The Exchange
I wrote about The Exchange a couple months ago, when I said reviewed their song “Orange” and said:
I know virtually nothing about this band, except that they’re from Minnesota, which is a pretty neat state. They’ve got a pretty nice indie guitar/piano combination going on. Maybe this is Death Cab if they were way more into Weezer, or mid 60s pop songs, or Journey, or Jimmy Eat World back before they became parodies of themselves, or something. I realize those things aren’t exactly the same as each other, but there’s a bit of all of them here. There’s some of the “la la la” background vocal thing going on, and I can’t really think of any way to describe this song except “warm.”
Anyways, they’ve got a page with a couple more songs availble for listening. All I’ve heard is what’s up there, but I’m sending away for a copy of the album. If it turns out to be as good as these songs, I will be very happy. “
The name of the record is The Day Before. I got my copy a few days ago and will stick by everything that I wrote back then. The album is well-crafted indie pop from start to finish. The only thing I ought to have emphasized more is the role of the piano. That “warm” feeling I described really derives from the strong role of the piano in these songs. There’s just something about piano-based songs that makes them feel like home.
That’s not to say there’s no edge on these songs. A number (“Tale of Old” for example) manage to sound both bruising and lovely at the same time. And they go the other direction as well. “Goodnight” is almost hymn-like, a piece of quietly growing beauty. “Sleeping City” sounds almost like a suite, with several movements. And “Aperture” has got a great little beat–it just sounds like fun.
And, since we’re only a day removed from The Beatles, I would be remiss if I failed to mention the harmonies. It’s not quite John, Paul, and George, but they still manage to soar on occasion.
Anyways, here’s two songs from The Day Before, both highly recommended.
OrangePoor Man’s Blanket
They were also nice enough to toss in their old EP Aperture for my order, which is a little less produced, but still has the same great feel. Here’s the opening track:
Put a Record On
And, as I said, you can get a couple more at their Purevolume page. But really you’d be best-served by e-mailing them at: info@exchangeband.com and getting a disc for yourself.