The Secret Life of Sofia- Seven Summits

The Secret Life of Sofia- 'Seven Summits'
Released: April 30, 2008
Label: self-released
Home: Brooklyn, NY
Rating: 8.3 out of 10


I was talking to a good friend of mine and we were discussing the blessings and the curses of MySpace and the new digital age of music. One of the biggest double-edged swords of things like MySpace is that anyone with a computer can make an album these days. This is such a great accomplishment in the sense that it opens up the medium to an endless amount of different artistic perspectives, but it can be crippling trying to wade through the white noise to find a truly creative and talented band. This prompted my friend to say that finding a great, new band is like finding that great item at Goodwill for $0.50. It takes some digging, but its definitely there if you're willing to put in some time to work for it. Make no mistake about, Brooklyn's The Secret Life of Sofia is one of those truly creative bands for which I like to dig. The band members gently wrap their sonic textures around, Kyle Wilson, the principle songwriter's melodies and stories like a welcome and warm blanket on the couch of friends. To say that TSLOS is a talented band is a gross understatement. Any band can have a 15-passenger van full of talent, but not many can helm subtle sonic structures like TSLOS can. Even live, the band rarely misses a note and somehow makes their incredible songs even more beautiful and injects their orchestrations with even more of the beautiful melancholy which makes their songs so engaging.

The meticulous orchestration of each song is impressive on many accounts; from their Anathallo-esque multi-percussion approach to songs like "Outside" or the layered guitar work of "Moose Collision" and the hard-hitting but perfectly straightforward drumming on the stellar opening track "Fifty Fourteeners". This is a band that knows what to put in, and often even more importantly know what to keep out.

This album, puts them in the ranks of other phenomenal New York bands like Grizzly Bear and Interpol and makes me think that this just might be the best unsigned band in America.

RIYL: Anathallo, Midlake, Interpol