Review Summary: A beautiful debut by an underrated band
My intention here should be solely to convince you why That’s Your Fire is an amazing album. However I fear this effort will result in more of a plea, a plea for you to submit yourselves to Aloha (with some focus to these ten gorgeous songs).
I accidently stumbled upon the band a year ago after discovering they were signed to indie label Polyvinyl Records, home to Joan of Arc and Deerhoof. I introduced myself by listening to “Ferocious Love”, a wonderfully poetic, yet curious tune, containing lyrical gems such as ‘we could take a leap of faith on your bed/ and land as a pile of flesh.’ That was it. Utterly charmed, I devoured the rest of the album and discovered that That’s Your Fire is an unusual beauty; a bit of jazz, a bit experimental, very much indie but above all just dreamy, vibraphone laden tunes, blended with distant, post rock-esque drums, whilst Tony Cavallario feeds us wistful lyrics with his lulling vocals.
Even if the decor is not to your taste, one cannot deny that these are four technically gifted musicians. In the midst of a quiet melody, That’s Your Fire has the tendency to suddenly burst into an appeasing cacophony of musical complexity, particularly present in “Hundred Stories”. Even within the album’s more venturesome realms, there is still order. Within its fearlessness, we are not left behind. From start to finish the album is a pensive, chimerical yet absorbing piece of work, from the sedating “There There” to the bewildering “With the Lights Out, We Sing”.
For twelve years this album has existed without my knowledge. Aloha have succeeded in keeping themselves a special little secret. Indeed the band has a solid fan base due to their extensive touring and the fact that they have entered their fifteenth year as band. Despite this, online attention seems pretty scarce. At the time of writing, they have 1,290 likes on Facebook, 568 followers on Twitter and little Youtube Footage. Whilst I recognise that mass attention does not make its way to music like Aloha, for the amount of love I have for this album, I would have expected figures to be reasonably higher.
Therefore, out of my love for That’s Your Fire, I urge you to give Aloha a chance. Allow yourselves to become enticed by their unhinged grace and for their wonderful musical abilities to enter your world.
