Hisham Bharoocha
On the record with High Places
By Jessica Galliart
Published: September 23rd, 2008 | 9:45am
Brooklyn boy-girl duo High Places defines what it means to be a true DIY band. Infinite layers, voice reverbs and delays, mixing bowls used to create an organic-tap sound, and album artwork inspired by nature combine to create the mystical experience of a High Places track. Their lyrics take you back to a time when nature in its truest form was appreciated and inspire you to get close to your neighbor and make some pure love — of the most innocent kind.
In anticipation of the group’s September 23 self-titled release, High Places’ Mary Pearson and Rob Barber drop some of their favorite album picks of both new and old releases.
Mary Pearson
Judee Sill
Heart Food (Rhino Handmade)
The first time I heard this record, I loved it from the first vocal line. The way Judee sings "There's a rugged road on the prairie" with such hard consonants … just like how the line would be spoken — I was sold. The album manages to be diverse and cohesive at the same time, and I never get sick of listening to it all the way through.
Sister Nancy
One, Two… (Techniques)
This record is one of my favorite things to listen to on my morning run. Sister Nancy's distinctive voice and stream-of-consciousness lyrics — often about being a young, educated, female DJ — are uplifting but mellow enough to keep me running at a moderate jog. “Bam Bam” is a quintessential summer jam, but “Coward of the Country” is my favorite track. It sounds so cool when Nancy sings with her up-in-her-head voice, obviously above her comfortable range.
Steve Reich
Early Works (Nonesuch)
I feel like these pieces by Reich have influenced so many musicians of all genres. There are definitely some recurring rhythmic ideas, but luckily Reich's go-to rhythms are interesting. He uses lots of poly-rhythms and mixed meter, and the pieces gradually evolve in such a sneaky way. It's weird how easily you can transition from this stuff to Baltimore club music.
Rob Barber
Flying Saucer Attack
New Lands (Drag City)
It would be easy to have thrown My Bloody Valentine's Loveless on this list, as it was the first record that really got me (at a young age) into the vibe that unrecognizable instrumentation and sounds are the most fun to get lost in. FSA's New Lands totally took that idea way further. These guitars (I think?) and weird static rhythms sound like two dozen jets taxiing on a runway in a hurricane. If you were to isolate each sound, it would be totally horrifying and ear-splitting. But the sum of all its parts makes this record the most dreamy and dense psychedelic experience I have ever come across.
7 Seconds
Walk Together, Rock Together (Better Youth Org.)
My first punk record. I was pretty wild as a kid, so I was attracted to punk on a lot of levels. But as corny as it could be, posi-core was where I felt most comfortable. 7 Seconds embodied all that was positive and forward-thinking about hardcore and punk. My parents still hated it.
Grouper
Dragging a Dead Deer Up A Hill (Type)
I am basically a maximalist when it comes to making music. I seem to feel the need to fill the entire sound spectrum with as many frequencies as possible in order to feel as though the music is effectively enveloping the listener. Grouper, on the other hand, totally dismantles that theory. Liz made the most powerful and beautiful record with just her guitar, electric piano, and voice. You are laying alone in bed in the winter, in your freezing apartment, kinda sad for some reason, but you aren't sure why. You keep wrapping yourself tightly in more and more blankets, until your environment is just you swaddled and constricted in your bedding. You finally gain a sensory deprived and numb state. I love that feeling.
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Issue #35
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