High Places hail from Brooklyn and this was my third time seeing them. The band’s sound is full of lovely contradictions. They write music that feels like summertime – and not that loud beach party sort of summertime, but more like a summer you’ve had and remember. To me, summer has always seemed distant – even in July. Only as I reach its conclusion do I realize how much has really happened. High Places grab onto that feeling and take it somewhere new. As Rob Barber tends childlike, tempests of burping and jingling percussion and Mary Pearson sings in her sweet and distanced little voice, you find yourself caught somewhere between a tapping of your feet and an actual swaying of your body. Hooks come and go with the tide and these little re-verb laden songs leave lines in the sand. As with the two other times I’ve seen them, only when High Places announced their last song did I realize how long I had been smiling.
The duo release their first full length album on the 23rd of September and from what I’ve heard, we are in for a treat.
A compilation of their singles has been available for a while and should be picked up at once to tie you over for the next week or so. While you’re at it, check out the High Places blog cause it’s updated often and gives lots of insight into cool things you may want to know about Rob Barber, Mary Pearson and the pretty sounds they make together.
DOWNLOADS:
High Places – Shared Islands
High Places – From Stardust To Sentience
High Places(Hawnay Troof Remix) – Head Spinz
i want to smash my soul on your brain
