We Barbarians : Headspace EP

<img src="http://www.qromag.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/webarbariansheadspaceep.jpg" alt="We Barbarians : Headspace EP" />Long Beach by way of Brooklyn We Barbarians introduce themselves well on <i>Headspace EP</i>. ...
We Barbarians : Headspace EP
7.9 Self-released
2011 

We Barbarians : Headspace EP There are certain bands that you catch only because they open for bands that you like.  Wild Light (QRO spotlight on) was an act like that, as is Holy Ghost! (QRO live review), and so kind of is We Barbarians.  The Long Beach-by-way-of-(where else?)-Brooklyn act must have good management or good friends, as they’ve opened for everyone from indie darlings Tokyo Police Club (QRO spotlight on) & Ra Ra Riot (QRO spotlight on) to, most recently, electro-pop hits Foster the People (QRO album review).  So it’s the perfect – and necessary – time for them to put up (and not shut up), with a digital EP to let people hear for themselves.  And Headspace shows that the band can more than stand on their own.

Opening with the title track (but there are five tracks in total – this is no glorified single…), We Barbarians bring the kind of indie-grit that the alt-world needs more of, a grit that’s also got a bit of wry humor and learned heart, reminiscent of Brooklyn’s The Dig (QRO live review).  If the alt-up/down sway of the following "The Wait Is Over" is a bit run-of-the-mill, it is improved right after in "Stroke by Stroke".  Headspace concludes with the big and evocative "Chambray", but just before is an excellent cover of David Byrne & Brian Eno’s "Strange Overtones", which manages to evoke and catch at the same time.

Getting to open for great acts can sometimes be a double-edged sword – DFA favorite Holy Ghost! has graduated to headline gigs, but friend-of-Arcade Fire (QRO live review) Wild Light signed to a major label & broke up.  We Barbarians isn’t at the point where they’ve got to fly completely solo, but their latest tour with ANR (starting Wednesday, August 31st at New York’s Mercury Lounge – QRO NYC Show Preview) is a lot more of an equalized billing.  And like most debut digital EPs, Headspace is more of an introduction than the body of the argument.  But it’s quite a fine introduction.

MP3 Stream: "Headspace"

{audio}mp3/files/We Barbarians – Headspace.mp3{/audio}

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