Euphemistically named after the brilliantly duplicitous British spy, The Kim Philbys (San Francisco) live up to their name. Frontman Dominic East engages in a strange kind of emotional surveillance. There is dark sarcasm but no grace period - these songs are stays of execution, negotiations for a walk halfway home, the break-up dress-rehearsal, the show, and the curtain call. But there is joking and laughter too. If only someone were watching you this closely, paying this much attention.
The Kim Philbys formed when drummer/keyboardist Mie Araki joined with longtime band mates Dominic East and Andrew Gerhan to tour Our Lady of the Highway's “Kill You With Numbers” (2006). It went swimmingly, but as the trio coalesced and new songs developed it became clear this was really a new band. The classically trained Araki allowed a more daringly rhythmic music, and the band began to stretch their musical boundaries. The new band was given a new name – The Kim Philbys - and recorded throughout the spring and summer of 2007 at Closer Studios with Tim Mooney (American Music Club, Sun Kil Moon) yielding the full-length Whir Whir Whir.
Dominic East writes nervous rock that bares his bleeding heart while he smirks behind his hand. East is a compelling front man who has been described in the press variously as “unfailingly polite” (East Bay Express), “weirdly giddy” and “positively manic” (Rob Harvilla, Village Voice). The songs on Whir Whir Whir span from expansive post – rock (Coral Canaries), to gentle and rich slow-burners (Pretend We're Dead), to Madchester inspired pop-soul (Complacency). Throughout, layers of feedback and synthesizers wrestle with Araki's ocean-sized drums, but through the layers the core of the songs is the sound of a live rock band straining on its leash to get on stage. And on stage is where they belong. Nate Cavalieri (Rhapsody Music, SF Weekly) comments that “Dominic’s personality comes through in both recordings and live settings. “Whir Whir Whir” brilliantly captures the mania witnessed live. Dominic isn’t simply a person who smiles through dark, sad lyrics, He laughs.”
Whir Whir Whir drives itself into a beautiful, expansive oblivion without ever losing its intent. The lyrics are painfully personal yet strangely buoyant. These tracks demand full attention and aren't always well behaved. They sit tensely on the brink with only music to hold them in place. That is precisely the beauty of The Kim Philbys: their ability to build a song up and soar along with it only to tear it back down.
The Kim Philbys Whir Whir Whir will be released on Evangeline Records on November 13 with tours of the US and Europe to follow in 2007/2008.
