Or, The Whale

FIND • Saturday January 24th, 2009 • 2:44 pm

Or The Whale are the alt-country Decemberists, and splitting up their travel costs and royalties must be a bitch. Based in San Francisco, they are the exception to the trend of a solitary new folk artist using a nondescript “band” name and singularly creating (good) music with help from disparate players. No, Or The Whale are a seven member band.

The benefits of good teamwork are evident as soon as the four-part harmonies on the chorus of “Fight Song” from their debut Light Poles and Pines come in full. Along with the now standard retinue of new folk quirky instruments (vocalist Lindsay Garfield is credited with playing the “frog”), Tim Marcus’s pedal steel contributions lend a soulful southern credence to these Left Coast indie rockers.

Like The Decemberists, Or The Whale have a vaguely punk-inspired DIY sensibility and smart lyrics. The compare/contrast with the two bands doesn’t stop there. One uses frogs and pedal steel, the other hurdy-gurdies and string bass. A.P. Robins sings of dead dogs and towns in the old deep south, while Collin Meloy of The Decemberists keeps things more baroque and literary.

“Call and Response” shows Or The Whale blending all their indie rock, country, folk, and Americana proclivities into one track. The reference to “Heading back to New Orleans” with “More to fear than hurricanes” fits nicely with the band’s choice of imagery. It’s all clipper ships and narwhals. They are a Bay Area band after all, setting sail across the wide expanse of American music. And hopefully saving their receipts when they are on tour.

Or, The Whale

Tagged as: Alt Country, San Francisco