Having largely used this site to express painful things, I thought that it could perhaps be nice to focus on that which can bring a little beauty into a miserable world. I’d like to share some music again, starting with Tuxis Giant.
I first heard of Tuxis Giant a few months ago when they played with the mighty Frog (new Frog single out friday btw & new “Grog” album out Nov 17th btw btw btw). Matt shared this album with me and I felt really excited for them. I thought they’d accomplished something great, and it was a helpful reminder of what I miss from the world the deeper I retreat into my stupid grief pit.
Opener “The Woods” was an immediate hook, a magical combination of simplicity and strain. This burst of emotion is probably the closest the album comes to “Rock music” and it’s over in two minutes, but it left me totally disarmed and fully engrossed.
Indie Folk is an easy descriptor to use for what the group do, and it can be used to dismiss them too, but the form isn’t what’s important. Tuxis Giants’ qualities don’t lay in genre, it’s those intangibles that make them feel so special to me. It has the little flashes in the the sound that allow a piece of digital audio to involuntarily close your eyes for you while turning your fists into balls. What makes their music great exists also for me in other genres, spread thinly across Black Metal, Emo, Soul, Pop, Hip-Hop, Punk, Alternative, whatever. It offers those moments that make you ache and make you smile.
“Geese” exudes an infectious joy, and its delicious harmonies carry me with them, while “Bent” actively hurts me when I hear it. Two songs so different yet deeply connected, the former offers me what My First Tooth did in 2010, a little serenity to loosen my hips at indie shows during my 20s, while the latter has the same quiet ferocity as Mount Eeerie’s “A Crow Looked At Me”, which two years ago loosened my grip on denial, forcing me to truly face the death of my mother for the first time.
The quality of catharsis isn’t something you can really define, plan for or attempt to recommend. But for me, “The Old House” offers it. Tuxis Giant describe themselves as “sometimes quiet / sometimes loud” and I think that hints at what truly defines their music: there’s beauty and there’s pain. I found the experience of listening to it similar to hearing certain Jason Molina songs for the first time, discovering a special connection I never knew I had while being rattled by the unexpected feelings it can provoke.
The songs are simple and only two go beyond four minutes. Some tug at something visceral while others are simply a delightful listen. As an album, it is breezy and balanced and I’m glad this is one that I didn’t miss. It’s just right.
My experience with this record will not be universal but it’s notable that excellent sites like Post-Trash, Various Small Flames and The Alternative have also praised it.
“The Old House” is available now on vinyl, cassette, and digitally through Worry Bead Records.
brokenbrokenbrain 