Once Bend

Description

HIGHSIGH — the trio composed of Robert Lundberg (JOBS), John Dieterich (Deerhoof) and Matt Mehlan (Skeletons) — places as much importance on the process as on the final result. Although the band's name is new, HIGHSIGH is the result of years of friendship and collaboration between the three members in other contexts: the convergence of Deerhoof and Skeletons within the supergroup Congotronics International, Ro's participation on bass during Skeletons' tours and recordings, John and Matt's involvement both as musicians and sound engineers on various JOBS albums, as well as numerous coffees, meals, and hikes. Their first album, Once Bend, presents itself as both a disarming patchwork of familiarity and strangely opaque, blending mutant pop and abstract polyrhythmic soundscapes. The band has expanded its circle of collaboration by sending tracks to Tim Barnes, Ben LaMar Gay, Max Jaffe, Lia Kohl, Booker Stardrum, and Jon Starks for them to incorporate drum, cello, and cornet parts. These raw sketches found their final structure and coherence through the lyrics, some written by the band members themselves, others by Macie Stewart (Finom) and Paige Alice Naylor.