Say Hi, Biscus - Say Hi, Biscus

I bought this CD from the "local band" bin at a record store in either Boulder or Fort Collins, Colorado. I can't remember which. I assumed that this was going to be a quirky emo band, maybe a tappy one, but I remember feeling like I had a responsibility to buy this CD alongside my Incubus and my Nickel Creek CDs. You gotta support the local scene, right? Even if an EP in a simple cardboard sleeve costs $10, right?

Say Hi, Biscus keeps it very simple. Drums, one guitar, one vocalist, without compression, mostly without reverb too. This EP could have easily been done on a 4-track, but they're not going for that scuzzy Alien Lanes vibe. All the takes are given a lot of room in the mix, giving an almost xx vibe. That puts a ceiling on how high the energy on tracks like "letter (rip choo choo's)" can go, but when they slow it down on tracks like "I miss you, or whateva", they can really soak you in it. You can almost hear Messina Ranieri smirking as she sings, as if to say "can you believe I'm slumming it in this shoestring emo band?". She's pretty good, is what I mean to say.

"honey, i'm hit" has the best chorus and post-chorus riff. "sup" has funny, sunny CW sync vibes fifteen years too late to get one. The lyrics are emo cliches for the most part, but nothing too bad. The riffs and vocal melodies are quite pretty. Nothing overly technical. Nothing too intense. Six songs in sixteen minutes. This would make a great cool-down EP, something to listen to after something more intense like an I'm Scared That's All There Is or a Dartland. Play it after a hardcore show while you're tearing down. I don't mean to say that this is a bland EP at all - this CD has stayed in surprisingly regular rotation on my CD changer in the past few years, and I see no reason for that to change. They just kept it simple, stupid. I should try that some time.

Say Hi, Biscus by Say Hi, Biscus is a good EP, and I like it.

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