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They Were Set Up
By Brandon Forbes | May 11, 9:48 AM
The official rules of canasta, a card game similar to rummy in which players match sets of cards (or melds) for points, states that the game is "best for four players, playing in partnerships." Chicago's orchestrated pop sincerists Canasta, having taken the game's name as their own, have been hard at work refining this definition. As their Myspace slogan indicates, "six is the new four."
Comprised in a live set of a guitarist, bassist, drummer, violinist, pianist, and keyboardist, the six-piece Canasta channels the pop collective vibe of Belle & Sebastian or The Decemberists, occasionally allowing the eccentric pomp of Queen or Faith No More to appear. Lead vocalist Matt Priest cuts a distinctive character across their freshman full length, We Were Set Up, which the band self-released last year. At times recalling Destroyer's Dan Bejar or Harvey Danger's Sean Nelson, Priest, who is occasionally joined vocally by violinist Elizabeth Landau, enjoins the listener with emphatic aural probity, a vocal sincerity that is often matched by equally cogent violin and piano accompaniment.
"Anyone for a hand of canasta?"
Tracks Imposters and Shadowcat are exemplary of this earnest style, though fan favorite Slow Down Chicago, while dipped in lyrical fervor about our fair city and its quirks, allows horns and background chorale embellishment to morph into a frisky sound more like Architecture in Helsinki or, perhaps more appropriately, a B-side from Sufjan Stevens' Illinoise. Perhaps this more playful side of the band is closer to its original intent - one of their first demos (and my favorite Canasta track) was a spot-on cover of new wave sycophant Peter Schilling's Bowie-homage Major Tom (Coming Home).
More recently, the band held the practice space residency at Schuba's in April of this year, and rewarded show attendees with covers of Simon & G-funk's "The Only Living Boy in New York" and Tears for Fears "Everybody Wants to Rule the World." For a live feel, some in-studio recordings from a recent appearance on Chicago Public Radio, WBEZ 91.5, on April 5th are available on the station's website. Next up for Canasta is the 3rd Anniversary Party for Chicago online daily Gaper's Block , which they share with Michigan's Sycamore Smith at the Hideout on Friday, May 26th. - Brandon Forbes
Comprised in a live set of a guitarist, bassist, drummer, violinist, pianist, and keyboardist, the six-piece Canasta channels the pop collective vibe of Belle & Sebastian or The Decemberists, occasionally allowing the eccentric pomp of Queen or Faith No More to appear. Lead vocalist Matt Priest cuts a distinctive character across their freshman full length, We Were Set Up, which the band self-released last year. At times recalling Destroyer's Dan Bejar or Harvey Danger's Sean Nelson, Priest, who is occasionally joined vocally by violinist Elizabeth Landau, enjoins the listener with emphatic aural probity, a vocal sincerity that is often matched by equally cogent violin and piano accompaniment.
"Anyone for a hand of canasta?"
Tracks Imposters and Shadowcat are exemplary of this earnest style, though fan favorite Slow Down Chicago, while dipped in lyrical fervor about our fair city and its quirks, allows horns and background chorale embellishment to morph into a frisky sound more like Architecture in Helsinki or, perhaps more appropriately, a B-side from Sufjan Stevens' Illinoise. Perhaps this more playful side of the band is closer to its original intent - one of their first demos (and my favorite Canasta track) was a spot-on cover of new wave sycophant Peter Schilling's Bowie-homage Major Tom (Coming Home). More recently, the band held the practice space residency at Schuba's in April of this year, and rewarded show attendees with covers of Simon & G-funk's "The Only Living Boy in New York" and Tears for Fears "Everybody Wants to Rule the World." For a live feel, some in-studio recordings from a recent appearance on Chicago Public Radio, WBEZ 91.5, on April 5th are available on the station's website. Next up for Canasta is the 3rd Anniversary Party for Chicago online daily Gaper's Block , which they share with Michigan's Sycamore Smith at the Hideout on Friday, May 26th. - Brandon Forbes
Tagged: music
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