by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
As the hours turn from late night to early morning, my mind has moved toward sleep. Thankfully, New Orleans' Treadles make music for those gorgeous half conscious hours* ; the times when your mind wanders and the world feels temporarily at peace. What started as the solo project of Kara Stafford aka KC has evolved into a dynamic quartet, pushing ground between fragile bedroom pop bliss and explosive tangled post-hardcore. The band's "official" debut EP, Bees Are Thieves Too, (out 10/20 via Community Records) is down right stunning, a display of pure emotion backed with tension and gracious release. The band's bio reads "no longer just a lump of coal" and they're not kidding** , the full band orchestrations are warm and nuanced, layered and infectious.
Lead single "Problem Dog" is a dream state in flux. Opening with KC's stunning harmonies and a lonely ringing guitar, the lyrics pull at your heart's strings, embracing the confusion that comes in the wake of demise. It's simple, quiet, and reflective... until it isn't. The gentle demeanor is destroyed with disjointed guitars and drums, blasting like fireworks let off in a narrow alley. The clamoring shift is aggressive in comparison, but the melody remains in tact, vibrant and complimentary to the expanding structure that rises and falls around it. Treadles are locked in at every turn. "Problem Dog" is brilliant in composition, constantly pressing forward, shifting between moments of chaos and beauty without a second thought. Meet Treadles, your new favorite band.
Treadles' Bees Are Thieves Too is out October 20th via Community Records. 10% of the album's sales will be donated to Bee Informed Partnership INC, a collaboration of efforts across the country from some of the leading research labs and universities in agriculture and science to better understand honey bee declines in the United States.
Supported initially by the United States Department of Agriculture and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture but now a not-for-profit, they’re working with beekeepers to better understand how we can keep healthier bees.
* they sound great during the day as well. anytime really.
** not to suggest they were a lump of coal to begin with.