Search - Good Listeners :: Ojai

Where is everyone??

Ryan Hunt | 01/30/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"How has no one commented on this band yet??



I will admit that I stumbled on this band while watching the movie "Sex and Breakfast" (not a very good movie in my opinion) and hearing the song "Condition Down". A melancholy, melodic paino, soft Thom York-Lennon-esque voice and the catchy signing of "I can't control myself. Condition down. I'm not myself".



Anyway- the tune got my interest, so I did some research on this band. In addition to being a great band, also reminiscent of The Beatles, Beck, Radiohead, Coldplay along with their own unqiue style- I found out the story behind this album and knew I had to get it. Before I divulge the concept, let me say this music is great- very well written compositions and well played. Yes- it does remind me of a mix of the above bands and a few others, but the music is also very unique to the band and how the album was developed and written is great concept (read below for concepts behind their new album and the upcoming one).



So- the story behind this album goes as follows.



Album Liner Notes:



On June 10th, 2005 Nathan Khyber and Clark Stiles set out to attempt a musical exercise with the hopes that an entire album would be created. The concept was to rent a house out of town, set up a studio and record 10 songs in 10 days, one per day. The songs were to be written from scratch, recorded and completed by the end of each day. No song was to be re-opened after its day was over. There was to be no communication with the outside world, no television, no phone calls, no leaving the moment.



On June 11th, day one arrived and the first song was born, Condition Down. They continued for 10 days creating a body of work that is this album, Ojai. The song order represents each day as follows: 6,4,1,2,8,7,9,5,3,10. They fasted during days 2 & 3; then they ate purely organic vegetarian meals at The Farmer and The Cook. They ingested poison on Day 7. On day 10 they wrote their fair-well song, initially titled Goodbye Ojai.



Recorded in Ronda LaRue's Living room, Ojai, California

Mastered by mark Chalecki, at Capitol Mastering, Hollywood.



Additional ambience by:

the scary birds, the creek, the internet and Jasmine.





So after reading that each song was written from scratch and recorded in a day really made this even more incredible. As a musician myself, I really appreciate this creative approach and have taken similar approaches like this in the past.



Their last album was recordeed in a lodge in the woods because of a fear of the movie "The Shining"- the idea of being pent up and going insane. So the group holed up in this lodge, and apparently after a genuine haunting, wrote the album: Crane Point Lodge- another great album. Get it at the same as this one.



[...]This a very talented band with very creative musical direction. If you can't find the hard copy of this (like I couldn't)- buy their download albums and join the "cool" crowd of people who have them."