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Artist
Crystal Desert
10+ albums
postpunkrudegazeevilpsychrock
about
Genre: post.punk, rude.gaze, evil.psych.rock Band Members: ((ryan::guitar.vocals)) ((josh::drums)) ((chris::bass)) Hometown: Seattle Crystal Desert is an alternative garage rock trio whose elaborate songwriting and manic live performances ascend their moody post-punk sounds into new artistic territory. Christian Smith’s hostile and distorted bass tone (think Slint and Shellac era post-punk) serves as a counterpoint to guitarist/vocalist Ryan Alexander’s tripped-out and moody britpop-meets-Nirvana sounds. Paired with drummer Josh Ihler’s more bright and contemporary style, this trio embraces their complex profile through a more experimental songwriting process. Some songs such as their debut single “Trade Ambition” maintain a continuously energizing rock aesthetic carried out in movements. Other songs operate more like brooding shoegaze jams or narrative fuzz rock ensembles. The Summer of 2014 was a strange time in Crystal Desert’s hometown Everett, WA. Huge redevelopment projects were underway while the city was seeing a massive growth in population, and with this came a transformation for the role of local music and culture. Crystal Desert began in the face of these developments with clear intentions: to use a combination of their “evil psych rock” sound and aesthetic to nudge people’s tastes and interests into a new crooked direction. Since then, they have seen some success -- with Seattle Music Insider’s review of the Fisherman’s Village Music Festival claiming that “