Evangelicals
So Gone
Misra
By David Chiu
For a band that is from Norman, Oklahoma, Evangelicals sound very British, or at least a distant cousin to Washington’s Modest Mouse. The trio’s debut So Gone is as melodic and dissonant as it is also detached and out-of-body; typical of the band’s overall sound is the opening, the cheerfully-titled “A Mouthful of Skeletons” which contains a stop-and-start tempo, swirling soundscapes coming from a music box, and absent-sounding, dreamy vocals. And yet when the explosive rock takes a back seat, there are some lovely jazzy and ethereal moments (i.e. “Hello Jenn,” “My Headache”). And remember the earlier reference to British bands: On the whimsical “Here Comes Trouble,” Evangelicals channel an upbeat-sounding Cure. If this was released back in 1990, So Gone would have been a classic. But then again who says this strong concoction can’t be now?
NewBeats 