Hailing from Vancouver and later forming in Brooklyn, Bob Moses’s Tom Howie and Jimmy Vallance have sketched out a beautiful, singular sound for themselves, one that’s informed by house and techno yet accented with a dash of icy melancholy and influenced by the natural grandeur of their hometown. Over the course of a musical partnership that’s seen them build an association with Brooklyn-based indie label Scissors and Thread to present gorgeous, expansive works like last year’s Far From The Tree EP, Howie and Vallance are now signed to Domino Records and will release their First To Cry EP this month on the much lauded label. After completing a string of European dates in May that included gigs in Paris, London, Glasgow, Istanbul and Ibiza, the duo are playing around the U.S. this month. As they recharged their batteries in between gigs, we asked the guys to share their five favorite artists of the moment on SoundCloud.
Bob Moses’s First To Cry EP is out on June 17. They play Output in Brooklyn on June 20, The Garret in Miami on June 21 and Dolphin in Philadelphia on June 27.
1. Ben Khan – “Eden”
Ben Khan’s been creating a bit of a ruckus lately with his 1992 EP. Our favorite tune on it is “Eden.” First time we heard it, we were instantly hooked. The guitar lick and sound is absolutely wicked. It has a touch of that UK sound us North Americans just can’t get enough of.
2. Atem. – “Plaster”
This is a beautiful piano driven track. Atem. is a friend of ours we went to school with back in Vancouver. He’s got a great sound aesthetic — there’s not a bad tune on his SoundCloud.
3. Kyson – PRTLS artist mix
First heard this mix and of Kyson while we were in Dubai. After our gig we went to an after party and ended up doing the straight from the party to the airport routine. In the car ride on the way to the airport, our friend Lisa put this mix on. It was the perfect mix for the moment, and we were instant fans.
4. Corbu – “We Are Sound”
Corbu is the brainchild of the multi-talented Jonathan Graves. He’s featured on some of Scissor & Thread’s releases, and we’ve played a couple gigs with him in NYC. We first heard this track as a demo and the final version is no less than stellar. The strings that come in halfway through give goosebumps going every time.
5. Black Light Smoke – “Rough Cuts”
One of Brooklyn’s finest, Black Light Smoke is a true gentleman and scholar. We are total suckers for his crunchy, dirty, dusty sounds mixed with killer hooks and basslines. We were so inspired by his sound that we asked him to help us mix our Far From The Tree EP. This track perfectly captures an old-school ’90s big beat sound. The vinyl has had more than a healthy amount of spins on our turntable.