Localized Appreesh is our thank-you column to the musicians that make the Bay. To be considered, contact emilysavage@sfbg.com.
Sigur Rós, Explosions in the Sky, Radiohead, the Antlers – Oakland’s the Dandelion War has received some outsized, and crazy positive, comparisons and reviews during its four short years of existence, particularly thanks to 2012’s excellent, ambient We Were Always Loyal to Lost Causes (Deep Elm) LP.
All of it’s accurate, by the way. The Dandelion War makes mood music for the brain. The post-rock five-piece boasts the build ups and crescendos of Explosions, the alien echoing otherworldliness of mid-career Radiohead, the pleasing falsetto and hypnotic soundscapes of the Antlers, and tiny pulsing heartbeat and cave-deep reverb of a dewy Sigur Rós.
Check tracks “Drifters” and “The Devil’s Black Wool” off We Were Always Loyal to Lost Causes.
So now you need to see it live, right? The Dandelion War plays an enviable opening slot for the final Noise Pop show of this very Noise Poppy week, with Caspian at Bottom of the Hill Sun/3. First up, it took the Localized Appreesh challenge:
Year and location of origin: 2008, San Francisco (currently based in Oakland).
Band name origin: the name was taken from the title of a book by Richard Rosenthal.
Band motto: Good enough for government work.
Description of sound in 10 words or less: “It’s dreamy, shoegazey, and brimming with pathos: in short, lovely” (stolen from Inforty).
Instrumentation: Vocals (Larry), Guitar and Keys (Jeff), Guitar (Mikey), Drums (Julius), Bass (Chris).
Most recent release: We Were Always Loyal to Lost Causes (Deep Elm, 2012).
Best part about life as a Bay Area band: The Bay Area has some incredible local bands and we love being part of that scene.
Worst part about life as a Bay Area band: Cities on the West Coast are so spread out that it’s really hard to tour.
First album ever purchased: (various answers from various band members, names withheld to preserve our dignity) A Hard Day’s Night by the Beatles, Burn Out by Slick Shoes, Appetite for Destruction by Gn’R
Most recent album purchased/downloaded: (same) News from Nowhere by Darkstar, Optica by Shout Out Louds, Glowing Mouth by Milagres
Favorite local eatery and dish: Fonda (Albany) for duck tacos, Babalous Mediterranean (Walnut Creek) for the deluxe falafel, El Novillo Taco Truck (Oakland) for the chicken torta
The Dandelion War
With Caspian, Native, Boyfrndz
Sun/3, 5pm, $12
Bottom of the Hill
1233 17th St., SF
www.bottomofthehill.com
www.noisepop.com