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The Galaxy Electric @ Songbyrd

Ben Begas
February 18, 2016

The first act to play was a duo by the name of The Galaxy Electric. Their sound often reminded me of music by YACHT. Their music is dreamy/synth pop with a touch of psychedelic. Jacqueline, the lead vocalist, was on the Mellotron keyboard. Augustus, the bassist, was on the synthesizer and had to lay down the beats with a drum machine since they didn’t have a drummer. The one song I knew, “Temporal,” was definitely the highlight of their set. I talked with the couple after the set and, after mentioning that I was from American University, Jacqueline’s eyes lit up. She had attended the AU, as well, but back in the early 2000’s. She told me about her time at AU and why at 20 years old she “got married and ran away [with Augustus].” I was told that their debut album would be released in April.

Next was Hallowed Bells from Philadelphia. Both Alison and Damian were on a set of synthesizers. They did a really great job of complementing each other’s sound. For the most part, it seemed like Damian focused more on playing the synth while Alison was doing a lot of technical work while playing the synth, as well. Their use of polyphonic rhythms was very captivating and the music they played seemed a bit improvised at times which kept the set interesting. With all their complexities, I feel like explaining what their sound is like is pointless, so go ahead a take a listen to their song “Pink Velvet” for yourself.

The third and final act, Br’er, currently consists of 3 members: Ben Schurr on vocals/keys, Erik Sleight on the synth/drum machine, and Ben Usie on drums. This was one of the more interesting acts I have seen in DC. They had a ton of energy and really entertained the audience. Ben (vocals) would often just begin screaming his lyrics at what felt like at me sometimes. Ben (drummer) was really skilled but that’s not what made him stand out. During song intros/outros he would put his stick in his mouth and start waving his arms over his head, one by one. “Chanel Divinity” was one of their slower songs that really stuck with me. The album that features this song is full of dark, ambient, droney sounds.