Band To Watch: Megafaun

On their debut Bury The Square, Raleigh-via-Eau Clair trio Megafaun neatly splice together different strands of sounds, whether it's tape manipulated hoedowns ("Tired And Troubled") mournful, slow-blooming banjo-and-white-noise-laced epics ("Where We Belong"), or the rural barbershop doo wop of "Find Your Mark." Focusing on a wide palette of instrumentation, but always coming back to their soaring three-part harmonies, it's easy to see why Akron/Family contacted them out of the blue and asked them to support them on a six-week tour: Megafaun opens, then joins Akron plus excellent sound manipulator Greg Davis on-stage as a supergroup of sorts. When they're on their own as Megafaun, the group consists of brother Brad and Phil Cook, along with Joe Westerlund. All three played in DeYarmond Edison with Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), and Brad co-owns Burlytime Records (with Pitchfork scribe Grayson Currin), the label that put out Bowerbirds and Horseback last year. Enough talking points? Take a listen to "Find Your Mark" and "Lazy Suicide," a countrified junk shop ramble, after the jump.

Megafaun - "Find Your Mark" (MP3)
Megafaun - "Lazy Suicide" (MP3)

The way "Lazy Suicide" builds into ragged psychedelia before returning to strong, sorta forceful harmonies is a good example of why we're digging these guys.

Bury The Square is out 2/19 on Radium/Table Of The Elements. You can also catch them live. In addition to these dates, expect a headlining tour in April and May.

03/02 - Allston, MA @ Harper's Ferry *
03/04 - Middletown, CT @ Wesleyan College *
03/05 - Hoboken, NJ @ Maxwells *
03/06 - New York, NY @ NYU Kimmel Center
03/07 - Pittsburgh, PA @ The Andy Warhol Museum *
03/08 - Princeton, NJ @ Terrace Club, Princeton University *
03/09 - Vienna, VA @ Jammin Java *
03/13 - Austin, TX @ Hideout Theatre (SXSW) ^
03/14 - Austin, TX @ Flamingo Cantina (SXSW) >
03/15 - Austin, TX @ Emo's Inside Room (SXSW) >

* supporting/performing as Akron/Family
> performing as Akron/Family
^ Table of the Elements/Radium showcase w/ Outsiders faves Jon Mueller and Collections of Colonies of Bees plus Neptune and Northhampton Wools (Thurston Moore)

Posted at 4:02 PM in Band To Watch, MP3
Tags: Megafaun

14 Comments

I do love Wisconsin.

Posted by: Chippy at 02/14/08 4:08 PM | Reply
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Nice to see these guys up here, check out Collections of Colonies of Bees next:

http://www.muzzleofbees.com/2008/01/07/collections-of-colonies-of-bees-birds/

Same label as Megafaun and were praised by Justin Vernon (Bon Iver) today in the guest list feature on P4K.

Posted by: uwmryan@yahoo.com at 02/14/08 4:24 PM | Reply
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yes yes yes! i was just listening to this album in the bath last night and it is just so good. i'm from raleigh---def. the best music coming from this area right now!

Posted by: erg at 02/14/08 4:29 PM | Reply
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Hey uwmryan@yahoo.com. Totally agree re: Collections Of Colonies Of Bees. Great stuff. Wrote about them a couple weeks back:

http://stereogum.com/archives/the-outsiders/the-outsiders-vol-4_007706.html

Posted by: brandon at 02/14/08 4:35 PM | Reply
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They're all right, but Brad gives lousy head.

Posted by: Jon at 02/14/08 4:42 PM | Reply
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A shame about the name. "Megafaun" sounds like a mock-metal act.

Posted by: J at 02/14/08 4:58 PM | Reply
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Hell yeah boyz! I saw Megafaun at Local 506 in Chapel Hill last month and was blown away. Their live show is very hypnotic and they utilize crowd participation to the max. The album is just as good. Great stuff.

Posted by: Sweet Omar Brown at 02/14/08 5:52 PM | Reply
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I had the opportunity to check out the band Megafaun when I was in New York City to see Stomp. Their use of audience interaction was VERY COOL.

Posted by: another jon at 02/14/08 7:14 PM | Reply
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This is great! The name's not fantastic, but the tunes are excellent...

Posted by: Joe at 02/14/08 9:22 PM | Reply
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The Triangle is getting some serious loving from Stereogum.

Posted by: jay at 02/14/08 9:24 PM | Reply
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I love "Find Your Mark" and "Lazy Suicide" but I suggest not stopping there. Bury The Square is an album that should be listened to in its entirety. It is not just, as the writer suggests, a "neatly splice"d mix of genres. The transitions and variations in style sound very deliberate from the triumphant beginning to the storm in the middle and the stomping closer. Take some time, sit back, and enjoy the whole album. After that, go see them live.

Posted by: Andrew at 02/16/08 8:07 PM | Reply
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Megafaun? Mega-fun! I've never heard this band--I just wanted to say that.

Posted by: mike at 02/29/08 4:52 PM | Reply
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I am the father of Phil and Brad and I think they are really cool.Of course, I may be biased, but I am an accordion player.

Posted by: Paul Cook at 03/04/08 6:26 PM | Reply
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It's Eau Claire, not Eau Clair. Since it's become quite the hot bed of indie rock talent, you best learn how to spell it properly.

Posted by: j at 04/12/08 10:48 PM | Reply
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