Between her solo output as V.V. Lightbody, her band with her brother Stanton (and others) in Santah as well as Grandkids, another excellent group, it’s safe to say that Chicago’s Vivian McConnell is one of the city’s busiest musicians. And on Grandkids’ new single “Seamripper,” which is exclusively premiering on RedEye, she proves why all of her projects are consistently some of our favorites too.
Just like the now Chicago-based band has continually showcased since their Urbana-Champaign roots, “Seamripper” effortlessly meshes disparate sounds and moods into a compelling blend of folk, electronic and rock. Where one second it sounds like pastoral English folk, the next it veers into a sonic freakout heard on something like St. Vincent or Dirty Projectors records. While there are hints of other acts here, the song nonetheless subverts and transcends any expectation or pre-conceived notion. Listen below.
“Seamripper” will appear on the band’s forthcoming album “This Guitars,” which is out Dec. 16. To celebrate the release, which was mixed and recorded by Dave Vettraino (The Hecks) at Public House Recordings, the band is having a record release show at Schubas Wednesday, Dec. 21 with The Hecks, Homme and Seth Engel in support. What a bill! Buy tickets here and pre-order the album at this Bandcamp link.
@joshhterry | jterry@redeyechicago.com
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