Weekly Release Spotlight: Yellow Ostrich
Posted on 8/21/2011
Yellow Ostrich
The Mistress
Barsuk Records
The Mistress
Barsuk Records
Let's be honest: we live in a time where musicians are a dime for two-dozen. Not that this is a bad thing, as it raises the hurdle for any musician trying to share their music or even break even. Wisconsinite Alex Schaaf has a firm grasp on what this means for a new musician, yet instead of keeping his bedroom projects to himself until they were fully mastered, he released The Mistress as a free download on Bandcamp in late 2010. The multi-instrumentalist and volcalist has a confidence in his songwriting that led him to release bits and pieces of the burgeoning full LP multiple times, allowing anyone who was paying attention the rare opportunity of seeing an artist come into his own element.
As a concert reviewer for Muzzle of Bees after he left the Midwest for the Big Apple, it is clear he had an ear for knowing how audiences want to connect to musicians. There is a strong sense of confidence throughout The Mistress, reflecting on Schaaf as a musician and as a midwesterner. While another Wisconsinite's cabin creations have garnered him international fame this past year, Schaaf shares the same musical instincts that Vernon has mastered: the art of yielding your potential musical abilities for the right moment. This is clear in “Mary,” one of the standout tracks from the record overall. As a treat for the reissue, one of the bonus tracks is a stripped down version of “Mary” that speaks of the vulnerability of having to address a friend's drug habits. The swelling crescendo of harmonizing vocals to start off the track quickly cut to Schaaf's sincere voice repeating the lines “everything turns around/everything turns around,” trying to convince himself as well as the listener that things can change.
The Mistress overall acts like a beacon of light cutting through the numerous amounts of pop artists trying to determine whether they'd like heavier Beatles or Beach boy influences in their pop-rock album. Other standout tracks off the album include “Libraries” and “Hahahaohhoho,” which prove that Shaaf is competent enough to use sampling just enough to create catchy layered vocals yet doesn't let the digitized sound influence his somewhat crunchy guitar riffs and clean drumming. In a time when his contemporaries are reacting against Kanye's mad production skills by focusing on chilled out deadbeat musical stylings, Alex Schaaf has the confidence to follow through on his instincts to create beautiful, thoughtful pop influenced songs. Let's hope he didn't lose his powers when he left the Midwest.
Stream: Yellow Ostrich - "Libraries"
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