Ears Wide Open: Races

Kevin Bronson on April 12th, 2011

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Now that they’ve cleared two big hurdles – dispensing with the search engine-clogging band name Black Jesus and surpassing their $3,000 goal on their Kickstarter campaign – it could be off to the races for L.A. indie-rock septet Races. Their first single “Big Broom” (a 7-inch via Jaxart b/w “Cruel & Rude”) comes out later this month, and it dabbles in a lot in 3 minutes: An oozing pop melody over shoulder-tapping bass; a dash of fuzz that never goes all-out psychedelic; and a preening Moog line bearing a vaguely Euro feel. Singer-guitarist Wade Ryff and bandmates Garth Herberg, Barrie Rose, Devon Lee, Breanna Wood, Oliver Hild and Lucas Ventura are finishing up their self-produced album; release plans are still fuzzy, though, because an indie label that’s home to one prominent local quintet is rumored to be interested. Stay tuned.

||| Download: “Big Broom”