Two of the most prominent acts to come out of the Austin, TX math rock scene have joined forces. Instrumental percussionists The Kraken Quartet are gearing up to release a collaborative EP with Adobo (the solo project of Nay Wilkins, guitarist and singer of Hikes).
There’s always been a small handful of bands that tend to break down the genre to its delicate fibers. They eschew the guitar noodles, the intense drum rolls, the pedals and other digital toys.
How great it is to watch a band grow. I first heard instrumental rock quartet Vasa back in 2012, an off-the-cuff discovery I made from trawling the deep troughs of Bandcamp. Never Have Dreams had this powerful, monolithic sound, exactly what I needed at that time in my life. No vocals; just instruments bellowing out the narrative.