Unpredictable, joyous experimentation.
Background
Bright Whistles is a 3-piece formed in Utah that makes weirdo pop songs, fun avant jams, and their own collectable trading cards. Equal parts Logan Hone, Jesse Quebbeman-Turley, and Luke Williams, the outfit is known and loved for unpredictable concerts, glitchy, inadvisable recording strategies, dancing, and improvisation.
This shared love for experimentation and creative confidence carries through to their other pursuits, notably the group’s many side projects, including a venture called Giant Frame where they score films.
“Homeward Bound” itself has a variety of influences, as the band tells:
“[This] song is about times that Luke and Jesse have fallen over and/or hurt themselves. Times that we’ve been too nervous/anxious to go outside or be social. Times that we’ve gone home, particularly after having turned around, particularly after having failed to reach our destination. This one time in particular that Luke got a prize in a bike race for “hardest fall” after seriously maiming the front of his bike against a speed bump some how. He had to carry everything home (home was far away).”
The song itself was both written and recorded in a single day over the holidays, while the group was visiting their families in Utah. Drawing from a list of ideas fit for exploration, Jesse set up six cymbals on the ground, Luke set up two mics, and they started jamming. Animations were kindly provided by Jessica Li.
Verdict
Bright Whistles operates with an insatiable, creative furor. If at first their avant garde spoken word is too experimental or difficult to listen to, and you fail to make it to the :45 second mark — you’ve made a mistake. What ensues is a chaotic, melodically beautiful outburst of experimentation that carries with it a charm and sound of no other likeness.
Did we mention there was a saxophone solo? 4.5/5.
Support
Bright Whistles can be supported on their Bandcamp page, and given a like on their Facebook.
