The Avenues [EP]

The Avenues [EP]

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Earlimart is one of those tiny, hard-scrabble agri-oil towns that dot California's sprawling San Joaquin Valley, forming a loose constellation around Bakersfield midway between the band's hometown of Fresno and their adopted artistic Mecca, L.A.'s Silverlake district. This five-track EP showcases Earlimart's continuing evolution from their ragged Fresno roots--and early comparisons with Social Distortion and the Pixies--to the dreamy, down-tempo textures herein. If Earlimart is essentially Aaron Espinoza now, this all-too-brief collection also stands as tribute to his burgeoning side career as a producer. "Color Bars" and "Parking Lots" are hypnotic tracks that seem rooted in John Lennon's Dakota demos, yet fleshed out by Espinoza's deft use of studio colors and dynamics. "Susan's Husband's Gunshop" centers on more uptempo pop hooks, while "Interloper" conjures a dirge of a waltz, and the brief, untitled fourth track revolves around the musician's evocative use of samples and electronics as building blocks. The result sounds like the haunting soundscape to some lost David Lynch film--or a dusty, mysterious town in the great, wide middle of nowhere. --Jerry McCulley

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The Avenues [EP]

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