Deep in the heart of San Francisco's Mission District, in the darkest hours of the night, Thee More Shallows formed from the demise of the band Shackleton.
"More Deep Cuts" the second album by the San Francisco band Thee More Shallows, their first for Turn Records, arrives some time after their debut album "A History of Sport Fishing" received glowing reviews and likened them to a diverse host of extraordinary bands, including Yo La Tengo, Grandaddy, Sparklehorse and GSYBE!, yet lauding them for being far more than the sum of their influences.
After touring the US and the UK, songwriter Dee Kesler retreated into the studio to work on the follow up to their success. What was supposed to be mere weeks of recording, turned into months of fine tuning and tweaking. Those months turned into years of obsession over every aspect of what would be "More Deep Cuts". After almost three years of uncompromised, tireless work, and almost three years of Kesler's seclusion from the world, More Deep Cuts emerged showcasing a massive evolution in Thee More Shallows' sound and producing an album that's both beautiful and devastating.
"More Deep Cuts" is about standing in place while the world whirls around you. As toy pianos and French horns crash into strings and decay into orchestras warped and bent beyond recognition, the sensible, ultra-clear voice of Dee Kesler provides a calm eye to the storm. And it is precisely this juxtaposition of chaos and calm, abandon and resolve, which makes "More Deep Cuts" so compelling.
In May 2006 Thee More Shallows release an epilogue of sorts to "More Deep Cuts", entitled "Monkey vs Shark" [Turn Records], the new ep gathers the loose ends of new songs and puts them in a dazzling collection of epic sounds that continue to showcase a young and brilliant band.
Sitting at the songwriting helm is Dee (David) Kesler, joined by Chavo Fraser and Jason Gonzales sharing drums, samples, keyboards, and bass, and Odessa Chen on guitar and vocals [More Deep Cuts]. |
