Receiving a steady flood of press releases each day, ClashMusic has become a little blasé when assessing a band’s influences.
But when Dry The River name-checked Leonard Cohen and At The Drive In we felt compelled to investigate. The band spent the summer travelling around the country, bringing their acoustic balladry to a festival near you.
However it would be disingenuous to file the band away alongside nu-folk acts such as Stornoway. Instead, Dry The River have a style which mixes acoustic instrumentation with a very direct, urgent sense of artistry.
Apparently fuelled by a love of Fugazi and other post-hardcore giants, Dry The River do seem to tackle songwriting from a different direction. Currently working on their debut album, the band feel confident enough to gather some of their early material on a new EP.
‘Weights & Measures’ has a clear vein of Americana, but the songwriting remains fresh, assured. Peter Katis – The National, Frightened Rabbit, Fanfarlo and many many more – took charge of recording sessions, inviting the band out to his studio in Connecticut.
Injecting a very personal sense to the recording sessions, Katis stamps his authority on the band’s songwriting. An experienced watchman for the sessions, ‘Weights & Measures’ undoubtedly benefited from his contribution.
Alongside studio cuts Dry The River have added an acoustic cut from a Watch Listen Tell session, as well as an unusual cover. The London band have tackled ‘Thou Art Loosed’ by American troubadour Josh T Pearson, taking his heartbroken, elegiac songwriting into a new direction.
Listen to it now…
Meanwhile, Dry The River are looking towards the following shows:
November
14 Kingston The Cricketers
15 Cheltenham Rise (In Store)
16 Bath Moles
17 Marlborough Sound Knowledge (In Store)
