Tristan da Cunha
Consult Wikipedia and it will quickly tell you that Tristan da Cunha is the most remote, least accessible archipelago in the world. Among the islands in the group is the main one, Tristan da Cunha, and a smaller one, the charmingly named Inaccessible Island. Tristan da Cunha, the post-punk, noise-prog trio, like its namesake, is not easily grasped by those unwilling to invest some effort — only instead of braving thousands of miles of inclement weather, you face complex time signatures, frenetic transitions, and choppy, angular guitars. But once you’ve braved the elements, you’ll find yourself happily stuck, basking in exotic scenery that far too few are fortunate enough to enjoy. Surely this band’s name is a cunning reflection of the exciting challenge they offer their listeners. “Actually Steve just said it and we said ‘That sounds nice’,” says singer/guitarist Ernie Kim. “I’d had the name for a while,” agrees drummer Steve “Mr. Adorable” Budney. “I thought it would fit what we were doing.” Tristan da Cunha’s roots stem way back to the six-year-old soccer days of Kim and singer/bassist Brian Church in Somerville, New Jersey. The pair later found themselves at the same high school and, having closed the suburban sporting chapter of their lives, discovered that they shared an affinity for hardcore and metal acts. The two collaborated in various musical capacities over the years, being separated by college for a time before finally reuniting in Cambridge, where a common interest in acts like Les Savy Fav and the Dismemberment Plan once again cemented their musical relationship. But it wasn’t until one fateful Guided By Voices show where the two decided that they needed a drummer badly enough to make a flyer on the spot. Not long thereafter, Budney, an ambitious and adorable young drummer from Connecticut, picked the flyer up in Twisted Village and decided to make a phone call. Now, seven years later, Tristan has arrived at a sound that Budney describes as combining “the power of Led Zeppelin with the quirkiness of Devo.” It’s an apt description of the strikingly disparate influences at work in the band’s songs. But such quirkiness should not be mistaken for anything haphazard. The band spares no effort in the craftsmanship they devote to their writing and recording. Their latest full-length, Instanter, contains tracks that have been around as long as five years. Mastered at Peerless, they brought it back to head engineer Jeff Lipton for no fewer than five revisions, insisting that the songs be mastered directly from their own analog tapes. Their patience has paid off, as any adventurous listener able to get their hands on a copy of Instanter will realize. Tristan’s musical ambition is displayed not only by the wide-angle scope of their original tracks, but also by the pop-cultural pastiche of their shows. Live, they have pulled off sets composed entirely of songs by Iron Maiden, Megadeth, Judas Priest, and similarly canonical metal acts, while also being able to cover Pink Floyd, Joni Mitchell, and The Band, not to mention the entire Frank Zappa/Mothers of Invention record We’re Only In It For The Money convincingly enough to win over the die-hard freaks that were around for that album’s original release.
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