Record Reviews

This is Not a Slow Burn: The Firmary – Soft Reboot

It’s been more than a long while since I’ve been able to devote time to Sister’s Dissonance, with several creative projects of my own consuming me the last several years (most pressingly and enjoyably, fiction writing and publishing). But recently, for several reasons, I’ve felt the pull to return to my roots as a music ‘zine writer, and I have come across some really great music that’s causing me to feel the irrepressible urge to shout out about it (which has always been the driving force of this publication).

That said, and as a quick reminder, reviews on this site are not reviews per se but a place to share things that we want to help spread the word about and share with like-minded souls that will possibly (hopefully) have the same visceral reaction and excitement about; we only share things we love, and nothing more. As they say, word-of-mouth is the most powerful mode of communicating, and we are firm believers in engaging in that to help support other creatives.

So here it goes. The first for me to mention in my recently-reemerged-from Sis Diss slumber is The Firmary, a band based in Cleveland by way of LA, Chicago, and Buffalo. They’re a band I came across via a few different avenues that intersected around the same time and happily led me to find and follow them. I really liked what I heard. A lot. And just recently they released Soft Reboot, an EP loaded with equally-solid, fabulous tracks. Not one is a throw away, and after compulsively listening to it many, many times over (and many more to come), I’m still hard pressed to pick a favorite as it shifts with every listen. I made a few notes amidst some of those listens, so here are my thoughts, which will hopefully compel you to give them a listen, too, if you don’t already know of them.

As the title of this article states, this EP is no slow burn. Upon pressing play you find within the sonic walls of Soft Reboot, alternating blistering /swirling /atmospheric guitarwork that soars and drops hard like a fabulous rollercoaster ride; strong, charismatic vocals with plenty of emotion bleeding through; just enough keys to keep it ethereal and menacing; basslines that are deep and driving, and combined with adept drumming, together the rhythm makers that be cradle the songs with a meticulous, iron-clad solidness.

As a music connoisseur for more decades than I want to admit, I spy an amalgam of fleeting sounds from various eras and genres, most notably the late 80’s/90’s (which hit a sweet and nostalgic spot for me). I always hesitate to draw comparisons for fear of pigeonholing, but I’ll throw out just a few for a point of reference: The Cure/Echo and the Bunnymen/The Church (thinking jangly guitar stylings of Robert Smith, Will Sergeant, and Marty Willson-Piper), along with dashes of Jane’s Addiction, Stone Temple Pilots, Nirvana, and Alice in Chains, in various ways. These are mentioned only as a what-you-might-also-hear aside (according to my ears) to get you interested. And all of the above, whether I’m on the right track or not as it relates to what’s meant to be expressed by the band musically, are meant as compliments.

It is apparent The Firmary are extremely well-seasoned, accomplished musicians in every regard (check out their bio to learn more about that), and they are their own thing. At the heart of it, I’m really loving driving around listening to the EP on repeat, feeling like I can blow out some big emotions and feeling uplifted and invigorated at the same time. My favorite track, as of this minute? “Rusty.” But ask me again in a few!

Listen to The Firmary via Spotify, and YouTube support them by purchasing Soft Reboot via Bandcamp and elsewhere, and learn more about them via their website at thefirmarymusic.com

And by all means, if you love it too, be sure to follow them and share the links and engage in word of mouth practices, too!

— Shan

Rusty – The Firmary

Gasp – The Firmary

Interview + New Music Alert | Maesmynis

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Maesmynis

By Shan
All photos by Maesmynis

Eight years ago I stumbled upon on a song. It was one of those kinds that, for whatever reason, just hit me right in the gut . . . the kind of song that evokes that unnamed magical feeling when the music becomes bigger than itself and resonates within every cell in your body. As a fellow music addict, I am pretty sure you know what I’m talking about.

The song was “Garden Song” and I found it during one of my frequent visits to the Strummerville (now the Joe Strummer Foundation) website, perusing their DIY section–an early innovation that appeared during the dawn of sites like Soundcloud. Strummerville DIY was their version and allowed visitors to hear a song by some of the selected talent (the stipulation being that the band was unsigned and had no record contract, therefore allowing bands some well-deserved exposure). The band in question in this instance was The Cuban Heels, and it prompted an immediate frantic search for more by them.

The first thing I discovered was there were a couple other bands with the same name, so, taking on the challenge I sampled music of various other origins (nope not that one, no I don’t think they’re from Scotland) and I started to wonder if the search would end there. But then the clouds parted, the sun blared in my eyes and I found a thread of information that lead me to the right place, the Cuban Heels, the ones from Bristol England, and oh shit!, a band that existed until about 3 years prior. It was a posting that then-Heels guitarist Chris Venables had made about the disbandment of the band, and offered to anyone who found his post that was interested, a disc containing all of the music they had recorded, for free. I was bummed to learn that they were no longer an entity, but, what!? I was thrilled to suddenly have hit the lottery with a treasure box of their songs potentially on the horizon.

The short of it is this. Chris did indeed send me a cd, kindly ignoring the fact that the parcel had to be sent overseas to get to me, and The Cuban Heels quickly became one of my favorite bands ever that no longer existed, and I wore–and continue to wear–a hole in that cd from repeat listening (Now that the cd has been converted for my iPhone, I have to stop to ask . . .can you wear a hole in digital music? I think the answer could be yes).

Flash forward to last year when a posting on the Cuban Heels Facebook  page announced a new page to follow. Hmmm? What could this be? Alas! Hark! Yessss! and all those other extreme swearwords of excitement. It was the announcement about the reforming of a new band from the ashes of the Heels . . . Maesymnis had been born! I bought the album as soon as it came out and devoured it, making them one of my all-time favorite bands that are not no longer existing.

To celebrate the music, I got in touch with Chris to work out doing a transcontinental interview, which follows below. Before we get to it, you can check out some of their songs via YouTube, follow them on Facebook (tell them Sis Diss sent you!), and grab some of their music here.

You can check out  The Cuban Heels on Soundcloud, including the now infamous-in-my-book “Garden Song.”  I also discovered during the course of writing this article that their SoundCloud is even more evidence of their uncanny ability to ceaselessly and prolifically create beautiful music together. Searching for Garden Song yielded even more magic, as I discovered The Soundcloud now contains even more songs, many, many I have not heard yet myself, that were not part of the cd. I think I’m going to be pretty busy absorbing all these great tunes for the next few months. I suggest you do the same!

Special thanks to Aron, Marcus and Chris for taking time to make this interview possible!

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AA – Aron Attwood
MA – Marcus Attwood
CV – Chris Venables
SD – Shan / SisDiss

SD – You were the Cuban Heels and then you weren’t for a while, and then you became Maesmynis. What where you in between?

AA – Most of us embraced normal life. Being in a band can be a very overwhelming experience. It makes you sort of selfish when you set your mind to a single almost impossible task. Things fall by the wayside, so it was nice to get back to a simple life and interact with friends and family on a more personal level rather than being constantly distracted with other things that seem more important.

I personally had to get as far away as possible for my own sanity so decided to move to Australia for a short while. Unfortunately while I was there I got caught up with EMI Australia through a solo album of mine and I was landed right back to square one. I did a short UK tour when I got back to England with a shit punk rock band called ‪Towers of London. Fun and shit at the same time. It was like going on holiday with complete strangers then finding out you have nothing in common with them.

I ran my own studio for a while, played in a few local bands, one Birmingham band called Liner (with old friend Alex Callaghan) got a songwriting diploma, moved to stroud and am playing in a couple of really fun bands now. I don’t take it all that seriously anymore. I just try to enjoy the moments as they happen. It’s still very difficult to avoid the cycle of excitement and disappointment though. That’s still my biggest work in progress.

MA – So the Cuban heels came to the end of their run but the music continued.  Aron joined Alex in his band ‘Liner’ and started producing other bands as well as developing his own songwriting.  Russ joined Marcus in ‘Transit Cop’ (quickly being promoted from van driver to second guitar) and then later teamed up with Chris to form ‘The Ripleys’.  After ‘ Liner’, Aron and Alex would later form ‘Mule’ with Joel.  Steve and Joel subsequently hooked up with a third party Will to form the power trio ‘ ‪Biff Bang Pow’.

CV – Steve also played in a couple of punk bands ‘Waiting for Taylor’ and ‘Dead Kids’. Working full time to support ourselves whilst being in a full time band on top became overwhelming.  We remained friends and we’ve always loved making music and so that never went away.  What went away was the practicing 3 days a week and gigging 3 times a week that took quite a toll.

SD – How has the lineup changed since the Cuban Heels, and what brought you all back together (perhaps you picked up my mental messages imploring you to)?

AA – I have been working on my psychic abilities and definitely picked up on some encouragement from over the Atlantic. Unfortunately I have also been picking up the shipping forecast and the local police radios.

Seriously though we always jam together whenever we can, and have played together in various line ups. This is the first line up that includes all the former Heels though. Chris and Russ had a band called The Ripleys which I contributed to. Me Joel and Alex had an on off project called Mule. Dan had his one man show The Nine Lives of Henry the Cat on Ice, where he would play prog versions of the damned and sex pistols while being pulled on a sleigh.

Russ getting married brought us all back together though. Rather than a traditional stag do, we decided to get together and have a songwriting weekend instead. All the heels with the addition of my brother Marcus, our school friend Steve and Alex from Liner and Mule. This proved so productive and fun that we did it a few more times. We eventually decided we should properly record some of the mountain of songs we had written and the obvious next step after that was to gig it too.

CV – We’re the same, Joel (Stevens), Russ (Mulligan), Aron, Dan (Wells) and me (Chris) but now have also Al (Callaghan), Marcus, and Steve (Payne).  When it came to one of the ex-heels getting married for a “stag do” we decided to arrange a songwriting weekend for musical friends which included all original heels plus 3 others.  Russ and I were inspired by Karl Coryat and Nicholas Dobson’s The Frustrated Songwriter’s Handbook, in which you are forced to individually write songs for 12 hours straight!  We played around with the format quite a lot to make it more collaborative.

SD – I’ve seen the mini documentary floating around online and your recording space looks idyllic. What was the experience like and what part did it play in influencing your record? How did you find your space?

AA – The first place we got together as the full group was Russ’s stag do. At a house in Wales in a hamlet called Maesmynis. A beautiful, remote country hide-away. We returned back there a second time, but unfortunately the owners sold the property. We convened at Chris’s house in Oxfordshire for another session, then recorded at Steve Winwoods studio near Cheltenham. We have been very lucky to have managed to find very idyllic inspiring spaces to work in. That makes a huge difference.

CV – The video shows two different places.  The place with the beautiful rolling countryside is in a hamlet in central Wales called “Maesmynis”.  It was a cottage we hired for the writing weekend – we chose central Wales primarily because it’s cheap to hire a house in the middle of nowhere with no neighbours (in order that lots of noise can be made) but I also had a slight hankering to pay homage to Led Zep who also retreated to a cottage in Wales to write Led Zep III.

SD – It looks to me like everyone is multi-talented and plays and sings in different configurations. How was it decided for each song who played what? Did everyone have a hand in writing or do you have a principal writer?

AA – Everyone writes, and usually the person who comes up with the vocal idea sings. The songwriting process is an organised game. Generally in the morning everyone finds a quiet spot on their own and writes solo for about an hour. Then we come back and pick a name out of a hat and partner up in pairs. You play what you have to each other. Either a riff, some lyrics, a melody or a complete song, it doesn’t matter. The idea is to just flow and be creative with the prospect of other people adding parts to what you have. There are two very good lead singers in the band who would sometimes be used if we felt the song needed a more solid lead vocal but quite often the person who wrote the vocal would have their own inimitable way of putting the vocal across. Generally I would end up on the drums, and lead guitar would be either Marcus or Chris. Dan is our ‪Garth Hudson and would cover all the keyboards and Steve rolled blunts and made us all laugh. On the whole though anyone could be asked to do pretty much anything so we have probably played in just about every conceivable variation eight people could play in.

CV – The answer to this is hand in hand with the original idea for the songwriting stag do.  30 minutes individually to generate ideas.  Pairs formed by names being drawn out of a hat and another 30 mins to come up with music!  The songs all then generally had a genesis from either one or two people within the group and then were worked to completion by anywhere from one to eight of the members.  To foster the sense of camaraderie and collaboration we decided that songs be credited to all members even though in reality it was usually one or two per song who would be the writers.  There was no principal writer.  All members had a hand in writing at least one of the tunes on the album.  There are 6 different lead vocalists on the record.  Most of the group are competent on a number of different instruments.  Generally when it came to recording everyone played parts in line with what was played during the writing process.  However there were exceptions such as that although 3 or 4 of us are decent on the drums we have a world class drummer in Aron so it didn’t make sense for any of the rest of us to play drums on the recording.

SD – Who are some of your influences (long term growing up type) and who are you listening to these days?

AA – Me and Chris were at primary school together and were into retro music, 60s, 70s etc.  It wasn’t something you talked about openly. I distinctly remember getting some Motown acetate records on a cereal box and dancing around to them at Chris’s and thinking we should be in a band and do this kind of stuff. We went to a few formative gigs together growing up. Reef, ‪Supergrass and a few others. Later on people like ‪the Flaming Lips and Beck.

I have gone through all the major phases since then. A Beatles phase, a bob Marley phase, a Dylan phase. My most recent obsession has been ‪Tom Waits. I have so much admiration for his conviction and craftsmanship. His catalogue is so rich it never fails to inspire me.

CV – Amongst the 8 of us I don’t think there’s anyone who doesn’t appreciate the 60s and 70s greats; Beatles, Stones, Credence, Bowie.  Outside of that there is quite an eclectic taste within the group taking in punk, soul, DnB, jazz.  For me, when music started becoming important my first heroes were ‪Pearl Jam, Lemonheads, Nirvana, RHCP, Pumpkins, ‪Weezer, REM, ‪Radiohead.  Later Jellyfish, ‪Flaming Lips, ‪Tom Waits, ‪PJ Harvey, ‪Pixies, ‪Fleet Foxes. Most recently been listening to some old jazz blues records; Billie Holliday, ‪Nina Simone, ‪Django Reinhardt/Stephane Grappelli.

SD – If there was one single word to describe what Maesmynis brings to the world, what would it be?

AA – Friendship

CV – Trouble

Shan – Besides the Cuban Heels and Maesmynis, is there any other music out there from any of you that is available online for our readers to seek out?

‘Magic 8 Ball’ – Aron Attwood – available on Spotify/itunes etc.

‪https://open.spotify.com/artist/6FLnXFoCy3bF9l5sHecL8e

‘Nothing like before’ – The Ripleys  (Russ & Chris) – available on Spotify/itunes etc.

‪https://open.spotify.com/artist/3vIi0v6TsyIt7nWzCCN7br

‪https://m.soundcloud.com/steve-payne

All bands mentioned above have have various levels of presence out there on the infoweb.

SD – I know that you ha[d] a gig coming up very soon in Bristol. Barring me finding a teleportation device, will it be recorded so you can share with the rest of the world? And are there any future plans for more music?

CV – With all focus on the logistics of making it right on the night alas the gig wasn’t recorded as such.  However there are some great photos and a couple of short (surprisingly reasonable quality) phone clips to at least give a flavour of the night on the facebook page.

AA – It is very difficult to organise eight busy people to get together for a beer let alone rehearsals and a gig so the prospect of another gig is unlikely but not out of the question. We treated the last gig like a one off but if something seems doable in the future then we would all love to do it.

[SD – dig around for clips of their live show, and also definitely check out their cover of Beastie Boys’ Sabotage from that night!]

SD – If you were each a condiment, topping or spice…what are you in terms of what you bring to the band?

AA – (all the below)

Alex, definitely chilli. He adds heat and spice. His energy is so irrepressible it’s infectious.

Marcus, salt or pepper. You probably want at least a little bit on everything.

Chris, cheese–he’s the topping that everyone loves. Comfort food you couldn’t live without that binds everything together. Until he plays a guitar solo then he’s jalapeño!

Steve, weed brownies–very sweet and makes everyone laugh like children.

Dan, hundreds and thousands–he’s the magic on top of everything. Sprinkling his fairy dust on top.

Russ, mayonnaise–cos he’s white and likes chips.

Joel, horseradish–cos he likes to go with something beefy.

CV – Aron, poppy seeds–nutty, magic powers, illegal in several countries.

♦

PS
SD – Maesmynis (pronounced ‘Maze-menace’ if you’re in the band, or if you’re Welsh ‘Mice-minnis’) is available on iTunes and Amazon– treat yo’self and go get it!

 

New Music Alert | Africa Express Presents: The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians & Guests Live Release

New live album release today (now streaming and available via Google play) December 9th, 2016

The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians & Guests
Transgressive Records

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Sisters Dissonance, as you may or may not already know, first became a thing almost 10 years ago when Ady and I combined our travels to see live music performances with our desire to document those experiences and the adventures that occurred along the way. Our driving force is and always has been to make our own fun together.

A beautiful and somewhat unexpected natural byproduct of this thing called Sis Diss, we discovered, has been the human factor. It is the connections we continue to make with people all over the world in the process of our endeavor–the artists and musicians, the fellow fans and music heads, and all of the other people whose orbits have crossed paths with ours one way or another–that is the most rewarding part of Sis Diss of all.

And so, in a world that alarmingly feels like it is becoming more and more closed, increasingly divided and in turmoil, Ady and I strive to find our place among another reality that exists. This is a reality populated with a contingent of human beings around the globe that are steadfast in countering negativity, prejudice and division by purposefully reaching out, by bringing others together, and by working toward breaking down barriers not creating new ones. A reality filled with those who are mindful of their fellow humans. Often music and art is at the center of these efforts. This is the world we at Sis Diss seek to dwell in.

It is this mindset that brings to mind a show we saw last summer, The Orchestra Of Syrian Musicians in London England. No, I was not there in person, but thanks to the wonders of the internet, through a live broadcast on YouTube, I was able to watch virtually with my sister in Philly and my friend Gina in Minneapolis, from my own living room in Cleveland as together we live tweeted and texted during throughout show. We felt part of it. London/Cleveland/Philly/Minneapolis joined in along with the thousands of others across the globe tuned in together, interacting with the folks at Africa Express themselves, who made it feel like a global party. We were there for another beautiful coming together – something that Africa Express has a knack for doing on a grand scale, this time through the collaboration of Syrian musicians and countless others who joined them.

Flash forward to three days ago when I received a message from Africa Express to say that I had won an album from Benin artists Poly-Rhythmo in yet another effort by Africa Express to connect the world through music and spread it to the world. Thrilled to bits to be a recipient, as a rabid fan of music from all over the world thanks to the introduction by a professor in a ethnomusicology class I took in college back in the early 90’s, I anxiously await expanding my musical horizons even more, and I thank Africa Express for the opportunity! I will share my thoughts on that album soon to continue the spiral of positive energy.

This brings me full circle to today, and the point of this post . . . to  continue the reciprocity and join in spreading the musical love as Africa Express celebrate the release day of the resulting album of the The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians and Guests.

Following a series of acclaimed dates in the UK and Europe this summer, Africa Express today announces the release of a live album entitled Africa Express Presents… The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians & Guests. The recordings were made in June when The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians, featuring current and former members of the Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music, came together for the first time since the conflict in their country flared up five years ago. They were joined by artists from Britain, Syria, Algeria, Lebanon, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Turkey, Tunisia and the United States including Bashy, Bassekou Kouyaté, Bu Kolthoum, Damon Albarn, Eslam Jawaad, Faia Younan, Julia Holter, Malikah, Mounir Troudi, Noura Mint Seymali, Paul Weller, Rachid Taha and Seckou Keita.  

 

Africa Express Presents… The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians & Guests will be available on CD, with a digital download/stream available via Google Play Music beginning today. An LP vinyl edition will follow in 2017.

Full tracklisting here:

1          Intro  – The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

2          3azely – The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

3          Wild Wood – Paul Weller & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

4          Yah Mahla El Fus’ha – Faia Younan & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

5          Out Of Time – Damon Albarn & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

6          Rakeb 3al Hamra – Mounir Troudi & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

7          Feel You – Julia Holter & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

8          Al Ajaleh – The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians feat. Bassekou Kouyaté & Seckou Keita

9          Blackbird – The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians feat. Damon Albarn & Paul Weller

10        Old Damascus – The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

11        Richa  – Noura Mint Seymali & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

12        White Flag – Damon Albarn & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians feat. Eslam Jawaad, Malikah, Ceza & Bu Kolthoum

13        Ya Rayeh – Rachid Taha & The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

14        Oghneyat Men Baladi – The Orchestra of Syrian Musicians

For more information visit www.africaexpress.co.uk and   www.transgressiverecords.com

https://play.google.com/store/music/album?id=Bgn3ryyqz6tx474rjf4tvmwsnym

The full concert from the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre London from June 25, 2016 can be viewed here:

 

 

 

Night Windows Q & A with Ben Hughes

nightwindows_coffeeNight Windows Review and Q & A with  Ben Hughes

 

Night Windows the band envisioned, created and executed by Ben Hughes alone has released its debut LP Musicassette/Magnetic Memory. I’ve sat with the album on several occasions listening to the sounds, the lyrics, the melodies,  and the composition and I like it. In learning about this new band, I’ve also learned a few things about myself. The first thing I do when I listen to a new band, or artist is to try to figure out who the influences are and secondly I listen to the lyrics– carefully. As for the influences, we all have them, we can’t get away from our roots, and where our musical footprints have derived from. For Night Windows I hear a few I recognize, but it is balanced out with a healthy dose of Ben’s own sound to create Musicassette/Magnetic Memory which is evident and testimonial to talent.

Listening to Musicassettte/Magnetic Memory took me on what I like to think of  as a music journey.  I got the feelings of personal discovery through the tracks along with many different stories to tell. Often themes of personal struggle with the human condition and just making it by in the world– in a sometimes first and sometimes third person experience, so much so I can’t quite tell if Ben’s talking about himself or someone else.

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There’s a Friend of Mine carries an islandish sound with strumming patterns and vocal sounds that has a familiar type of feel in such a subtle way that it’s almost new all at once (if that could make any sense).  My favorite track on the album is Home, which takes the listener inward with the minor key and lyrics.

I could continue to review each song individually, speculate on influence and genere, but I won’t!  I will just say that Ben is a chameleon with his vocals- something I like most about a singer and respect due to the complexity and skill that requires.  He’s capable of adapting his voice to each song to give the song the feeling he’s striving for that you hear in the lyrics. If you haven’t had a chance to listen to Musicassette/Magnetic Memory I suggest you check it out here!

Night Windows will play at Ortleib’s Saturday the 21st @6pm. GO see!

Read the Q & A interview that Ady had a chance to do below.

June 18, 2014 Interview with Ben Hughes of Night Windows

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 Ady: You recently released your debut LP Musicassette/Magnetic Memory.   What was it like to go through the process of writing and recording a full length release in your bedroom? I did read that you created this body of work all from    your bedroom? 

 Ben: The process of writing and recording Musicassette/Magnetic Memory was a lot of    
things. It was a triumph one day, a defeat the next. It was a real learning experience. I have been making albums from my bedroom since 2005, but this was the first one that I knew I’d actually release. I had a better recording set up (thanks to my friends for teaming up and buying me a new set up for my birthday), more space to work with (a music room and a garage), and more instruments at my disposal. 
I’d wake up early and record before work, and then get right back to it when I got home. Then when I was done recording all of the songs, I started the mixing and mastering phase of the production. This was the most difficult for me, because I had a lot more tools to use and wasn’t sure how to use them. Ryan Buzby (longtime friend and bandmate) kind of coached me along through the process, so that helped out a lot.
As for what you read about the bedroom studio, it was a bedroom down the hall from mine that I labeled the Music Room 170.
Ady: What about your debut release are you most satisfied about?

Ben: I’d have to say that I am most satisfied that I made it through the process without losing my initial vision for the album. It was really cool to hear it all come together the way that I imagined at the beginning of the process. 

Well, I did shave 5 songs off of the album, because I am not generally a fan of long albums, and it seemed more focused and stronger without the 5 songs that I cut out. Plus, now I have 5 unreleased songs from the Musicassette sessions that I can either use as singles or an EP, so it all worked out.

Ady: Where is the name Night Windows from?

Ben: Night Windows is a song from The Weakerthans album Reunion Tour (One of my favorite albums). I looked everywhere for a fitting name for this project and Night Windows just felt right to me. 

Ady: As you know, Sisters Dissonance is all about the live show. when will Night Windows hit the road to play some gigs?

Ben: We are booking some shows from mid July to late August in the tri-state area. I’ll keep you posted!

Ady: What advice can you give to rising musicians? Especially those that are from the NJ/Philly area?

Ben: Don’t rely on gimmicks, don’t be an asshole, develop a good filter (friends, bandmates, etc), and most of all, focus on the songs.

Ady: And lastly the Sisters Dissonance question no one can escape:  If you were a superhero what would your super hero name be and what power would you possess? 

Ben: Well, it’s kind of funny — I once dubbed myself Consumption Man after a day of heavy eating and drinking, so as much as I’d hate to have that be my super hero name, I might have to go with it. Consumption Man possesses the power to consume anything and everything in sight! All for the greater good? lol