a continuity between the songs that is rare in modern music.
Perhaps the part about this EP that I was most impressed with was frontman Aaron Eversole‘s new-found tendency to make large jumps to the upper end of his vocal range in the melody. At points in the choruses of "Coming Home" ("We‘re coming home...") and "Without Me" ("There‘s something better..."), you can hear Eversole reaching for the upper register, and where many of the best vocalists sound strained doing the same (I‘m looking at you, Mark Salomon [Stavesacre]), Eversole manages to sound like he has the situation completely under control.
The EP is well worth the listen, and even better is the fact that (at the time of writing) it is available for online streaming in its entirety at the band‘s purevolume and myspace sites. You can‘t beat that with a stick, people.
[Bastian online] [myspace] [purevolume]
- Galen "Brody" Broaddus
Copyright ©2006