SOUVENIR'S YOUNG AMERICA / CITY OF SHIPS LP OUT NOW ON THE PERPETUAL MOTION MACHINE! TOUR EDITIONS ARE ALL GONE! ORDER HERE. MORE INFO TO BE POSTED SOON.
SOUVENIR'S YOUNG AMERICA (RICHMOND VA) : NEW FULL LENGTH "AN OCEAN WITHOUT WATER" AVAILABLE NOW ON CD (IN STORES EVERYWHERE!) AND LP ON CRUCIAL BLAST!!!
HERE IS WHAT REVIEWERS HAVE BEEN SAYING SO FAR:
"It's high - lonesome evocative stuff, blessed with electronic flippery, rolling percussion, and haunting, mesmeric guitars." - DECIBEL MAGAZINE
"Agents of instrumental wizardry Souvenir's Young America drum up an impressive bevy of intricate atmospheres and lush soundscapes on the stunning An Ocean Without Water. This trio's latest six song sojourn beams out an expansive musical output which gives the impression that this unit employs a full on orchestra rather than the reality of it being three bros with killer equipment and enriched musical savvy." - METAL MANIACS
"Cinematic in scope and masterful in its execution." - ROCK-A-ROLLA
"Epic-scaled, reflectively cinematic metal with roots in everything... simultaneously suggesting old deserts under wide open skies and a post-shoegaze zone at its most astringent." - ALL MUSIC GUIDE
"Organs warble and that harmonica wheezes, slide guitar slips and slithers, all draped over skeletal arrangements... the melodies are mournful and melancholy, wrapped up in darkly contemplative epics... An Ocean Without Water is as heavy as any metal record, just much more subtly so, and way more dark and personal and beautiful to boot." - AQUARIUS RECORDS
"Instrumental art-rock, not easily classifiable. Maybe if Autechre and Sleep got together and wrote a bunch of songs that Tom Waits forgot to record? I've had the pleasure of seeing them live on several occasions and they always just knock me out, extremely creative and extremely heavy." - ASPECIALTHING
"These are great tracks, and it's that simple - these are tracks you can turn up loud and simply let wash through you like all good instrumental rock should do. 'An Ocean Without Water' is one of those records that you find yourself getting more and more involved with the more you delve into its murky depths." - BOOMKAT
"This is a killer record all around bringing together a vast melting pot of influences both modern and classic. There are snippets of everything from doom, drone, country, noise and krautrock. You aren't likely to pick up a better disc of instrumental soundscapes this whole year." - HELLRIDE MUSIC
"Unprecedented and unequaled." - PEACEDOGMANDOTCOM
"Perfect for venturing out into the desert under a star-filled sky heading toward an unknown destination (or maybe searching for a deeply hidden interdimensional doorway)... a force that has the ability to transport our ears from the intensely epic to the texturally serene... and back." - RVA MAG
"An Ocean Without Water is a slow burning affair... it is refreshing to see a band take a more unconventional approach to instrumental song-writing. It is... an album which vehemently refuses to be post-rock." - THE SILENT BALLET
"This is one hell of an instrumental record. It's equal parts Krautrock, musique concrete, ethereal hardcore and shoegazer. Their soft melodies and altering soundscapes set moods and bring pictures to mind. Lonely, depressive, wrist-slitting pictures, but they're quite colorful and vibrant in texture." - FEAST OF HATE AND FEAR ONLINE
UP NEXT: SOUVENIR'S YOUNG AMERICA / ROSETTA - SPLIT LP (HOPEFULLY 2008 - EVINYL / TRANSLATION LOSS)
SOUVENIR'S YOUNG AMERICA + CONIFER + LESBIAN / YEAR OF NO LIGHT + FEAR FALLS BURNING - SPLIT LP / CD (LATE 2008 - HYPERREALIST)
"Making an impressively enigmatic sound, SYA have a unique ability whereby they can effortlessly surpass genre restrictions. A band intent on being different, SYA make instrumental music with a touch of class and invention. Taking elements from several genres and melding them into their own distinctive sound, this trio may be about to drop one of the albums of the year (An Ocean Without Water). Stay tuned." - ANGRY APE UK
"They stay controlled throughout, creating very atmospheric and droning music that is really uncomparable to other bands in an instrumental scene that I had previously thought was been completely bare of anything new." - SCENE POINT BLANK
"A tragically beautiful release, September Songs continues to highlight Richmond trio SYA's zeal and raw capacity for depth. Fragile and crushing alike, this remarkably developed effort resonates past its runtime." - MELISMA MAGAZINE
"...huge convoluted riffing, strange mathy rhythms, thick swells of sound, killer, complex, emotional, and heavy. Long stretches of dark brooding ambience, blissed out rhythmic shimmer, warm guitars over martial drums, slow building guitar jangle over mesmerizingly propulsive drumming, slippery slide and minor key melodic finger picking, there's really nothing not to love. The guys take a sound that's becoming more and more tired and turn it inside out and upside down... intense and alive and vibrant and super exciting." -AQUARIUS RECORDS
SOUVENIR'S YOUNG AMERICA "S/T" FULL LENGTH
VOTED ONE OF THE TOP TEN RELEASES OF 2006 BY THE CUSTOMERS OF AQUARIUS RECORDS!
AND IN THE TOP 20 INSTRUMENTAL RECORDS OF 2006 BY THESILENTBALLET.COM!
"Take the instrumental sprawl of the Red Sparowes, incorparate atmospheric electronics and then add the organic eclecticism of Jaga Jazzist with occasional diversions into cacophonous doom style guitar abuse, twangy countrified melodicism, ominous ambience and garage-rock swagger and you'll have some idea as to what this sounds like. Sort of. On paper it might sound like a mess but magnificent musicianship and the constant infusion of overwhelming melodies drags you on a breathtaking journey through stunning musical terrain. For those who like their music diverse, and find the prog of Coheed and Cambria a bit too "song orientated", this is an incredible record of huge scope and ambition made to seem effortless by a remarkable band. 5/5" - KERRANG!
"The self-titled effort... leads you on an epic emotional voyage captained by an intensity that is fused with a rare brand of grace. The band's clear musicianship is what brings the record to fruition, but the music's atmospheric quality seems to have a mind of its own. Simply mesmerizing." - MELISMA MAGAZINE
"The result is an album that over and over again escapes gravity -- but that has little chance of escaping your iPod. 4 STARS OUT OF 4 STARS" - TIMES DISPATCH
"Tough to stand out these days in the super saturated genre pool that is metallic post rock but these guys manage to pull it off big time, borrowing equally from nineties post rock, crusty sludge, epic instrumental chamber rock, and then adding in their own 2 cents. Some Morricone-ish spaghetti western twang, some Krautrock-y groove, some bits of twangy slide guitar, thick swaths of fuzzy drifting guitar ambience, dizzying angular riffing, dense tribal drumming, buzzing almost new wave sounding synths... But it's the bands' deft hand with melody and songwriting and arrangement that makes this record so moving. The focus is way more on mood and texture than heaviness or brutality (although it is occasionally both heavy and brutal), with a crushing dirge suddenly collapsing into the prettiest dang melody you've ever heard. We're such suckers for the slippery dreaminess of slide guitar. We sort of wish it was everywhere, on every song, but as it is, when it does kick in, we get goosebumps." - AQUARIUS RECORDS
"I'm going to ... inform you as to why Souvenir's Young America is a must have for any experimental/sludge metal fan. We're looking at something in the making that could rival the cult status of a Godspeed You Black Emperor, and that is really saying something. Souvenir's Young America has put together a piece of work with this album that defies any boundary or guideline." - RISE AND REVOLT
"The Richmond-based three-pieces six song debut is a heavily layered, atmospheric journey. While there are moments where the bands amped up and laying down the heavy, for the most part theyre more interesting in crafting music with deep emotional resonance. You could say that Souvenirs Young America has made an album that can also serve as a film score. Its a vivid album that reveals more and more with each new listen. Check em out if youre a fans of Earths latest, Pelican, Red Sparowes, Jesu, or Zombi." - STONER ROCK DOT COM
"Their songs are memorable, tuneful and if not aggressive, at the very least exciting and definitely inspiring. They throw in tons of surprises, only introducing harsher tones when least expected, pulling you along with their pulsating momentum before fading into ambience or exploding into surreal half-time soft-stomps. In producing textural, choral and pastoral instrumental music that is nonetheless constantly intriguing and frequently mind-blowing, these upstarts easily outdo their way-more-experienced elders in attaining consonant coherence reaching towards nirvana, a resplendent cathedral of beautiful sound and emotional intensity that one can lose themselves in for hours into days into months into years. So beautiful it is almost surreal. Get this." - DIGITAL METAL
"The new disc takes you on an instrumental journey through a soundscape of the cosmos, conjuring up feelings of dread, fury, stillness, and even passion and romance. Run out and get this disc immediately, along with the 7 disc DVD set of Carl Sagan's "Cosmos", put the CD on repeat, turn down the volume of the DVD, and make a night out exploring space and time." - RVA MAGAZINE
"Combining guitar, drums, and keyboard sounding instruments, Souvenir's Young America takes the post-rock sound in a more futuristic direction. The guest appearances by instruments such as cello, banjo, xylophone, and others provides a diverse portfolio of sounds to entice the listener and to prevent Souvenir's Young America from dipping into the mundane. While some parts of the album are softer than others, for the most part, there is a continuous drive towards something. Whether that final destination is a crescendo of science fiction fueled explosions or a hole filled with distorted fallout, Souvenir's Young America will bring you there and along the way you'll be taking mental snapshots of the glowing walls pressing you backwards." - SCENE POINT BLANK
SOUVENIR'S YOUNG AMERICA / SPYLACOPA
SPLIT 7" OUT ON UNDERADAR (USA)
"SYA have a strange Prog/Metal sound that jibes pretty well with their reported start as a soundtrack-production project." - THE WIRE
"The final product comes out somewhere between Godspeed You Black Emperor and 70s biker metal. It's a strange crossbreed, but it's one that works... These guys are willing to pound their listeners over the head in ways that Godspeed You Black Emperor or Mogwai almost never do." - NO SIGNAL
thanks 4 the quick add fellows. i still have your ancient demo from thw Woke up Fallig & Rancho Notorious (ex-Hoover) show played at Raygun as a 2-piece. my have you grown thirtyfold. thanks 4 keeping something interesting out there on the table in good old RVA. and thanks for the add as well. stay DIY! -torie
Blood Alone is pretty amazing i like what you guys have done, The song reminds me when i sometimes daydream and i get lost within my own mind. Its a very uplifting and inspirational piece. Keep up the good music, many thumbs up!!!!!!
Your music is amazing. I practice martial arts to it, and your songs give me the energy, mental clarity, and spiritual power to push through limits like no other music does. Keep up the work, guys... you have a lot of talent!
Thanks for the request; you guys are absolutely f'ing AMAZING!! "An Ocean Without Water" is essential listening, and one of the best post-rock discs I've heard in a long time!! Now get your asses out to Portland!!
Definitely see you guys in Pittsburgh this time around. I reviewed the last album for Hellride Music awhile back! Love it. Going to spruce up on your back catalog at the show!
top friended you because you're the best post-rock/post-metal with unique cosmic-spiritual-wahtever sound i heard :D love you, guys! Waiting for split and other amazing stuff like new song, which perfect
Thanks a lot for the comment man, I might make it out to the Pitt. date.
Mar 4 2008 7:29 PM
Hey guys, sorry Vitals isn't playing anymore - we don't have a bass player to fill-in for this show. See you at the show though, and we'll hang out later if you guys are staying at the house.
I am at school in MA. Is your date for 357 Cottage Street in Springfield or Amherst? Your page says Amherst, while Ghost Ships' says Springfield. Please let me know which one! I really hope it is Springfield! I really want to see you guys jam.
Mar 4 2008 11:05 AM
march 8th i'm not gonna be able to make it due to a video game tournament but i'll definitely be attending the 12!
