You better recognize!

Currently listening to: Death Cab for Cutie - We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes
Currently reading: siggghhh..

Two out of two people say we don't suck!

FACT: "Belt of Lights", the first song on our upcoming release was Demo of the Week on 107.7 The End's Young and the Restless show.

FACT: Cursive Mag, a DIY zine straight outta Kirkland, WA, said this about the record in issue 1.1:

At Cursive House, we were excited when the envelope came from H is for Hellgate.
"What is this?" We cooed, ripping into manila like so many Christmas presents
before. It took a few days before we could find time to sit down and listen to
it, too, so we were in for a big, pleasant surprise.

"H is for Hellgate," the self-titled album is slated to release February 15 at a massive Sunset Tavern release party, and then February 27 on stereotyperecords.com. Jamie Henkensiefken, a Seattle transplant from Missoula, MT rocks guitars and vocals on each track, joined by Marie Calderon on drums, Ben Baier on bass and vox, and David Thomas on some guitar and vocals. Henkensiefken is a self-proclaimed
"DIY-er," but don't let the indie, home-made vibe fool you. This release is an
aural treat, independent girl-rock at its finest.

Henkensiefken (whose name, I admit, I enjoy writing) included a really nice letter with her album advance, suggesting that we check out tracks 1, 3, and 4 in our initial listen, so I did. Track 1, "Belt of Lights," features halting distorted guitar, feather-light vocals, and the prettiest talk of explosions I've heard all year. I put it on
while I was getting ready for work and made myself late because dancing around
the kitchen with the disc on. Track 4 ("Soundtrack to the Summer") slowed the
alt-prog rock up-tempo vibe down with some acoustic guitar and the opening
lines, "I said you were evil, and you said I was evil, so that's the score.
We're trashed again, I'm on the dance floor." And so on; H is for Hellgate
captures the devastating romance and terrible sensation of drifting through
relationships in a way that is disconcerting to listen to- it is all too real, familiar, and true.

Other highlights of the album include the delectably soft "The Next 50 Winters," old-punk reminiscent "This is How We Take it Offline," wistful mod-garage "I Don't Lie," And the glorious final track, "Scars Like Stars." I hate Jamie Henkensiefken: she makes the music I wish I made, and makes me dance to it. Dance, Cursive, Dance! Kudos to H is for Hellgate for an excellent disc. MLY