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LP
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MIE 033LP
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There's a house situated amongst the knobby hills of the eastern section of the Hudson Valley in New York. In our new lives, buoyed by satellite perspectives, it is the proverbial needle in a haystack. But for years there have been somewhat secluded and secretive musical goings-on in the room between the domestic area and the over-stuffed garage. Beyond the large, sun-dappled bay windows, more than a generation ago, a man, a pioneer in his field, took his music to the north country and began to move the air inside this room, vibrating the wooden walls, opening those little portals some of us believe allow the magic to seep through, no matter how many years later. Now here we are, in those later years, and a small group of sonic voyagers have roosted in this space once again. Pigeons have arrived at this uncommon structure, The Bower, via oceanic travels around the Pacific Northwest with The Sea Donkeys and early duo explorations with tape machines and tube-sock-mallet percussion and saxophones and a drum machine named Sammy. This record, The Bower, is an explosion of change. They are in the midst of their longest-running lineup, with Wednesday Knudsen and Clark Griffin augmented by Rob Smith on drums and voice, tho' this particular configuration is new to anyone save those who have seen the band perform live since their last full-length. They have invited you back into their home after years rooting around the confines of the studio seeking their very particular, and peculiar, forms of clarity. Roles have changed; song structures have more movement, richer textures, greater surprises. For one long weekend in March 2014, about a year after full-time occupation of the house in the woods, the trio, perfectly captured by Mike Fellows manning the board, laid down the songs carved deep in the grooves of this slab, mixed by Jason Meagher at Black Dirt Studio in July 2014. Some know-it-alls will hear a wide breadth of influences; some will research the band's past and compare fleeting words to current sound; others will be confounded, befuddled, and tickled with the possibility of the old new noise pop lullaby prog earthly outer space future sounds of the band. Regardless, this is a new mach, and the blazing arc across the skies outside your window is the remnant of the band moving on to even newer sonic destinations.
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LP
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SAB 053LP
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"Pigeons have shifted into more dense, heady modes for their new record, They Sweetheartstammers. Heavy doses of melody and dissonance dip into Broadcast & Meddle-era Pink Floyd territory, as well as more straightforward nods to Opal's Happy Nightmare Baby, Galaxie 500 and Brigitte Fontaine. Pigeons are also now a four piece featuring Jason Meagher (No Neck Blues Band) on bass and Nathan Bowles (Black Twig Pickers, Pelt) on drums."
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LP
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SAB 045LP
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LP version, limited to 500 copies. "Bronx duo Pigeons wade closer to the edge of ambitious pop provocations with their third LP, Liasons. Here we find the band in the midst of an enormous creative leap; the psychedelic chanson moves of previous releases now cohabit with spacious west coast artblues & wistful cosmic folk tunes, invoking Catherine Ribeiro, Brigitte Fontaine, & Opal. Pigeons singular approach to structure, arrangements & production techniques -- mirrored by the willful license in spelling Liasons -- culminate with Wednesday Knudsen & Clark Griffin lacing their songs with flute, saxophone, echo, drum machines & languid guitar lines. Includes two songs in French, one of which is a take on 'Laisse Tomber les Filles' by Serge Gainsbourg."
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CD
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SAB 045CD
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"Bronx duo Pigeons wade closer to the edge of ambitious pop provocations with their third LP, Liasons. Here we find the band in the midst of an enormous creative leap; the psychedelic chanson moves of previous releases now cohabit with spacious west coast artblues & wistful cosmic folk tunes, invoking Catherine Ribeiro, Brigitte Fontaine, & Opal. Pigeons singular approach to structure, arrangements & production techniques -- mirrored by the willful license in spelling Liasons -- culminate with Wednesday Knudsen & Clark Griffin lacing their songs with flute, saxophone, echo, drum machines & languid guitar lines. Includes two songs in French, one of which is a take on 'Laisse Tomber les Filles' by Serge Gainsbourg."
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7"
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SAB 043EP
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"Limited edition of 200!! This 2 song platter find Pigeons pushing farther into tripped out pop songwriting, narrowly clinging to their inner art rock leanings. Dusty, west coast, flowery psyche pop & placid, melancholy blues mysticism fill these grooves. Recorded by Clark & Wednesday in the Bronx & Paris & comes in a hand printed sleeve."
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7"
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OESB 703EP
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"Second single from Pigeons following a debut 7" on Soft Abuse and LP's on Black Dirt and OESB. Features two songs -- 'The Paradise' and 'Radio Souvenir' both recorded 2009 in The Bronx. Produced by Tooth at Reggaetown Deluxe Studios."
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LP
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OESB 047LP
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"Pigeons is the psychedelic pop project of married couple Wednesday Knudsen and Clark Griffin. They met in Seattle and, while living there, were part of The Sea Donkeys -- a shambling anti-folk collective of freaks which also featured Hisham Mayet of the Sublime Frequencies label. The Sea Donkeys released an LP on the Sun City Girl's Abduction label in 2005. Pigeons formed later that same year when Wednesday and Clark relocated to New York. After releasing a string of micro-run cassettes and lathe-cut vinyls that explored noise and free jazz modes they turned their energies towards writing structured songs. The first widely available release of their song-oriented material was the 'Virgin Spectacle' lp that came out on Black Dirt in 2008. That was followed by a 7" single on Soft Abuse in 2009. Si Faustine is their second album and, like Virgin Spectacle, was recorded at Jason Meagher's Black Dirt Studio. Also featured on the album are contributions from Carter Thornton (Enos Slaughter, Gnaw, Zashiki-Warashi, Izititiz), Jason Meagher (NNCK, D. Charles Speer, Coach Fingers), and Rene Blume-Meagher. Pigeons are currently living in Paris, France. Housed in full-color 'tip-on' style jackets featuring artwork by Melodie Provenzano and also includes an mp3 download coupon."
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LP
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BD 001LP
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"Beautiful dream-dementia pop from a couple tangentially related to the Sea Donkeys/Sublime Frequencies camp in Seattle." -S@1. "Pigeons and doves are so closely related, they are practically interchangeable in the minds of the people who classify such fowl. But in the eyes of the general public, the dove is a beautiful bird symbolizing freedom and peace while the pigeon is a dirty rat with wings that eats our city's garbage and craps on our cars. But maybe the pigeon is a crafty bird, content with its own beauty and happy to obscure it to avoid the glare of our ever intrusive public eye. Virgin Spectacle is a distorted, hungover, and elusive statement. And it's in French. Except one word at the end. Or more, if you are to believe those responsible. Regardless, amongst all the fog and feathers is a collection of comely pop and sonic excursions guaranteed to lodge itself in your waking subconscious. Hell, you might even dream of a few of these songs. The fine people who constitute the band named Pigeons would like you to believe that they have stumbled incidentally upon such charm, like a diamond in the mine. Don't believe it. Take yourself out of your particular urban situation. Look toward the skies, and see the besmirched bird for what it really is. They have laid out a sonic journey meant to disorient on the surface, but if you follow their flight you'll find yourself cruising along and singing in a language you may not understand. Edition of 500 Recorded at Black Dirt Studio" --Black Dirt. Black Dirt is the new in-house label from Jason Meaghers (NNCK, K Salvatore, Coach Fingers, D Charles Speer and the Helix, etc...).
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