I accidentally stumbled upon a live performance by Portland’s The Standard in 2006 when going to check out a friend’s band. Got there a bit early and was completely memorized by these guys who just happened to be passing through town and secured a last minute gig, probably on their way to New York or something. In a weird way, they reminded me a bit of Radiohead that night though I’ll completely admit the singer’s voice took a little getting used to. It’s the same way on CD, an acquired taste, but I find there are times that I simply can’t get enough of their dark, hypnotic music.
After stints on Touch and Go and Yep Roc (where they seemed to be averaging a new release every year), The Standard signed to V2 and seemed destined for bigger and better things. V2 closed it’s door before The Standard’s The Swimmer could be released last year. It’s taken a while for the band to decide what they wanted to do with the finished product and they finally decided to start their own label (Partisan Records) to put the long-awaited (by me, anyway) CD out.
Look for The Swimmer to arrive in stores and on-line on Sept.23. In the meantime, here are 3 MP3s from that album to check out.
MP3: “The Swimmer“
MP3: “Sunday Eyes”
MP3: “A Different Skin”