PRGRPHS "LITTLE INVISIBLE YESTERDAYS" EP REVIEW
A reflective and thought provoking EP, “Little Invisible Yesterdays” by PRGRPHS is an examination of memory and perception. The crux of the album is that memories get smaller yet more significant the more we collect and eventually we have so many they essentially become invisible, a point that is established by starting off each of the two songs with audio clips from old family videos. Both of the nine minute plus songs are instrumentals, but the clips from the videos provide a jumping off point that the guitar, drums, and synth build from.
“A Faint Echo in Winter” starts more upbeat and initially gives off the feeling of looking back at a happy childhood, but the song moves to a more bittersweet tone by the five minute mark, and a more bitter than sweet mood by seven and a half minutes. Much like life, the song becomes more complex but never really loses it’s up beat feeling.
The second song, “Between Birth and the Beginning,” follows the same format with a difficult to understand glimpse of an old recording, then moving on to a more somber and circular instrumental. With an echo effect, the intertwined layers built until you feel yourself becoming lost in the deep layers of sound. “Between Birth and the Beginning” can feel pleasantly disorienting, like the feeling of swimming in deep water trying to find which way is up, and at the songs climax the waves of sound are washing over you like the waves in the ocean. After the crescendo the song begins to peacefully resolve and you feel oriented again, like coming up for air. “Little Invisible Yesterdays” is a powerful EP that has the ability to evoke strong emotions in all its listeners.
You can catch PRGRPHS live tonight (January 25) at Moon Palace Books for the EP release show, with support from 4th Curtis and Palm Friends.
PRGRPHS:
Chris Polley - guitars, keys, synths
Dan Vogel - drums, bells, chimes, trumpet
(Melodic Noise) How's your day going?
(PRGRPHS) All is well, just busy gearing up for this weekend's EP release show.
(MN) What is your formed/origin story?
(P) We saw The Dodos play Triple Rock Social Club in 2008 and were enthralled with their ability to kill it as a two-piece band. Chris and I talked afterward and decided to find a place to rent and try playing as a duo. It only took one night to realize we worked well together and had a feel for where each song was going as we were writing them without speaking to each other. We wrote our first two albums with just drums and guitar and later added a keyboardist to round out our sound.
(MN) Genre?
(P) Ambient/Experimental, Instrumental Post-Rock
(MN) Do you have a label?
(P) Plastic Leonard Music - self-owned label
(MN) Album name?
(P) "Little Invisible Yesterdays" - We saw the movie Waves by Trey Edward Shults, and we adored it. It got us thinking about childhood/adolescence and how memories become smaller and more and more invisible as time goes on. It felt beautifully sad, significant, and very emblematic of the nature of making music as we age. We're getting older, but we're still doing this thing that makes us feel young, even if we're starting to forget what that's like.
(MN) Lyrically what stands out on the album?
(P) The EP has no lyrics. Just a few audio samples from a few of Chris's home movies. We hope the music speaks to you in whatever way you want.
(MN) What was the inspiration behind the album?
(P) We wanted to produce something that would reflect on all things and all people, former and present, who have made large and small impacts on our lives. They may be getting smaller and more invisible in our minds as we get older, but paradoxically, they're also becoming more and more important to us.
(MN) What do you hope people take away from the album?
(P) Honestly, we just want anyone who listens to find calm or catharsis in it -- ideally, both.
(MN) Is there something that connects the songs together?
(P) Both tracks (9-and-a-half minutes each) come back to the central conceit of the album. "A Faint Echo in Winter" resembles what it felt to watch Waves in the middle of a Minnesota December and start getting those chills and feelings of youth that hadn't been felt in a long time, whereas "Between Birth and the Beginning" is culled from a line in Charles Olson's fantastic poem "The Kingfishers", which is (among other things) about how ancient cultures get erased from history by new, imperialist forces. Within ourselves and across history, we are constantly erasing, redefining, and then traumatically remembering our pasts.
(MN) Are you locals or transplants?
(P) Locals. Both have lived in Minneapolis since 2001. Dan grew up in La Crescent, MN. Chris grew up outside Milwaukee, WI.
(MN) What are some of your influences and Minnesota influences?
(P - Dan) El Ten Eleven, Maserati, Appleseed Cast, Russian Circles, Mississippi River, Chain of Lakes
(P - Chris) The Six Parts Seven, Tristeza, The Mercury Program, Signal Hill, The Heights Theater, The Trylon Cinema
(MN) Who are some of your favorite current Twin Cities artists?
(P - Dan) Falcon Arrow, DIIE, Big Cats, Last Import, Gully Boys
(P - Chris) Unturned, Little Lizard, Larry Wish, Surrounded by Water, Dismantlists
(MN) What is your favorite venue to play and see shows at in the Twin Cities?
(P - Dan) It was easily Triple Rock (defunct). Now, it's probably 7th Street Entry or unconventional artist DIY spaces.
(P - Chris) I love the vibe of the Kitty Cat Klub. Ryan Olcott, who does sound/booking there, is a personal hero of mine.
(MN) What can fans expect when they come to your shows?
(P) We try to do a fair share of chill vibes and intense riffs. We project old movies behind us cuz we're those kind of people.
(MN) Do you have a favorite or crazy memory of playing a show?
(P) We played a coffee shop in St. Joseph, MN. We did our best to play as quiet as possible. We noticed a table with three older people who were trying to have a conversation throughout our set. With a song or two left to play, they got up and left shaking their heads. When our set was over, we saw they left a napkin behind that read, "this was the WORST." We are happy to have ruined somebody's night rather than just be background music.
(MN) Who are your dream tour-mates? (It can be anyone)
(P - Dan) Appleseed Cast, Val Kilmer, and Charlie Brown
(P - Chris) The Mercury Program, Kurt Russell, and Garfield
(MN) Other hobbies?
(P - Dan) I run. A lot. 11 marathons and counting. I travel, too. My wife and I like taking short road trips and a couple international vacations each year.
(P - Chris) I watch movies. A lot. 6,349 and counting. I have two sons, too (not counting Dan). I guess they're not hobbies tho lol.
(MN) What do you like about living in the Twin Cities?
(P - Dan) It's the perfect size, has all four seasons, boasts an amazing arts and music scene, and so many ethnic restaurants and cafes.
(P - Chris) The food, the people, the art -- basically everything except when it's so cold that my tears turn to ice.
(MN) Is there anything that sets the Twin Cities scene apart from places you've toured?
(P) We must confess, our biggest tour was in 2018, which found us in Madison and Milwaukee. Based on what we've been told by touring bands we've played with, the Twin Cities has one of the best mixes of music in the country. Great hip hop, indie rock, folk, and R&B artists throughout.
(MN) What are your favorite places to grab food or drink in the Twin Cities?
(P - Dan) Pizzeria Lola, Kyatchi, Italian Eatery - Gawd, I sound snobby.
(P - Chris) I'm a NE boy. Chimborazo, The Mill, Brasa, Dipped & Debris...
(MN) Day jobs?
(P - Dan) Accounting/Marketing at YWCA Minneapolis and Shift Manager at Fleet Feet Marathon Sports
(P - Chris) HS English, Journalism, and Film Studies Teacher at Columbia Heights HS.
(MN) What are the band's plans for the future?
(P) Keep making music together and experimenting with new sounds till we're dead. Headline Coachella by the time we're 80-years-old. [Edit: Chris does not want to go to the desert so close to his impending death.]
Review and Interview by: Andrew Perrizo, Owner/Writer @PlaylistTC
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