SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS
TEXT: Rebecca Swaney ||| LABEL: Ghostly International / Vagrant Records
School of Seven Bells (also referred to as SVIIB) is an indie electronic band formed by Benjamin Curtis (of Secret Machines) together with Alejandra Deheza. Alejandra’s identical twin sister Claudia (both sisters previously of On!Air!Library) was also a member until leaving the band in October 2010 mid-tour citing personal reasons. Alejandra described the split as “definite” and that “it shook us up a little bit when it happened, but any change is welcome. It forces you to be really creative and to get back to what … you started out doing”. SVIIB continues to tour now as a duo.
Their sound is often described as dream pop and shoegaze, with an emphasis on rather dreamy, yet, crisp female vocals accompanied with more abstract lyrics. The band is named after the School of Seven Bells – a mythical South American pickpocket training academy.
Their debut album, Alpinisms, was released to much critical acclaim in October 2008 on Ghostly International. It’s a sweet and whimsical album reminiscent of 70s/80s synth pop. SVIIB’s sophomore album Disconnect from Desire, released two years later on the Vagrant label, establishes a more grounded and less ethereal sound vocally and musically. Both albums have a layered and heavily-produced feel, which results in a rewardingly complex listening experience. Disconnect from Desire did not achieve the same critical accolades as Alpinisms, but it’s potentially the more accessible of the two albums through it’s more direct and full-bodied sound.
PRESS
Disconnect from Desire, released in 2010, met with mixed critical review, but proved to be a solid album among SVIIB’s fan base. Spin described it as: “Fussy knob-twiddling grounds a couple of tracks, but this skyward-reaching album delivers plenty of solidly earthy pleasures.” The New York Times selected the track “I L U” as one of the best songs of 2010.
Pitchfork described Alpinisms as “diaphanous” and Rolling Stone said the trio was “the sum of hip contradictions” and “like an evening mass with the Sixties acid-oscillator duo Silver Apples” while NPR declared Alpinisms to be one of the Top Debut Albums of 2008.
LINKS
+ SVIIB official website
+ SVIIB on Facebook
+ SVIIB on Wikipedia
+ SVIIB on AllMusic
+ SVIIB on Last.fm
FREE MP3s
“Babelonia (Sepalcure Remix)” (right-click & save)
