"So here we are / Forty years after a dying start / Finding a way through the plague / Blinded / I know you’ll forget me again and take all the praise..."
Even in societies that pretend they are progressive, there is a tendency to celebrate the vibrancy, beauty of youth in all parameters of life and feel less jubilant about the less than youthful. The older you get you gain perspective and maybe the best thing about all those gray hairs and wrinkles, especially as an artist is that if you have gained that perspective you don't have to give a fuck about what people think anymore. It is ironic that we don't learn this earlier because not giving a fuck allows you to say exactly what is on your mind. Laura Lee Schultz speaks her mind on the pervasively heavy, explosively angry "Dead and Over".
This is Vancouver, BC's Down the Lees' first release in over three years and as press notes reveal: "Dead and Over," captures the raw emotions of sadness, frustration, and anxiety that permeated throughout the years since the pandemic began. With candid lyrics such as, "No one gives a fuck about aging women” and "sweat like the rest of you, now I’m dead and over”, the song is a poignant reflection of the challenges faced by older female musicians.
This is Vancouver, BC's Down the Lees' first release in over three years and as press notes reveal: "Dead and Over," captures the raw emotions of sadness, frustration, and anxiety that permeated throughout the years since the pandemic began. With candid lyrics such as, "No one gives a fuck about aging women” and "sweat like the rest of you, now I’m dead and over”, the song is a poignant reflection of the challenges faced by older female musicians.
The atmosphere here is dark, sinewy, bloody and bruised with fists flailing and hitting air and flesh and bones. Turn "Dead and Over" loud and within the barrage of guitars, bass and drums potent and, at times, stoic and plodding like the teeth clenched walk into a fire, and Laura Lee's biting, spit and sweat vocal countenance (in between violent musical punches) there is the rebounding power of having been pushed against the wall one too many times. Listening I thought of an amalgam of artists like Concrete Blonde, Tropical Fuck Storm and METZ.
Again, when you don't give a fuck, you have nothing to lose. You put all your passion, naked, unfettered down on tape (so to speak). From press notes:
As a music writer, anytime I hear real truth and emotion (as opposed to the vapidity of 98% of Taylor Swift or Ed Sheeran really popular pop songs) an angel gets it's wings.
-Robb Donker Curtius
https://downthelees.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/downthelees/
https://offwhitehouserecords.com/artists/downthelees/
Originally from Vancouver, BC, Down the Lees started out as a solo act and has gone through many iterations, with Laura Lee Schultz (Queazy, New Years Resolution, Skinjobs) at its core. As a result of releasing three full length albums, an EP and numerous singles, the project has forged an eclectic musical path with engaging and dynamic soundscapes inspired by genres such as post-rock, shoegaze, hardcore, slowcore, and no-wave.
Down The Lees, Laura Lee Schultz, alt rock, heavy rock, gothic rock, conscious rock, massive guitar sounds, truth and consequences, "Dead and Over", ageism blasted,
THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM
https://downthelees.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/downthelees/
https://offwhitehouserecords.com/artists/downthelees/
Originally from Vancouver, BC, Down the Lees started out as a solo act and has gone through many iterations, with Laura Lee Schultz (Queazy, New Years Resolution, Skinjobs) at its core. As a result of releasing three full length albums, an EP and numerous singles, the project has forged an eclectic musical path with engaging and dynamic soundscapes inspired by genres such as post-rock, shoegaze, hardcore, slowcore, and no-wave.
With the move to Belgium, the project gained a new perspective and transformed into a live band tour de force. At the beginning of 2020, the European stint of the project, featuring Kwinten Gluehorse on bass and Jonathan Frederix on drums, began touring the critically acclaimed Steve Albini recorded album, 'Bury The Sun'. When the band toured Belgium, France, and The Netherlands, they played highly dynamic and energetic shows, and they were invited to tour with the Sisters of Mercy in Italy.
In the wake of the pandemic, the project was put on hold, and the move back to Canada was unquestionably needed. To cope with the turbulence surrounding the world, Laura Lee (LL) created more music to deal with the depression and isolation. In anticipation of the onset of the endemic, the idea to start a live Canadian version of the band was conceived. With Chris Carlson on bass and Andy Ashley on drums, the Okangan Valley trio weave a trail of thunderous guitars and pounding drums along with LL's voice, which carries the undeniable harsh truths of life.
In the wake of the pandemic, the project was put on hold, and the move back to Canada was unquestionably needed. To cope with the turbulence surrounding the world, Laura Lee (LL) created more music to deal with the depression and isolation. In anticipation of the onset of the endemic, the idea to start a live Canadian version of the band was conceived. With Chris Carlson on bass and Andy Ashley on drums, the Okangan Valley trio weave a trail of thunderous guitars and pounding drums along with LL's voice, which carries the undeniable harsh truths of life.
No comments:
Post a Comment