The New Progressive Piano Rock of Sacramento’s Evolutia
Posted by lorraine on 29th March , 2010
For every minute in the day, three minutes worth of new music comes out to listen to. For this reason it is no wonder that we have a new sub-genre what seems like every two weeks. Groups of creative individuals are constantly borrowing and reshaping their favorite elements from various sources in the great music spectrum, giving birth to new sounds. Trying to discern a group’s influences is one of my favorite parts of listening to new music, and that is why I had such a fun time experiencing the new EP from a band who’s name seems to sum up in one word the constant flux of musical textures we are experiencing today.
Based out of Sacramento, Evolutia is certainly nothing completely groundbreaking, but this is more often than not a good thing. Nobody wants to hear somebody playing the saw to the a-rhythmic background of guinea pigs, for instance. Evolutia’s new EP, “Fears Fall”, borrows unapologetically from several relatively unrelated genres (though of course you cannot completely separate any genre from any other.)
The Fears Fall EP kicks off it’s first track, My Element, with a slightly faster, slightly edgier Death Cab For Cutie-like melodic sensibility. It’s pop worth is enormous, with simple chord progressions made more elaborate by classically oriented piano arrangements. This band’s further depth of influence comes from the romantic desperation found almost ubiquitously in pop punk bands from earlier last decade. This theme continues through the EP, and although I have to admit I wanted to vomit every time I heard this in the pop punk context, in this neo-piano prog rock setting it’s comes through as being very creative. The singer moans “I fall apart without you”, and frankly, I believe him.
The band continues right along with its pop sensible melodies with the tune Half Awake, which brings a Muse-like element to the sonic table, keys pounding away in syncopated rhythms augmenting the palpable angst of the vocals. The tech trimmings don’t hurt either, keeping the track fresh all the way through. They seem to one up themselves in their track We Used to Sleep, introducing very heavy guitars into the mix and adding Incubus into the list of bands that seem to influence this group.
The title track, Fears Fall, seems to sum up what this band is all about: progressive piano rock. As I understand it in terms of classifying music, the word progressive means taking a genre and moving it towards something else; something yet undefined. Evolutia definitely deserves this badge, and although the EP leaves me wanting a blatant ballad, a listen to their new EP wouldn’t be a waste of time. You can find it streaming at http://www.myspace.com/evolutiamusic .
Good luck boys, please give us a shout out when you’re going to be in the Bay Area!
