Florida BC - Salt Breaker Sand
FLORIDA BC RELEASES ‘SALT BREAKER SAND’
Indie folk-rock outfit Florida BC recently released their new album, Salt Breaker Sand. Recorded at Jurassic Park Studios in Montreal with Scott Munro of The Preoccupations, the album features contributions by Matt Flegel and Danny Christiansen, also of The Preoccupations.
Florida BC | Photo: Sebastian Buzzalino
Based in Calgary, Alberta, Florida BC is the brainchild of Clinton St. John and consists of Jeff Macleod, Carl Davidson, and Morgan Greenwood. Florida BC is the latest of St. John’s musical projects, including Cindy Lee, Nina Nastasia, and Steve Albini, along with others.
With its dark colors, the album centers on the feelings of frustration, enervation, and helplessness imposed by the current state of the world. Even though the music is shadowy and rife with expressions of grief, there’s an affirmative, optimistic filament woven into the songs.
St. John explains, saying, “A longstanding tradition for why I became a songwriter is the catharsis that comes from taking this thing, whatever it is, that you don’t have a solution for, and trying to articulate it in an abstract way. It’s just all kinds of different narratives intertwined.”
Raw as an open wound, “One, Two, And Three Eyes,” rolls out on grinding guitars as sparkling accents add another opposing layer, giving the tune a rumbling duality.
Beginning with “Thunder Jesus,” riding potent, dirty guitars on top of a low-slung thrumming rhythm, the song evokes hints of grunge and smoldering alt-rock, along with conjuring up visions of Neil Young.
Speaking subjectively, highlights on the album include “Blow Wind Blow,” traveling on a measured, viscous rhythm. Murky, melancholic guitars exude black, gloomy washes, while St. John’s platinum-tinged timbres infuse they lyrics with edgy, introspection.
“Meeting,” although purely instrumental, brings to mind the sad cry of whales, trundling slowly through the depths of the ocean. The title track opens on gleaming gentle guitars atop a singularly austere rhythm. Strident with vibrating hues, the harmonics flow on undulating textures as St. John’s voice injects intoning urgency.
Raw as an open wound, “One, Two, And Three Eyes,” rolls out on grinding guitars as sparkling accents add another opposing layer, giving the tune a rumbling duality. The final track, “Master and Council,” features glistening coloration atop a cavernous bassline, and then segues into a tension-filled melody suffused by insistent pressure. When the guitars ramp up to thumping snarls, the tune takes on thick, sepulchral energy.
With Salt Breaker Sand, Florida BC offers upheaving opaque music, rife with surging emotional dynamics and evocative lyricism.
