AUSTIN, Texas - Flanked by the hue of yellow lights during their showcase at South by Southwest, the Secret Machines sonically collided with their audience, enveloping and consuming all other stimuli. With their latest release, "Now Here Is Nowhere," the New-York-by-way-of-Texas trio has created an audio adventure in nine fluid steps, which will be touching down in D.C. for a two-night stay at the Black Cat.
An amalgam of the broodingly large Josh Garza on drums, the silver-toothed smile of Brandon Curtis behind the bass and microphone and the undaunted guitar work of Benjamin Curtis, the Secret Machines cater to the aural tastes of Pink Floyd, Flaming Lips and Spiritualized fans. But instead of aiming at photocopying its roots, the band accomplishes the journey with tinges of Jeff Buckley, separating itself into something unique and special. In the end, the trio finds itself on the fringes of brilliant pop songs - the tracks all have incredibly catchy vocals and "Nowhere Again" might be one of the most captivating driving songs of the summer - and epic dream-pop on tracks like "First Wave Intact," Pharaoh's Daughter" and the title track.
According to Curtis though, the record is designed to be more of a throwback towards the American minimalist and conceptual artist Sol LeWitt.
"He kind of had this idea of creating works of art that were just series just of instruction," Curtis said over some silver tequila in downtown Austin. "The interpretation of his works are left to people executing them."
"Now Here Is Nowhere" is a personal experience where you can put the record in as it was mixed or throw it on your iPod or media player, rearrange the tracks and make it into something of your own. Though it feels like certain songs have to flow into others on the record, feelings can be deceiving.
"Everything that happens on the record wasn't scripted," Garza said. "But the idea was there."
"With that said," Curtis said, "we had a really clear idea of the core of the basis, and from that, once you have that, I think you have the opportunity to be really flexible with the way situations develop."
This is most certainly true of the band live, who step onto stage out of the darkness and play a backlit, seamless set seemingly before even acknowledging the packed crowd that it has just overwhelmed for the preceding 40 minutes.
"You play in a band because you think you have something to offer," Curtis said. "We have something to offer in the sense that we care, we go on stage and ... to the best of our abilities, be as creative as we can to influence the space that we're playing. No matter what you do, if you go on stage and say 'Hi, we're so and so, this is our first song, this is our first single,' that is influencing the space."
The Secret Machines, as a band, are heavily influenced by the belief that the cosmos have a hand in how situations work out and that any externality has a hand at throwing the balance off. Its live show is a testament to this, as much as its record is. Nothing on "Now Here Is Nowhere," which comes out on Reprise Records in May, feels out of place or added on. While there is never a silent moment on the full-length, every note fits into the bigger puzzle. In the end though, its best to just hit repeat, and let the cosmos handle the rest.
The Secret Machines will be opening for Blonde Redhead on April 22 and 23 at the Black Cat, tickets are $13 in advance and $15 at the door. For more information on the Secret Machines, visit www.thesecretmachines.com.
