+ Ra Ra Riot
++ Sister Lovers
+++ SYME (from Norway)

Bug Jar | Monday, March 3rd, 8pm | $5

Hi friends,

We have a show coming up Monday that is not to be missed. Ra Ra Riot, who played a show with us 2 years ago, has since made quite a name for themselves. If you haven’t heard them, they’re a 5 piece, with members from all over the East coast, who happened to meet at school in Syracuse. Lead singer Wes Miles was a student of astrophysics, but gave up his career to pursue music. His nonchalant vocals and the chamber-pop strings (played by the two girls in the band) provide an interesting counterpoint to the accelerated indie-pop drive of the keys, guitar and drums. The recently released EP only hints at their live shows, which are well worth witnessing first hand.

Also playing Monday night are: Sister Lovers (also from Syracuse) and Syme, who are from Norway and en route to south by southwest.

Please see below for a remix of “Each Year” — a song that pitchfork had this to say about:

“The remix, which adds electronic flourishes, also brings out Mathieu Santos’ wiry bassline. Keyboardist/vocalist Wesley Miles sings in a dreamy croon not unlike Sam Prekop, and cellist Alexandra Lawn and violinist Rebecca Zeller add stately, elegant strings that cause frequent Arcade Fire comparisons. What sets them apart from their Canadian counterparts is that Ra Ra Riot is simply into making tunes that stick in your head, not grand statements.”

MEDIA…

Ra Ra Riot - Each Year (Remix)

Visit the Ra Ra Riot website for many more tunes.

From Pitchfork:

“If the members of the Syracuse orch-pop group Ra Ra Riot decide they want a second career, they might want to consider children’s television. Directed by former Spinto Band member Albert Birney (who’s also done spots for the Capitol Years and the Teeth) and cartoonists Nicholas Gurewitch (Perry Bible Fellowship) and Jon Moses (Midnight Inquirer), this animated video is a rather family-friendly presentation of the cycle of life. Guitarist Milo Bonacci and bassist Mathieu Santos are happy little caterpillars rocking out under a tree, while cellist Alexandra Lawn and violinist Rebecca Zeller are leaves, accompanying them from above. A curious bug collector scoops up Bonacci and Santos, and they’re doomed to life in a jar on a windowsill. But the seasons pass, Lawn and Zeller change colors, lose their instruments, and then jump from the tree together. Luckily, they happen to land in the jar with their insect friends, who use them as cocoons until they emerge as butterflies.”