Mates O' State

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So how come I hadn't heard of this band before Thursday? Why was I not informed? They're fucking amazing- one big fuck off organ, drums and boy/girl vocals (it's just the two of them, and they're married, aaaah). In some ways they sound a little Solexy, but in more of an emo-fans-would-like-them way (and there's definitely the same astonished White Stripes 'how do just two people manage to make that much noise' thing going on).

Anyway, I liked them so much I stowed away under their van and went to see them again the next day, and if any of you people get a chance to go while they're still on tour then just DO IT, okay?

― emil.y, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

*sigh* I guess I'd better put this in New Answers.

― emil.y, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Yeah, I've heard good things about 'em but still haven't actually heard them yet. Anyone have any pointers?

― Ned Raggett, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

It sounds just like Rainer Maria, but with goofy two-finger organ playing. I leave it up to you to decide if that's appealing or what. Not my thing.

― adam, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Yes, they're pretty good. The vocals don't always grab me right though. I decided not to get the 2nd album because I don't really ever listen to the 1st one anyway.

I much prefer Quasi

― Ron Hudson, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I think it's curious that Rainer Maria AND Quasi have now been mentioned by way of comparison. Don't those two bands sound pretty different? Is having both a male singer and a female singer such an important characteristic that the only bands that Mates of State deserve to be compared to are other male vox/female vox bands?

― charlie va, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Well, I've never heard Rainer Maria, but as far as Quasi goes, maybe its because when I was introduces to MOS it was with the description that they were 'kind of like Quasi' and it stuck in my head. Male/fem vox is not the only similarity however. Both are Drums and keyboards. Ok, the music styles are quite different, but there's room for comparison. Sam and Janet used to be married also...

C.O.C.O. are nothing like either Quasi or MOS

― Ron Hudson, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

they are more like an emo Wolfie, the voices are incredibly flat and nasal from both of them. they have a habit of repeating the same phrases over and over and over and over and the songs are pretty formulaic, sort of slow then they both start yelling*off key* and it really is quite dreary and hopeless. but that is just my ears talking.

― keith, Sunday, 10 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Actually, it does kind of sound like Rainer Maria and Quasi at the same time. Imagine Quasi playing, but the singers from Rainer Maria singing over it. There, now you've got it.

― pirateking, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

What the hell are YOU doing here?

― charlie va, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I saw them when I was in Oregon about a year ago. I remember not liking them very much for the same reasons Keith gave, but everyone else besides me in the crowd fucking LOVED them. I could see how their CDs could be good if they turned the vocals way down in the mix--the girl's shrill vocals really got to me. I liked the guy's voice a lot better--if it was just him singing I think I would have really liked them. I remember thinking that the opening band ("electro group" i think they were called-- pretty ho-hum run-of-the-mill wall-of-sound type stuff) was better than the Mates of State were. I think I just tend towards guitar bands without much of a vocal presence.

― geeta, Monday, 11 March 2002 01:00 (twenty-three years ago)

one year passes...

Right, so for no apparent reason I dug out My Solo Project after having not listened to it for a good year-and-a-half...

And I love it. Which is odd cos I never much cared for it when I got it. But there's something about the whole arrhythmics-organ-yelling combo that makes me feel really, really cosy. And great. I'm stunned, but this is amazing.

― William Bloody Swygart (mrswygart), Friday, 5 December 2003 22:27 (twenty-two years ago)

they're the tweepop Prolapse, sort of

― the surface noise (electricsound), Friday, 5 December 2003 22:33 (twenty-two years ago)

i love em. saw em a couple years ago. theyre super cute. their vocals are 100% jackson 5. they come up with quite the wall of sound live with only 2 people.

― Felcher (Felcher), Friday, 5 December 2003 22:37 (twenty-two years ago)

two months pass...

So are these guys emo? (Yes, I'm still trying to get a handle on this term). I saw them last night and was very impressed. Maybe I'm gettin' soft.

― Will(iam) (will), Monday, 9 February 2004 00:35 (twenty-one years ago)

not emo. they just have weedy voices

― the surface noise (electricsound), Monday, 9 February 2004 00:38 (twenty-one years ago)

their new album is the first decent thing they've done.

― Matos W.K. (M Matos), Monday, 9 February 2004 01:01 (twenty-one years ago)

indie pop indie pop!

― Ian Johnson (orion), Monday, 9 February 2004 01:19 (twenty-one years ago)

i think jim coined the term tweemo for them some time back.

― keith m (keithmcl), Monday, 9 February 2004 02:40 (twenty-one years ago)

haha "coined"

― Matos W.K. (M Matos), Monday, 9 February 2004 02:42 (twenty-one years ago)

*searches* he's right you know!

― the surface noise (electricsound), Monday, 9 February 2004 02:42 (twenty-one years ago)

They're from the Bay Area right? Anthony Kyle Monday described them to me and made them sound not good. They seem to play a lot of local shows but I don't go to many of those things...

― @d@ml (nordicskilla), Monday, 9 February 2004 02:43 (twenty-one years ago)

well maybe not coined per se

― the surface noise (electricsound), Monday, 9 February 2004 02:44 (twenty-one years ago)

ok, maybe he was just the first person i heard use that.

― keith m (keithmcl), Monday, 9 February 2004 03:51 (twenty-one years ago)

the first on IL*

― the surface noise (electricsound), Monday, 9 February 2004 03:55 (twenty-one years ago)

They're from the Bay Area right? Anthony Kyle Monday described them to me and made them sound not good. They seem to play a lot of local shows but I don't go to many of those things...

yeah, I was completely prepared for them to suck but was pleasantly surprised (I only went 'cause it's the first night off I'd had in about 2 weeks and the movie I wanted to see was sold out). They had a really "big" sound for two people. Note: as I was pretty liquored up, my barometer might've been a bit skewed.
I think they're originally from OK City, but relocated to the Bay.

― Will (will), Monday, 9 February 2004 04:11 (twenty-one years ago)

eight months pass...

The new "All Day" EP is superb - even more lush and exuberant than "Team Boo". Can't wait to see the DVD....

― Michael F Gill (Michael F Gill), Tuesday, 2 November 2004 03:40 (twenty-one years ago)

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