Tagged: Grass Widow

Grass Widow – Past Time

Grass Widow are good.  Past Time is possibly their 2nd LP.  It’s out now on Kill Rock Stars.  I first heard the band a while back via the excellent ‘To Where’ song.  They’ve had previous records released on Make A Mess and Captured Tracks.

Reference points:  a slightly more rock take on the Dum Dum Girls sound – or possibly a less rock take on the Riot Grrrl sound that had the likes of Bikini Kill straining their vocal cords to get heard over their guitar goodness.  So yes, Grass Widows sound lives somewhere inbetween those.  With maybe hints of The Raincoats too.

They are a  three piece from San Francisco.   They’re coming to the UK at the end of this month.   Grab a ticket for a show.  I think they’re gonna sell out. The shows that is.    There is nothing on this LP that has hit me as hard as ‘To Where’ and ‘LuLu Lips’ from previous releases.  But after a few listens ‘Past Time’ is doing good things to me.  The sound is a little cleaner but that’s not a bad thing, this time around.

Links:  My Space

Grass Widow – S/T

This 12″ self titled LP is out of print in physical format.Luckily I was on the ball for once and I have managed to snag a copy.  But if you missed out the release is still available digitally.  And make no mistake this is well worth picking up.   This three piece from San Francisco are a special proposition.   As is befitting a band that have also released a self titled EP on Captured Tracks this is rattling guitar pop music where echo and reverb are key to the mix.

After a few listens I have to say I think Grass Widow have made one of the LPs of the year.  Jangly guitars bubble to the surface – ‘Green Screen’ starts with gentle voices before rumbling drums tumble out of the speakers and galloping guitars burst out.  The Mo-dettes are sure to be a reference point and therefore, by default, so are Lichtenstein.   ‘To Where’ is all about crunchy guitars that are wrapped in a mesmerising pop tune that ends up sounding like a cross between Dinosaur Jr and the Vivian Girls.    Bands like Grass Widow seem to join the dots between the post-punk sounds of The Mo-dettes and both ends of the C86 spectrum – with jangle aplenty and a slightly more challenging sound going on too.  All in all, the band are one of best of the current crop at what they do.

Links:  Grass Widow |emusic