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Naming
their band after a code for the Nintendo game “Contra”,
New Jersey’s Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right
B A Start, sound like anything but video game music.
Up Up Down Down got their start in 1999, forming from
the break up of Dixon Ward. Their beginnings are easily
comparable to what most aspiring young bands do –
release a couple home recording EPs on small independent
record labels, tour like crazy – all in hopes
of landing on a label with some sort of distribution.
All the DIY work ethic paid off for Up Up Down Down
with their debut full-length release and Nothing is
#1 – an album that proves this band’s potential
and desire to set themselves apart.
And Nothing
is #1 is an album that combines consummate passion with
obscure, complex structures to create an unsullied listening
experience. This is not something to listen to once
and pass off as just another indie rock band. These
four lads know when and where to place the notes and
words and they don’t waste any time doing it.
The album’s ten tracks last just over 28 minutes
– something not very common for a style as perplexed
as this.
The vocal
interplay on and Nothing is #1 plays a big part in their
distinct sound, which on “You Landed So Gracefully”
is employed at its finest. The combination of verdant,
alluring vocals and diaphragm belts is what makes Up
Up Down Down a band ready for the masses. This music
is hushed at one moment and in-your-face the next with
their use of acoustics and a variety of other stringed
and electronic instruments. “See You In a Month”
proves these bi-polar musical tendencies. What starts
as an engaging song turns into a lavish, melodic, hard-hitting
song, all within two minutes.
Be
prepared; Up Up Down Down use this pattern all over
the recording. If they want to yell, they yell. If they
want to alleviate, they alleviate. Nothing seems to
hold them back from creating their flexible brand of
rock.
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