by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
There is great music being made everywhere. Small pockets of DIY communities thrive all over the country, not just in our major cities. Tempe's Twin Ponies are helping to keep Arizona DIY alive decades after bands like Meat Puppets put the state on the map. Following a slew of EPs and split releases (with Dent and Celebration Guns), Twin Ponies are set to release their self-titled full-length debut this Friday, October 6th ahead of their US tour. Twin Ponies is a blistering record of winding fuzz, unpredictable post-punk, and caterwauling guitars that burn like Arizona's melting summer heat.
Album opener "Great Big Great" is the perfect introduction, built upon a gradually clamoring chaos, the band tear through conventional structures with a thick melody that rides just above the storm. Twin Ponies' record is built on wonky ground, just when you've found your footing, the band erupt in a new direction. It's a jarring experience, and all the better for it. From the jagged math rock of "Groundskeeper" to the shifting tempos of "Ends And Pieces," the quartet do their best to throw you askew, offering a complex avalanche of knotted riffs and deafening feedback. They diverge into the spaced out "God's Droppings" and the pop stampede of "Humpty" with a shimmering grace. This is the sound of a band unleashed and unrestrained, somehow pulling pop songs out from the noise that threatens to swallow it all.
The syrupy sprawl of "Pipius" and "All That's Left" slow things down for a moment, evolving their own tangled webs of stunning math rock at a leisure pace over the course of its eight and seven minute run times. Twin Ponies have created a dense and thoughtful record, one that takes multiple listens to unpack, better with every repeat.
Twin Ponies' self-titled album is out Friday, October 6th. The band will be on tour in support of the release, all dates are below.
Tour Dates:
10/9 - St. Louis, MO @ The Sinkhole
10/10 - Nashville, TN @ drkmttr
10/12 - Asbury Park, NJ @ The Saint w/ Baked & High Pony
10/13 - Queens, NY @ The Footlight w/ Baked
10/14 - Boston, MA @ O’Briens
10/16 - Philadelphia, PA @ Kung Fu Necktie
10/17 - Washington, DC @ The Velvet Lounge
10/18 - Asheville, NC
10/19 - Jacksonville, FL @ Raindogs
10/21 - New Orleans, LA @ Hey Cafe
10/22 - Austin, TX
10/23 - El Paso, TX @ Monarch