Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band
Where The Messengers Meets
While it has only been 18 months since MT. ST.HELENS VIETNAM BAND's self-titled debut, they have traveled what feels like thousands of miles. "Where The Messengers Meet" is in real time, an expansion of the sound of the band's eponymous debut. They take the same frantic and skewed elements and stretch them out, giving them room to breathe and blossom. Thematically "Where TheMessengersMeet" is an exercise in contrasts: the delicate and gentle, the dark and furious MT. ST. HELENS VIETNAM BAND collects powerful compositions into one cohesive whole held together with lush production and a haunting atmosphere. They are imperceptibly inching away from an angular style influenced by MODEST MOUSE and WOLF PARADE, instead incorporating an epic sound recalling both the modern masters such as ARCADE FIRE, and classic pioneers, like PINK FLOYD. Still true on "Where The Messengers Meet" are classic rock-informed guitar leads and thundering anthems, but the band carefully melds those elements with subtle organ sounds, layered strings and a measure of restraint. The songs feel related to one another lyrically, musically, thematically-it feels like a true album, something that holds together from start to finish. Joined by Benjamin Verdoes' (guitar, vocals) wife Traci Eggleston (keys, vocals, miscellaneous percussion) and Jared Price (bass, guitar, drums, organ), MT. ST. HELENS VIETNAM BAND are a band stretching their ideas, expanding their vision into the undeniably satisfying album, "Where the Messengers Meet".