Who? Vancouver’s They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, currently touring North America with Shapes and Sizes, features Bruce (drums), Chris (keyboards), Ryan (saxophone), Pietro (trombone), Robb (bass), and Nut Brown (vocals/guitar). On Pick Up Sticks, their second studio effort for Kill Rock Stars, this bizarro rock collective mans various music makers, and even the occasional piece of vinyl siding for post punk-tinged, marching band-inspired shenanigans.
What’s the Deal? Sharing the name of a 1969 film wherein contestants endure a grueling dance marathon, They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? craft oddly danceable songs that combine the sound of a circus with a bombastic punk aesthetic, and lite avant garde threads for an affair worthy of Barnum and Bailey’s three-rings. Pick Up Sticks is full of indie pop tunes dressed to the nines with beating horns (“The Guest”), tinny guitar riffs (“One Last Final Push”), and ranting harmonies (“Wrong Directions”) — it’s an exuberant, gypsy-like, folk-tastic cacophony for fans of early Modest Mouse, XTC, and Mr. Bungle.
Fun Fact: While on tour, the band has a policy to play any given CD in the van (a 15-seater) only once. How’s that for equal opportunity?
Now Hear This:
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? – “That’s a Good Question” DOWNLOAD MP3
Now Watch This:
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? – “Speck of Dust” QUICKTIME
On the Web:
theyshoothorses.org
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? at MySpace
Talk: Do you want to ‘shoot’ these horses? Or are they worth the stable space?
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