Robert Church and The Holy Community – Le Rouge

Robert Church and The Holy Community - Le Rouge

Usually, when I get a friend request on Myspace from a band or record label, the music is abysmal. And most of the time, it’s music that I would obviously not have any interest in. Being in a band, though, I always give them the benefit of the doubt and listen to enough to get an idea of what the music is like. A few weeks ago, I got a request from Series Two Records and this was the one exception that finally validated my optimism about unsolicited friend requests on the internet. The label has a decently sized catalog of bands from all over the world, but the one that stood out to me was Robert Church and The Holy Community. I watched the two videos below, and then ordered their album Le Rouge. After listening to it for the past week, I can say that this is one of the most satisfactory album purchases I’ve made in a long, long time.

Robert Church and The Holy Community is an indie pop band from Sweden. Their lyrics are all in fluent English. Their music is reminiscent of The Shins, but more subdued in certain ways. Many of the songs have an infectious energy to them, but they don’t beat you over the head with it. It draws you into having fun, without exhausting you. The melodies are catchy, and the singing is natural. A drum machine is used frequently on the recordings, but according to the videos the band has posted online, they do have a drummer in the band. The drum machine is used well, though, and doesn’t flatten the music in the way drum machines often do. My two favorite songs on the album right now are “Enter the Dragon” and “Tale of a King”. It could be that they were the two songs I heard first from the band, but it must also be the fact that they are AWESOME. Some songs, including “Tale of a King” use an organ for certain melodic lines, and it adds a nice warm sound to the music. Many bands have the same instrumental elements at Robert Church and The Holy Community, but use them in obnoxious or unbalanced ways. This band has finesse, hanging back until it’s just the right time to let a little rock shine through.

As I said, certain songs remind me of The Shins, with their extremely hummable melodies. The lyrics are not a high point of the music, as they tend to be pretty straightforward and mumbled often enough to be easily misunderstood or forgotten. They are certainly not any kind of a drawback, though, just not one of the significant features. When the music does cool down for a song or two, it still maintains the momentum of the rest of the album. “SA10/UFO” is a love song, but there’s a menace that hides beneath the quietude, hinting at an oncoming collision. This album can seem same-y on the surface, but closer inspection shows it to have a nice level of variety that rewards more and more with each listen.

Another thing that endeared me to the band is that the disc for Le Rouge included 4 or 5 bonus tracks, completely free. That appealed to my thrifty nature, especially considering the album only cost $10. I would recommend the entire album, which you can order directly from the label here: Series Two Records store

Here are those two videos I mentioned above. I really enjoyed the style of video they used for “Enter the Dragon”. The VHS/home video digital blur aesthetic inspires feeling of nostalgia and profundity for me.

On Myspace: Robert Church and The Holy Community

The label that sells this album is Series Two Records. They are a CD-R label based in Columbus, Nebraska. They are definitely a very small operation, doing all their sales online, aside from having albums carried in two retail stores. However, they feature artists from across the entire world, from Sweden to Japan. The founder of the label, Christopher B, finds most of the bands on the label online. He burns all the CD’s himself and runs all the aspects of the label, like promotion, booking, and distribution. When I got Le Rouge in the mail, it included a post-it note with a thankful handwritten message from Christopher. Knowing that my money is directly supporting someone who develops and nurtures good music is a great feeling. That goodwill makes Series Two Records especially memorable for me. The package I received also included a preview EP for an upcoming release from the label by a band named The Simple Carnival. The band seems to actually belong to another label, but they are getting some distribution assistance from Series Two. The EP didn’t really appeal to me, but I respect the effort to cross-promote in a friendly, low-pressure way.

The label has a nice variety of music, from electronic to folk to rock. There’s silly music and serious music. Take a look around, and you’re bound to find something that appeals to you.

You can learn more about the label here: Series Two Records

And here some of the many artists they feature on their Myspace page.

Go check out the label, find something fantastic, and get yourself a new favorite album from the best CD-R label in the USA.