Not Blood Paint Believing Is Believing
To call Brooklyn art-rock outfit Not Blood Paint unique would be an understatement. Conventionally, the band is theatrically vivid and sonically intense. Musically, it's a group impossible to pigeonhole, far removed from traditional verse-chorus-verse structures. Not Blood Paint's new album, Believing Is Believing is out June 17.
The songs on Believing Is Believing manifest as detailed stories that worm into the minds of always-shifting narrators. At different times, you'll think Zappa, Ween, Primus, Gang of Four, Devo, early Genesis, Tool and Dirty Projectors. The band itself would proffer Of Montreal, "That group inspired us in the beginning. We'd go dress up and dance our asses off when we saw them live."
The four-piece from Bushwick formed in 2008 by guitarists George Fryeand Joe Stratton, bassist Mark Jaynes and drummer Seth Miller. Given their influences, it's little surprise the band members -- all of whom hail from the same school in Michigan -- share a passion for the theatrical. From early on, Not Blood Paint shows have been purposely and aggressively different, often constructed for the venue and audience on hand.
Costumes abound. Beguiling rituals and themes take hold -- one night you may witness, say, the Renaissance-type flair of "The Aristocrats." Another, "hypnotic owls," or "glam rock scientists" or maybe something akin to an alien prison break. This cornucopia of on-stage choreography, dialog and make-up -- connected to some fantastically elaborate songs -- often extends off-stage, where whole belief systems spring up and evolve, while characters take on lives of their own -- often over years of time.Instead of being about a band, a record and a show, Not Blood Paint becomes a fusing of mythology and the real world. Ever shifting, ever changing.
Five albums in, Not Blood Paint has now evolved again. The band's new record Believing is Believing is the culmination, as they say, "of eight years working toward the marriage of our recorded songs with the exultant energy of our live show."
It's an experience unto itself. As well as a lyrical, musical and spiritual exploration, as the title suggests (you'll hear the word "believe" in a lot of the tracks). Harmonies abound, most noticeably in "I Am An Angel" and sprawling album closer "Imbalance". A track like "Play Nice" can somehow feel both grimy and lounge-y, while psych rave-up "Neighbor" fits comfortably next to the moodier, almost Queen-like "Borderline" and the slow groove of "The French Song".
"Our shows are about bringing together people in a space and breaking it down," says the band. "Creating an environment where multiple people in a lawless state are in a positive and creative space with no hierarchy. Where rules are created on the spot, unspoken. A temporary tiny society where anything is possible. And that's our goal: to facilitate that dynamic."
Finally, a band you can believe in.
Believing Is Believing is out June 17
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