Pairdown is the collaboration of Pittsburgh-based singer-guitarists David Leicht and Raymond Morin. The two met and began performing together in 2005. Their eponymous EP, released on Sort Of Records in 2006, is a collection of six songs blending the duo’s inter-dependent acoustic guitar work with Leicht’s inventive writing. The opening title, “Nonlinear Lions” was coined in a passage of Mike Davis’ book, Ecology Of Fear, concerning the link between environmental fluctuations and outbreaks of 'deviant' animal behavior. Uneasy images are feathered with bits of satire, from the intro: “they love the taste of your lotion / ending your motion…” to dadaesque refrain, chanted in a bluesy, two-part harmony: “in this future, you’re furniture!”
Holykyle, released in February 2009, builds upon the EP with increasingly complex writing and guitar arrangements enlivened by electric bass and tight drumming. Over the course of ten songs, Morin & Leicht trade off lead and accompanying vocal duties, with contributions by Nate McDermott (of the Boston-based group Paper Thin Stages). The record opens with “Percy In Her Hairfork,” about a Gulf War deserter harbored by a former lover. “Spotted Eye” is a joyful tune penned by Morin, based on his larger illustrated work. The title track, “Holykyle,” is a surrealist’s paean set to hypnotic finger picked guitars and percussion. The song commences with an invitation: “come, you pariahs, aboard / my you-shape canoe, holykyle / I’ve donned her rims with roses / worked her down with a hazel pole.”
Despite the occasional folk-blues guitar phrase or psychedelic turn, Holykyle does not feel like a period piece. Its stylistic precedents range from vintage acoustic-rock hybrids like Leo Kottke’sMudlark and Love’sForever Changes, to modern polyphonic guitar experiments epitomized by Gastr Del Sol’s post-rock masterpiece, Upgrade and Afterlife.Holykyle was recorded at Morin’s home with an 8-track reel-to-reel tape deck and modest assortment of microphones. Nate McDermott mixed the tracks in Boston. Hans DeKline of Sound Bites Dog mastered the audio in Los Angeles. Bill Smith Custom Records cut and pressed the 12” vinyl.
Great playing with you guys at ModernFormations last week. Really enjoyed the set. And especially thanks to Raymond for putting us up at your house... Let me know if you guys come to Chicago.
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