Recording Day 5

Just woke up and made some coffee. Last night was so beautiful... it was raining and windy but the fire was blazing.
We set up in the "old middle" room. It's the room that Dave Kennedy used for one of his photographs titled 'Insurgency'. It's #3 in the Photographic Translations - Dopplegangers.

New Album Day Uno y Dos

We left Seattle in the hour of rush. People rushing home from work, rushing to work. Rushing who knows where but they were definitely going South on I-5. Even though the drive to my father's place was 2 hours longer than it should have been in torrential rains with the back of my hand wiping the windshield as a method of defrost... we were still excited.

We arrived at my Dad's and loaded in. Nate and I had a couple of refreshments and got to work. We listened to all the stuff we had recorded before tour and decided that the only thing worth saving was a version of Disease. A song originally off of the 2004 release Midnight that I had recorded as a solo endeavor. We started recording Tornado Run. It was about 2am before I started to not see clearly and we decided to chill out and watch a movie. I can't remember the name but it was about Russian Mafia dudes. We totally fell asleep waiting for Matt to arrive.

Matt called about 3:30am I think.. he was lost. We hopped in the van and went downtown and found him. Once we were all back at the house we hung out for a while. It's strange how staying up until 5/6am still seems natural after tour. Even now.. it's 9:30pm and I'm just starting to wake up.

I woke up early... like at 8:30am. I built a fire, took a shower, made some coffee and started roasting red peppers and squash for soup. Nate came strolling down stairs around 10 and hit the coffee. Then I started recording. Badger woke up and then it was his turn.

Today we recorded Tornado Run and Black Night Coyote.

Right now... I think we are going to start Dream.

But earlier... the strangest sounds came out of my amplifier after I stopped playing a certain song. I hit record and got it all. I think it was a ghost singing.....

33 shows in 30 days and growing

We are having a really good time on tour. Besides missing family, friends, loved ones, bikes, Shirley, and regular showers we are having the time of our lives. =)

So far we have 33 shows in 30 days with 6 days off.

SItting in sunny Long Beach right now.. drinking coffee and chilling while the guys sleep in. The Prospector was absolutely amazing last night. I LOVE that place.

On to San Diego today.....

Train

I chased a train last night. I caught it and passed it by a couple cars. Thought about jumping on. I really just wanted to put a nickel on the track but the cars hung so far over that I would have had to be on my stomach and dodge the wheels. I guess my judgement wasn't impaired enough to take the chance.

First day of tour!!!!

We are rolling down I-5 South towards Tacoma. I'm sitting in the back on some super sweet cute cushions my sister made for Shirley checking my email. Listening to David Bowie....

Matt yells from the co-pilot seat for me to look out the window.

It's a full moon!!!!

Awesome. I think this might be the first tour to start on a full moon.

I think it should become a habit.

I read once that Neil Young liked to record on full moons. I wonder if he still does.

I wonder how many kids are looking at the moon thinking... it's following us!

hahahaha

I love tour....

One month till tour?!

Wow, I can't believe Summer is flying by like this. At practice last night Nate brought up the fact that we only have a month until tour and I almost had a heart attack.

The Portland Mercury's Up & Coming

SATURDAY 1/31

JON GARCIA AND THE BEST LAID PLANS, LEVATOR, SWALLOWS

(Mississippi Pizza Pub, 3552 N Mississippi) Seattle's Levator is the unlikely trio of guitar, drums, and sax, but they emit a florid, encompassing sound that is rich with shadow and detail. Guitarist Sky Lynn is a vocalist of surprising range, and on the band's new full-length, The Biggest Waves Come at Night, she weaves both wordless chorales and hard-rock vocals with equal skill. And don't be put off by the presence of Nate Henry's sax: This isn't Huey Lewis and the News or Men at Work. Henry's drawn-out, haunting lines aim for drama, mood, and mystery rather than rooty-toot gas piping. Together, the trio patiently creates a stormy, lush backdrop in which songs rise up slowly, then heavily crash down like waves hitting sand. NL Levator also performs tonight at 6 pm at Music Millennium(3158 E Burnside).

Click here to view original site.

Levator proves ’Grey’s Anatomy’ soundtrack-ready By: Laura Kasavan – The Mustang Daily

Levator proves 'Grey's Anatomy' soundtrack-ready By: Laura Kasavan – The Mustang Daily Posted: 10/19/07

Listening to Levator feels really good. The artfully constructed and pleasant strains of pop rock feel like trying on soft, multicolored layers of your favorite T-shirts.

This is a band to study to, a band to read to and a band to live to. In other words, Levator and its 2006 album "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" are simultaneously soothing and upbeat. 

Perhaps the best way to describe Levator is as the band most likely to land on a future "Grey's Anatomy" soundtrack. 

"Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" is a 12-track, hour-long album filled with the breathy and mature vocals of Sky Lynn on guitar backed by the presence of Rando Skrasek on drums. 

Absent from the record are building rockers; instead, the artsy and soulful piece is mellow. 

The album starts off with "Another Day," a song that sounds as though it is a cousin of "Downtown" by Tegan and Sara, the Canadian singer-songwriter duo. 

Next up is "Try...Wait," an eight-minute song that speeds way up before it slows down. 

"As Yours Would" is a cool psychedelic experience, and "Fingers & Toes" is a definite highlight.

Lynn sings about "wishing time away" in "Perfect World" to close the album. 

Overall, "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" is melodic and dreamy with a definite indie feel. 

Levator began as Lynn's solo project when she played her first show in Seattle on March 17, 2003. 

The name "Levator" comes from a surgical instrument used to lift the depressed fragments of a fractured skull. 

In 2004, Lynn released her self-produced and self-recorded album "Midnight."

Her first album consisted of 12 varied songs, including the popular rocker "Disease" and the piano pop of "White Hair," in which Lynn sang about her visible dark side. 

"Midnight" was recorded in her home studio, where she sang and played every instrument including the organ, drums, clarinet and guitar.

She played multiple shows and tours in 2005 in a flexible fashion, accompanied by various musician friends who played with her on moog, baritone guitar, trumpet, bass and drums.

Levator gained another member in 2006 when Skrasek joined. Lynn and Skrasek toured to promote "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive."

The band became a four-piece in 2007 with the additions of Jeremy Mitchell on bass and keyboard, and Nate Henry on tenor sax and keyboard. 

Fans have compared Levator to Galaxie 500 and Mazzy Star. The band is also recommended to lovers of Sonic Youth, Elliott Smith, Neil Young and The Cure. 

Levator recently completed a month-long West Coast tour through Washington, Oregon, Nevada and California.

© Copyright 2007 Mustang Daily

Gaycondo Interview with Levator

Keep it on the Brownlowe: Tragically unheard of band of the week

KEXP reviews Levator's performance at the Georgetown Music Fest

Levator

I’m a sucker for woozy psychedelia, especially when there are heavy effects pedals and a saxophone involved. This Seattle trio absolutely slayed their brief set, which consisted of songs that I can only guess must have come from their latest effort, 2009’s The Biggest Waves Come At Night. Levator plays the Sunset on July 13th w/ Carcrashlander and The Ever Changing Sky.

by James Truitt

The KEXP BLOG

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Spindrift, Black Nite Crash, Levator Chop Suey 6/28

Levator purvey sweet, ethereal shoegaze with the methodical earnestness of Slowdive and Windy & Carl completists, distinguished by Sky Lynn's dreamy, featherweight vocals and glistening guitars. - The Stranger June 25, 2009

Levator opens the night at 8:30pm.

How you know....

How do I know that I play with the best guys ever?

I sleep through practice and they aren't mad at me! Oh man, I set my alarm and slept right through it with crazy dreams plugging my ears. Next thing I know I shoot awake sweating and thirsty and look at my phone. 9:40PM! Shit! I call Nate right away. He's glad I'm okay. I call Matt right afterwards.. he's glad I'm okay. Guess who's buying beer for like the next month of practices? hahahahaha.... Yeah, me.

Georgetown Music Fest at Artopia 6/27

Levator
They'll levitate you to a psychedelic and otherworldly realm; their songs sound like something Frodo would march through Rivendell to in Lord of the Rings. - Seattle Weekly June 24, 2009

Levator plays Georgetown Music Fest Stage at 5:30pm.

Pinball

I just found some old photos from 2nd Ave Pizza (in Seattle's Belltown Neighborhood). I saw so many crazy shows there. I wonder what happened to their pinball machines....

Planning a Tour

Just started booking a September long tour. Can't wait to get back out on the road....

The Fresno Undercurrent...

" Shoegaze rock (haven't heard of it? Look it up!) and psychedelic rock will be in full effect on this otherwise sleepy Sunday night in Fresno. Levator returns to Fresno after a great 2008 show to give Fresno a second change to hear why the Northwest has a unique handle on these genres. Levator, touring in support of a brand-spankin' new record, promises to please."

Monday...

I'm really excited that we'll be playing a brand new song on Monday. It doesn't even have a name yet! Well, that's not true,.. it has approximately 7 names.

hahaha
sky

SodaPop's Marco Giorcelli reviews TBWCAN

Recentemente qualcuno lo ha definito dreamcore: un fumoso intruglio di loops, onirico shoegaze ed eteree santità di sapore Cocteau Twins (Treasure ovviamente!). I mantra che ne scaturiscono sono interessanti ed è inevitabile rimanerne sedotti, come del resto di qualsiasi cibo eccessivamente speziato o zuccheroso! Il rischio è che tal abuso di incenso e miele alla lunga sgogni. Il recente risveglio di un certo fragore noise (siamo finalmente al recupero dei novanta!) mi porta a pensare che, invece, questa forma di minimalismo, dignitoso e ben costruito, conduca principalmente ad una sorta di assopimento sensoriale. Le dichiarazioni d'intenti della bella Sky Lynn (chitarra e voce) riportano alla luce vecchi bauli (cito esplicitamente) di fotografie in bianco e nero dove i ricordi, appena percepibili nei frammenti più profondi della memoria, evocano nostalgie reali (ed indotte). Insomma, benchè provenga da Seattle, la band, ormai al terzo LP, viaggia a mani giunte con il pendolino al centro alla ricerca di fantasmi e premonizioni di una non ben definita mente collettiva. L'unica osservazione che mi sembra di dover sottolineare è che navigando entro tali suggestioni il pericolo è proprio quello di isolarsi completamente dal mondo circostante che, inutile dirlo, ha quotidianamente bisogno di materia e sostanza. Non me ne vogliano gli eterni sognatori.

English Translation via free webiste:

Recently someone it defined it dreamcore: a smoky concoction of loops, dreamlike shoegaze and ethereal sanctity of taste Cocteau Twins (Treasure obviously!). The mantra that spring I am interesting of it and is inevitable to remain seduced it, like besides of any food ecessively speziato or sweet! The risk is that tal I abuse of incense and honey to the long sgogni. The recent one I awaken of a certain roar noise (we are finally to the I recover of ninety!) carries to think myself that, instead, this shape of minimalismo, decorous and quite built, conduca mainly to a sensory sort of drowsiness. The declarations of you institute of the attractive Sky Lynn (guitar and voice) restore to the old light trunks (I cite unequivocally) of black and white photographs where the memories, just percepibili in the deepest fragments of the memory, evoke real nostalgia (and armatures). Well, benchè comes from Seattle, the band, now to the third LP, travels to hands arrived with the commuters to the center to the search for phantoms and premonitions of a not quite definite collective mind. The sole observation that seems me of dover to underline is that sailing within such suggestions the danger is actual that of to isolate itself completely from the neighboring world that, useless to say it, has daily need of matter and substance. Me not they the eternal dreamers may want of it.

Click here to view Original Site.

Friends On The Road

The Fling (Long Beach) will play The Comet on March 30th 2009 to celebrate the release of a new EP 7" Out Of My Head!

Electric Children (Echo Park) were a blast to have in town, our 3rd show together in a month!

Synthesis' Arielle Mullen Interviews Levator

Levator - Cosmic Pop From Seattle 2/17/09

Hailing from Seattle, Washington, Levator is a three-piece band, consisting of vocalist Sky Lynn, Rando Skrasek (drums, effects, synth) and Nate Henry (tenor saxophone, effects, keyboards). Levator’s music, comparable to Morphine, Sonic Youth and Mazzy Star, has an almost tranquilizing effect, with Lynn’s silvery voice sounding almost haunting at times. Working with a plethora of vintage effects pedals and creating live loops on the spot, the band meshes together seamlessly, and commands absolute attention in the most wonderful and unexpected way. This will be Levator's third trip to Chico (they played first at CRUX and most recently Café Coda), and they're out to promote their newest self-released album, The Biggest Waves Come Out At Night. The West Coast tour has quite a few stops near Chico, so I highly recommend checking out nearby shows if you find yourself a Levator fan after February 21st (which you will be). Synthesis was lucky enough to speak with the group regarding life on the road, their newest album and the upcoming show.


I read on your website (levatormusic.com) that you were once driving through Klamath, California, home of the 50 ft tall Paul Bunyan, and had a very traumatizing experience. The head of "Babe" the big blue ox who sits beside Paul Bunyan had suffered an unknown mishap and his head had fallen off. I thought it might interest you to know that in 1946, when Bunyan was still made of paper mache, his head melted and caved in. So as a band that’s done a lot of touring, what are some of the strangest things you've seen while on the road?

Rando: I remember looking out the window of the van and watching a semi rear-end a dominos pizza car.

Nate: Drunken maniac finds plank and smashes front window in because he can't get any more booze.

Sky: Paul Bunyan was originally made out of paper mache?! That's crazy! It's not really the strangest but the other day I was walking down this little old road and thought I saw a baby coyote. I then realized it was hopping! I've never seen tall and long wild rabbit like that before.


As a band, you deal with a lot of effects pedals. Is it hard sometimes to play along with loop samples in live situations? I would imagine that sometimes things might go awry. How do you all recover when something goes wrong?

Nate: I just shut up and start listening ‘cause obviously I haven't been listening very well if I missed the loop.

Rando: Beat stretching, that's what they call that. It's an industry term. Hahaha.

Sky: I imagine playing with prerecorded loops would be more difficult, but we create ours live on the spot so they feel more natural. Like if we're feeling a little spunky or slow that night, the loop reflects that. Oh, yeah, ha! Stuff goes wrong…er, I should say different sometimes. Like the other night, I started a vocal loop and missed the button, so we'll just play that part a little longer till I get all the layers in there or we'll do a certain thing that queues each other for the change.


I've seen you live in Chico twice, and I've noticed you have a lot of vintage pedals, guitars and amps. Why do you prefer using vintage instruments? Is there a specific store or Web site that you get most of your vintage equipment from?

Nate: It's not vintage, it's just rusty.

Rando: I suppose it's a matter of character or color that is unique. The analog synthesizer is more versatile for unique sounds.

Sky: Personality would be a huge part of it. It sounds a bit weird, but I'd rather carry around a few pedals that weigh a lot and are very specific then have a very small portable and convenient multi-effects processor. The old stuff just seems to be a little more personal. There is a store in North Seattle called Guitarville. I love that place. My amp went out on me a couple days before tour which was really scary, but they fixed it up and I had it back a day early and it sounds better than ever.


I've tagged along on a few tours with friends, and it seems like after all the nameless cheap hotels, it's so wonderful to have folks on the road who offer up their homes for a night or two. You seem to do mostly West Coast touring—is there anybody along the coast who you particularly enjoy staying with?

Rando and Nate: Yeah we've had lots of good friends along the way that we've stayed with, but this time we have an RV so we've been inviting them over for pizza parties!

Sky: I think we've only splurged on a hotel room a couple times in the past, but we've made so many awesome friends that have shown us an amazing amount of hospitality along the way that we would end up sleeping in the van only a couple times each tour. There's a man in Sacramento by the name of Eric who deserves the trophy though. The first time we rolled through town he invited us over and had all this take-out food waiting. And we didn't even know him yet! But over time it's fun watching the relationships grow with people you only see a couple days a year.


Is there anything you want fans to know in particular about The Biggest Waves Come Out At Night? We’re really looking forward to this upcoming show in Chico.

Rando: I'm glad you look forward to the live show because this new record is a product of touring and how the songs have grown in that process.

Sky: We always look forward to playing at Café Coda when we're in Chico. Venues take a huge chance on bands the first time around so I think it's really important to keep playing the same places and build that relationship. Bands need venues and venues need bands so it's always nice when you find a place that has a personal feel to things. People you can actually have a conversation with and relate to, rather than just all business. This new record was so much fun to make. It was a real collaboration from start to end. I think we are all really happy with how it came out too, which is really important.

Click here to view the real thing.

San Diego City Beat picks our show!

Levator, Roxy Jones @ Soda Bar. Seattle’s Levator are rocking so much Cocteau Twins in the tour van that they seem to have decoded Liz Fraser’s elfin ramblings and translated them into English.

Click here for actual site.

Collected Sounds' Anna Maria Stjarnell reviews TBWCAN

Levator is fronted by singer/multi-instrumentalist Sky Lynn complimented by Rando Skrasek and Nate Henry.
This is their third album of dreamy yet distorted music.

12:34 sounds like P.J Harvey fronting Morphine, all saxophone and waling vocals. The band captures a late night mood here.

Bruises is shoegaze gone jazz as waves of sound wash over Nate Henry’s sax and Lynn’s angelic singing.

Dark Hair is ghostly and fluid, Lynn’s gorgeous vocals supported by a lovely melody.

Mocking Bird edges into harder territory, and must be a live favorite. The squall of noise is woven into the bands dynamic sound well.

This album is just wondrous.

Click here to view the actual site.

My Parents...

I love my Mom and Dad so much. I can't be thankful enough for who they are, and for who they've let me be. They are always supportive and encouraging. I think I'm one of the luckiest kids alive. It's really been hitting me on this tour....

Levator Live @ Soda Bar - San Deigo

Filmed by Jermy of Origami Ghosts at Soda Bar in San Diego.

tour - day 15

happy valentine's day?

let's see, what has happened since last we spoke: well, shirley's brakes still work, we had a great night in l.a., a great night in san diego, and the less said about long beach the better...

mr. t's in l.a. was awesome; an old converted bowling alley that has shows where the lanes would be. we played with some fantastic local psychedelic bands: electric children, spirit vine, and rocking horse people. we're lucky enough that we get to play with the electric children again in san francisco next friday.

we weren't sure how san diego was going to go; we played the same venue last year and it was a dud, but it's under new owners now and the change was unreal. we crossed paths again with origami ghosts, a band from seattle that we met up with in arcata. never met them until then, but they had their cd release the same night as ours at the high dive, left for tour the same day we did, and have already hit many joints along the way that we're hitting on the way back. apparently they've seen our fliers everywhere.

once again, long beach stories are for later.

we are sitting in the silver fox in bakersfield, one of our favorite places to play. I swear it hasn't changed since the late sixties, and it's perfect. right before walking in I was talking with joe alton on the phone, telling him about the silver fox, and, no shit, a fox ran right by me! they love their foxes in bakersfield I guess...

okay, I'm thirsty, it's time to end this rant. buenos tardes, amigos.

California Bars...

Ever heard of "Mood Lighting"? Well, apparently it's something California bars take very seriously. I don't even know why I bother brushing my hair in this state because no one can see it anyways! hahaha That's really funny because I haven't brushed my hair in two days. No, that's a lie. Today. But time seems longer. Or shorter. Maybe I only need to brush it once every two days. I also have a theory about that, but back to my point.. lighting....

No, I actually really like it- the low lighting that is, (unless I'm trying to find something in my lego case) but I have a theory. I think it's so dang sunny here that the bars keep it very dark day and night to kind of even it out and have you noticed that most bars in Seattle are too bright? Well, maybe they are trying to make up for the big thing that's usually MIA in the overhead compartment of clouds.

I wonder if there are less single people in California. hahaha.. I apologize, that was crude humor. Like people just go to bars to pick people up or something....

SPINearth's Em Brownlowe interviews Levator

Progressive-shoegaze trio, Levator, hope Seattle's moody rain cloud won't follow them into sunny California. In search of a cure for seasonal depression and to realize the rock n roll dream, Sky Lynn, Rando Skrasek and Nate Henry aim to leave Northwestern territory and embark on a month long tour of the Golden State's inland empire.

Such an adventure is nothing new to Levator, as the trio tours regularly throughout the year. However, this time they are driving senior-style in an old school RV (which singer, Sky Lynn, has inherited from her grandfather) to promote their latest self-released album, The Biggest Waves Come At Night.

Levator's first show on the road happened at Portland's Mississippi Pizza, a kitschy pizza lounge whose decor is inspired by the lost city of Atlantis. Inside, Levator's unique sound washed over the audience whose conversation was drowned in awe of the band's somber orchestrations. Sky Lynn, a master of atmospheric sound, wears pointy toed heels to assist her maneuvers upon a effect board containing over a dozen pedals, creating live loops of guitar and vocals which she exhales with impressive range. Meanwhile, saxophone player, Nate Henry adds suspense and mystery through tasteful blows while Rando Skrasek keeps the songs steady with his forceful minimalist beats.

The next day, before departing on a 110 mile trip to Eugene, Levator and I met up to re-nourish ourselves with Bloody Marys, eggs and plenty of bacon. Afterwards, they gave me a tour of their beloved RV and spoke about rock n roll's place in small towns, their new record and living the dream.

EM: Where are you all headed on this tour?
SKY LYNN: Our final destination is San Diego, CA.
NATE HENRY: And every place in between.
SKY: Different town every day...sometimes two towns in one day.

EM: A lot of bands just hit the big cities. What is it like playing small towns?
RANDO: Awesome!
SKY: A lot of times people are appreciative that you stopped through because a lot of people just blow through it. I grew up in a small town so I can appreciate that.
RANDO : I was very appreciative of any band that came to my small town as well.

EM: Where did you all grow up?
SKY: I grew up in Oregon in a town of 1,100 people and one stop light.
RANDO: Oklahoma
NATE: I grew up in eastern Washington and we didn't have bands come through....ever. Unless they were big....like Boston would show up.

EM: What are some of the smaller towns you're going to play between Seattle and San Diego?
ALL: Eugene, Arcata, Redding, Chico, Bakersfield, Monterey, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Eureka, Merced, Modesto...

EM: Tell us a little bit about your newest record, The Biggest Waves Come At Night. How and where was it was recorded?
SKY: The title, The Biggest Waves Come At Night, is a lyric taken from one of the songs. We recorded it in multiple locations. It started at my grandma's old house and then we took it to our practice space and our apartments. We mixed it in our apartment.

EM: Did you find any themes coming through during the recording process?
SKY: We weren't really picking a theme. We recorded a basket full of songs and let them sit together. The two or three that didn't fit the mold of the basket will be put on something else like a 7".

EM: How was the song collection composed?
SKY: We started to record them and then they grew on their own. We would record a skeleton and then listen to it and someone would put something here or there. It was cool and really collaborative.
RANDO: We had good experimentation with micing and sounds that all came out very colorful.

EM: What are the music genres that have influenced these recordings?
SKY: Gosh, what have I been listening to a lot?
NATE: Pink Floyd.
SKY: Yeah, I've probably seen "Live In Pompei" fifty times! I think that's the best movie ever!

EM: What are some of the records you have been pumping while on the road?
SKY: Well, we haven't been listening to a whole lot of music because we broke down twice and couldn't use the stereo because the battery was dead. I taught these guys a couple of rye whiskey songs and had a little sing a long.

EM: Do you all get cabin fever in the RV?
SKY: Not yet!
RANDO: (laughing) Shoo fly shoo....
SKY: Compared to a Chevy Astro Van...
NATE: We're living like kings.
SKY: It's like a football field! I was doing cartwheels, lunges, running back and forth.
NATE: We're gonna be making bacon right over there (points to built in stove)
SKY: And pizza! I brought a pizza pan.

EM: Well, I'll let you all hit the road. Is there anything else you would like to tell the world about the tour or your music?
SKY: I would just recommend [touring] to bands. I just can't even describe the pleasure of being in random places and towns I normally wouldn't even go to.
NATE: And meeting all sorts of cool people that you wouldn't necessarily meet otherwise.
SKY: And finding about all these other bands that I never would have known existed because a lot of people don't go on tour anymore. I mean, there is Myspace but it is different when you see it in person. It's always nice to come home with a stack of new stuff.
RANDO: The explorer...
SKY: The wanderer, gatherer.

Click here to see the video and pictures from the interview.

tour - day 12

I see a pattern developing: play a really fun show, have rv problems. I don't think it has anything to do with radio shows...

here we are in san luis obispo, california, after playing a really fun show last night at a place called the clubhouse. we were part of a "songwriters showcase," which sounds an awful lot like an open mic night, but trust me it's not. there were seven other solos/groups that played three or four songs a piece, with us smack in the middle with our five songs that turned into 45 minutes. we know how to party. some of the acts we played with were really quite good, and some were very funny. the people at the clubhouse were awesome and treated us really well; drinks, food, ghost stories, etc...

now we're waiting for the brake pads and rotors to be replaced on shirley so we can make it to l.a. for the show tonight. without a doubt, this is the most expensive thing we've had to work on yet. but hey, by the time we get back to seattle we will have an almost brand new rv, right?

right?

209Vibe and The Record Newspaper's Aaron Davis interviews Levator

When you’ve got a name like Sky Lynn, you pretty much have no choice in life but to be the lead singer of a band. Period. Done.

Fortunately for Sky Lynn of Seattle’s Levator, she seems to have a knack for the whole frontwoman thing, in particular from a songwriting standpoint. The band’s newest album “The Biggest Waves Come at Night” seeps with the cherish and occasionally the anguish of an aged family photo album (not the digital kind you buy at Target).

“Last year was kind of a tough year – my grandma passed away, my dad got hit by a car, so I was going through all the things that that would entail,” Lynn said in a phone interview from a tour stop in San Jose, with bandmates Nate Henry and Rando Skrasek hanging out on speaker phone.

“We started the record in my grandma’s old house before the family sold it, so it kind of was a way for me to capture some of those memories and feelings,” she said. “Even though some of the songs aren’t necessarily about those subjects, it’s like my own personal scrapbook.”

Henry and Skrasek were more than happy to lend their chops to the faded edges of the band’s third record (the first as a collaboration between these three), making Levator a much-buzzed Emerald City export that’s garnering heavier radio play and filling more and more iPods these days.

Levator (pronounced like “elevator” without the e) performs at the Plea For Peace Center on Wednesday, February 18, joined by budding Manteca singer/songwriter Travis Vick, as well as Sacramento’s Sulky Darky.

Plea for Peace is at 630 E. Weber Ave. in Stockton. The show gets rolling at 7 p.m., and admission is $6 ($2 annual membership fee required).

Just give a listen to the first track on “Biggest Waves,” entitled “12:34” (and no, that’s not a rip-off of Feist’s “1234”, I checked) and you’ll probably have this as the first thought: “Woah, easy on the Pink Floyd!”

“I don’t know if it was intentional, but I could see how it would seep out; we all love our Pink Floyd,” said Henry, amid chuckling from the rest of the band. Henry green lights the beginning of the record with a primal, narcotic saxophone riff that packs hazy undertones of “Wish You Were Here.”

From there, Levator takes off on a spinning sonic siesta of Lynn’s ethereally aching vocals and raw, salt-of-the-Earth guitar licks, with Henry and Skrasek applying an intricate rhythmic landscape.

It’s what a Pink Floyd record might have sounded like inside Hunter S. Thompson’s head whilst driving through Barstow, on the edge of the desert – but before he reaches bat country.

They’re also the kind of band (that doesn’t play ska music) that reaffirms how much of an enigmatically powerful instrument the saxophone can be when correctly applied in rock music.

“I’ve been playing (sax) for over 20 years; I kind of gave it up for a little while, when all my friends started playing in bands,” Henry said. “I was like ‘screw this, I can play the sax with you easier than I can learn another instrument.’

“I kind of forced it on them,” he added, again met with laughter from the band, further demonstrating that nothing this band does appears to be “forced” at all.

BAND WEBSITE: www.myspace.com/levator.

Click here for actual Site

tour - day 10

after a couple relaxing days off in the redwoods - damn, shirley was a champ - we made our way to san francisco, with a stop along the way to get the alternator replaced. now that almost the whole electrical system has been worked on things seem to be running well.

san francisco was a great time. house of shields was the place; it used to be a speakeasy during prohibition times, and it still retains the charm. the bands play upstairs in a little loft, 10 people makes it seem full. we ended up staying up til 5:30am with sam the sound guy. needless to say, our trip to san jose (where we are right now) was a little rough, but we made it.

now it's off to santa cruz and monterrey, two shows today. and hopefully some beach if there is time...

Press, Great Bands and Film

It's a nice sunny day here in San Jose California and the folks at Coffee Society are playing Blonde Redhead. Support from the local press has been great in most every town we have played. Thank you: Seattle Weekly, Portland Mercury (Seattle's Levator is the unlikely trio of guitar, drums, and sax, but they emit a florid, encompassing sound that is rich with shadow and detail. Guitarist Sky Lynn is a vocalist of surprising range, and on the band's new full-length, The Biggest Waves Come at Night, she weaves both wordless chorales and hard-rock vocals with equal skill. And don't be put off by the presence of Nate Henry's sax: This isn't Huey Lewis and the News or Men at Work. Henry's drawn-out, haunting lines aim for drama, mood, and mystery rather than rooty-toot gas piping. Together, the trio patiently creates a stormy, lush backdrop in which songs rise up slowly, then heavily crash down like waves hitting sand. NL Levator also performs tonight at 6 pm at Music Millennium (3158 E Burnside), Eugene Weekly, Hope Mountain Radio (http://www.takilmafm.com/), northcoastjournal in Eureka, San Francisco Weekly and the San Jose Metro for writing up our Street Light Records show and Humboldt's New Rock! KSLG 94.1 FM for broadcast love.

I'd like to share some of the great bands we had the pleasure of playing with this week!
http://www.myspace.com/secrethighways
http://www.myspace.com/theswallows
http://www.myspace.com/jongarciaportland - Live Harp! very nice Raelyn.
http://www.myspace.com/sniderland - Testface
http://www.myspace.com/origamighosts - Thanks for the love fellas!
http://www.myspace.com/heyeleanor - Amazing Aunty Mo's set!
http://www.myspace.com/aforeigncinema

Check out a film I put together befor we left for the road: Bruises, Biggest Waves Come At Night

tour - day 5

hello again! we successfully made it from eugene to cave junction, oregon, where we spent our evening in a small radio station up in the mountains with epoch the dj. it was a blast. we played cd's that we brought with us, rooted through the station's record collection, ate the first meal cooked on shirley's stove...

now we are sitting behind big pete's pizza in arcata, california. notice a trend here? pizza and beer, pizza and beer. we got to see paul bunyon and babe the blue ox at trees of mystery today, but unfortunately we got there right after closing. no redwood seeds for anyone! at least babe had his head back; the last time we went through it had fallen off. very traumitizing.

hooray for tour. will correspond soon. say hi to my cat.

tour - day 3

so, after having a blast last night in eugene, we awoke this morning to our rv's battery being dead. well, that's what we thought, until getting a jump-start; turns out it is the starter. we're waiting right now for AAA to show up and tow us to a service station. seems we are going to replace the rv piece by piece; hopefully in the next week or so we will have fixed everything...

we are on our way to cave junction, oregon after this to do a radio show. I'm wondering if maybe doing radio spots is what's killing the rv. 'hey sky, cancel all our radio shows!!'

tour - the first couple days

it started out well enough: we got to sleep at 4 am after the cd release party, got up at 6:30 am, went over to all-city coffee, and were on the road by 7:30. our radio went out in tacoma (goddamn circuit city!! we said...), but spirits were high. about an hour outside of portland we noticed that something was wrong.

it seems that shirly, our rv (named after it's speed: we'll get there, slowly but shirly), had thrown a fan belt. it turns out, the fan belt also turns the alternator, and without that, we ran the battery out with our radio, thus no tunes. (sorry, circuit city, we didn't mean to besmirch your name.) as we didn't have another fan belt with us, we called sky's father, who lives about half an hour from where we were. he came with an assortment of fan belts, we found the one that fit, and we were on our way. until shirly threw that belt too. we made it to the nearest service station and had it fixed. if you're ever in kelso-longview area, go to kerr's kar korner (or something like that), and have manuel help you. he got us back on the road for about $10.

problem is: we missed the radio show in portland. but we made the cd store show, and got a nap beforehand. I think we still won.

we got to see some good friends in portland, played a fun show at mississippi pizza, ate our fill of delicious pie, and fell asleep early. well, sky didn't, she had an adventure instead. but I'll let her tell you that part.

this morning we had a delicious breakfast with em from swallows (who we played with at miss. pizza) as is our portland custom, and now we're hanging out in eugene. sam bond's garage is an awesome venue, we're looking forward to it. man, I'm thirsty (that means I need beer).

okay, that's all for now. see you soon.

Oregon

Portland Walk
Originally uploaded by Levator

Oregon Daily Emerald's Ott Tammik reviews TBWCAN

Levator's 'The Biggest Waves Come At Night' redefines indie

Album's melodic tones and relaxed cadence scintillate

By: Ott Tammik

Posted: 1/29/09

Indie wasn't always the mainstream. Before Issaquah, Wash.'s Modest Mouse went international and began playing good but FM radio-friendly songs, most people wanted nothing to do with the atonal noise that was the broad genre's most ear-catching element. After this latest series of bands, many are sick of a fad that has gone on for way too long, but bear with us - here is one more truly indie band that you must add to your iPod.

Levator is drowsy drowned in distortion. From the historically promising musical breeding grounds of Seattle, the three-piece group has been dubbed as "dream core." Its meditative sound is led by a youthful, high-pitched and pleasant female voice, backed by a drone of synth effects and unhurried rock beats. Without exaggeration, the effect is numbing. The entrancing rhythm and ambient sound instills thoughts of reflection in the listener.

"The Biggest Waves Come at Night," which debuted on Tuesday, is a great CD to blast through speakers when you are in a creative mood. Levator is anything but harsh. The album is one rock lullaby after another; it is mellow to the max. In the slightly depressing "Dark Hair," one can hear not just the Sonic Youth-like tones of vocalist Sky Lynn, but even the breath blowing from her lungs, cutting through the buzz of distortion. Entering and exiting layers eventually fade out, leaving a very indie, grungy feedback.

"Mocking Bird" is a poppy number that brightens up the end of the album and "Bruises" depicts Levator's ability for subtle catchiness. The motive of the song is the distinguishing factor separating dance music from art music. The melodies are simple, wavering and sometimes uncertain. Other times they are not melodies at all, just extended measure-long notes that guide the surge of sound. One of the album's most promising features is its use of deep saxophone tones reminiscent of experimental jazz rock band, Morphine.

The independently produced album, its packaging created from vegetable ink and printed on recycled cardboard, is decorated by a collage of photos.

"When I think about the songs on 'The Biggest Waves Come At Night,'" said Lynn, "I imagine sitting in my Grandma's old library flipping through a scrapbook. Every song seems to be represented by a series of aging photographs. Some are sad in the way that you miss people that aren't in this place anymore. Some make you giggle behind the tear that's caused by how beautiful your Grandma is holding up your father as a baby. But some are faded or double exposed and then I realize it's a dream. A dream caused by a detailed and mischievous subconscious. They are half fictional and half autobiographical; and sometimes I can't tell where one stops and the other begins."

Click here to see the review.

Keys & Chords (Belgium) review TBWCAN

Lavator is an independent producing tie that originating is from Seatlle and has neat its third release on the market brought according to Sky Lynn (jet ear, vocalize, synthesiser, impact, bass) this new album is a deposition where the link for state lives, viz. in a city and tries keep it in the middle of between the daily events and simultaneously create joy in their personal live. Rando Skrasek (drums) and nasty Henry (saxophone) complete the link. Itself gladly makes them the comparison with P.J. Harvey, Mazzy Starr or Sonic Youth. After their recent tour this sound was defined as `dream core. Such as you in the musical bezetting already could read, work them rather much with synthesizers and impact, and late `this now net my thing is not. `Is a song saves Room concerning supernatural and haunts, soundvervorming and up-beat a vocal tone on `Morking Bird speaks volumes. This indie-pop with a bouncing step are, trance induction jet ears and luxuriant votes.

The original text....

Lavator is een onafhankelijk producerende band die afkomstig is uit Seatlle en heeft net zijn derde release op de markt gebracht
Volgens Sky Lynn (gitaar, vocalise, synthesiser, effects, bas) is dit nieuwe album een getuigenis waar de band voor staat, nl. leven in een grootstad en trachten het midden te houden tussen de dagelijkse gebeurtenissen en gelijktijdig vrolijkheid scheppen in hun persoonlijk leven. Rando Skrasek (drums) en Nate Henry (sax) vervolledigen de band. Zelf maken ze graag de vergelijking met P.J. Harvey, Mazzy Starr of Sonic Youth. Na hun recente tour werd deze sound omschreven als ‘dream core’. Zoals je in de muzikale bezetting al kon lezen, werken ze nogal veel met synthesizers en effecten, en laat ‘dit’ nu net mijn ding niet zijn. ‘Red Room’ is een song over het bovennatuurlijke en spoken, soundvervorming en een up-beat vocale toon op ‘Morking Bird’ spreken boekdelen. Dit is indie-pop met een verende tred, trance-inducerende gitaren en welige stemmen.

Click here to go to the review on Keys & Chords site.

[sic] Magazine publishes review of TBWCAN

Click Here to read the review.

Thank you Tim Clarke and [sic] Magazine!

Milk Milk Lemonade's Casey reviews TBWCAN

SUNDAY, JANUARY 11, 2009

Levator

Give us a dozy Sunday afternoon to lounge about, licking all sorts of wounds, and we will find a way to conjure up some amazingly listenable music... this time from the Pacific Northwest. Sound like a deal?

Levator is primarily the indie rock music project of Seattle, Washington based multi-instrumentalist Sky Lynn (vocals, guitar, effects, synth) who originally began making music under this particular moniker in 2003. After enlisting the assistance of local musicians Nate Henry (tenor saxophone, effects, keyboards) and Rando Skrasek (drums, effects, synth) along the way, this now trio has a third full length album, titled The Biggest Waves Come At Night, completed and set for self-release on January 27.

As if Sky's commanding and remarkably beautiful vocals were not enough to convince even the most brutal critic in the house, healthy portions of saxophone accompaniment provide a welcome journey back into the crackle and hiss of most any listener's distant memory of The Psychedelic Furs earliest catalogue. Have a first listen...

MP3: Mocking Bird (Streaming on Milk Milk Lemonade's Site)

The Biggest Waves Come At Night is an outstanding new collection of songs we can easily recommend; for Seattle locals, we'd also suggest a trip to the Sunset Tavern for the CD release party on January 30.

For more of this music as well as a few videos, a visit to the Levator MySpace page should be your first stop. There is also an official Levator website for additional information on purchasing the music and a Ministry Of Truth blog for all the latest news and some insight. Another new track for you... sooo good.

MP3: Bruises (Streaming on Milk Milk Lemonade's Site)

Click here to go to review on Milk Milk Lemonade's site

Church of Girl Radio - Radio Star

Levator's music has the ability to alter the passage of time and penetrate all your dimly lit spaces.

We are very excited about their new release, The Biggest Waves Come at Night. The Seattle area trio are hitting the road on a west-coast tour at the end of the month and will be on the road for most of February.

Church of Girl Radio

Click here to view it on their site.

Luna Kafe's Tim Clarke reviews The Biggest Waves Come at Night

Levator
The Biggest Waves Come At Night
Levator Music

It shouldn't be a surprise when I'm blown away by a record sent by someone who contacts me personally to review their album. After all, amazing music can be found in all corners of the world, in all genres. But sometimes an album comes along that is exactly what my ears need at a given time. Seattle trio Levator's The Biggest Waves Come At Night is exactly what I need right now. I'm broke, the start of the Australian summer has turned into a washout, and all of these 'best of 2008' lists have started to make my head spin with all the great music I need to catch up with.

A couple of months ago I downloaded Beach House's Devotion. Although there are some good songs on there, I now realise that this Levator album is actually what I wanted to hear! It's a similar breed of dream-pop, fronted by the heavenly voice of Sky Lynn, calling from under a warm duvet of reverbed guitars, woolly beats, world-weary saxophone, and loads of droney bass and synth, all played by Lynn and her equally talented bandmates Rando Skrasek and Nate Henry. It's a gorgeous-sounding record.

There's just enough greasy strut - opener "12:34" and the rousing "Mocking Bird" - to balance the more woozy numbers, which is where this record's real beauty lies. The first time I heard "Dark Hair", its eerie guitar strum and tom-tom thud instantly made my chest ache. I felt like I was back in my teenage bedroom listening to early '90s indie band Belly's magical Star album. Every time I play this song I'm mesmerised by the way it manages to float like a ghost in the night sky, yet feel so emotionally weighty. The cry of "Angel!" is accompanied by a lovely saxophone line and backing vocals, and you realise that it sounds like some ancient African waltz, the tribe dosed on barbiturates. "Everything!" the voices cry as the lumbering beat kicks in. The song ebbs and flows, reaching its climax with a distorted loop, hissing and spitting, to fade. Fuck, what a great song.

Followed by "Intro to" and the lovely, lilting "Eyes", the middle of the record signals its high point to my ears. Closer "Trampoline" is great too, the guitar strum slowly succumbing to the undertow at the song's finale. But ultimately, at eight tracks and a succinct 44 minutes, this is an album with no excess fat, worth absorbing as a whole in order to luxuriate in its complete brilliance.

This is Levator's third album, and if their first two are anywhere near as good as this, I know where my Christmas money is going. Strongly recommended.

Copyright © 2009 Tim Clarke
Luna Kafe
Click here to go to review on Luna Kafe's site