#benjamin verdoes

[douglasfur365]

Iska Dhaaf, 2013

Cafe Pettirosso, Seattle

I took this shot of Iska Dhaaf back in 2013 following an interview, when they  just had a pair of singles out. This was my first time meeting Benjamin Verdoes but I’d known Nathan Quiroga since college when I directed him in two plays, but in the mean time he’d gone on to pursue music after a fairly successful run as Buffalo Madonna in Mad Rad. This was one of those shots that I took and was immediately like “yep that looks like a band,” maybe a little generic but I liked that I could take a shot like that. The real quandary for me was color or black and white. The color shot was unique lit by a street lamp and the purple tones of the setting sun, but then in black and white I got this nice grit and that metal garage door just screams grit. Back then I was doing these photoshoots in no more than fifteen minutes, so I was always glad when any of them came out looking good.

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Benjamin Verdoes-The One & The Other

Benjamin Verdoes is a multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter who first began to be noticed through his eccentric songwriting via the Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band, who released two records on the acclaimed Dead Oceans label, since then Verdoes has spent the past few years honing his skills as a song-writer and beat maker whilst continuing his musical experimentations, resulting in a brand new six track EP entitled The One & The Other.

Trying to come up with a description for Verdoes music I scrawled down the words modern day R&B (think Weeknd), electronica, indie, trip-hop and dub-step among other such nonsense in a vain attempt to persuade myself how to describe this sound. Instead of trying to catergorise perhaps I should tell you that Benjamin creates nocturnal beats, layers subtle electronic grooves with trippy, bubbling beats and tops it all off with a delicate soulful croon (often masked with an oft kilter vocal effect) to form a sound that both challenges and intoxicates simultaneously.

The EP opens with the gorgeous Highly Emotional, where Verdoes allows his falsetto to shine over skittering beats and a laid back deep groove, from there he expands his vision adding more layers to his sound, vocal effects come into play on the likes of Above Ground and yet the mesmeric melodies and textures not only shine through the various beats and bleeps but urge the listener on.

As the disc continues, Verdoes changes direction and offers new subtle changes, Is All That We Are? is built around a delicate piano melody and vocal harmonies yet the beats and bleeps gives the track a mesmeric otherworldly feel, whilst Beautiful Dying World features a strummed guitar and a futuristic indie pop feel, whilst Eight On Eight features a melody that could have lifted directly from a gameboy and a wonderful, celestial acapella finale complete with ghostly female harmonies.

The One & The Other may be nigh on impossible to describe, but it still somehow bewitches (rather like the mermaids siren call) the listener into Benjamin Verdoes intoxicating and innovative world.

www.benjaminverdoes.com

[robmoro]

Music | Listen: 'Night Walk' by Benjamin Verdoes

Music | Listen: ‘Night Walk’ by Benjamin Verdoes

Benjamin Verdoes, a multi-instrumentalist, has spent the last five years developing his forthcoming EP, “The One & The Other”. The One & The Other is a narrative set in six…

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Seattle beat-maker Benjamin Verdoes premieres new track Night Walk

“Evil Eye sounds like Death Cab might after binging on old Motown records” - Stereogum

"His production and vocals are similar to SOHN; slow-burning but with a satisfying cinematic feeling. ‘Night-walk’ is an unbelievably well-developed track; dark, sensual and addictive." - Notion

“A welcome change of pace for Verdoes and an intoxicating look at what to expect from him as a producer.” – Consequence of Sound

​“…a masterpiece of delicate words…” - Buzz & Howl

Benjamin Verdoes first gained notoriety through his eccentric and unpredictable song writing in Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band, who released two records on Dead Oceans. Since then Verdoes, a multi-instrumentalist, has spent the last five years developing his skills as a producer and beat-maker. On this forthcoming EP, The One & The Other, he continues a pattern of experimentation and curiosity. The new songs are a clear and exciting departure from his last solo record, The Evil Eye which was released with Brick Lane Records.

The One & The Other is an engaging narrative set in six chronological scenes. The story cleverly describes a universally experienced scenario. The melodies, textures, and trajectory of the songs are effortlessly tied up in the scenes and the larger narrative. Along with his exploration of production, Verdoes is pushing his lyrical approach into new territory. The cadences, rhythms and transitions show a clear new dimension to his songwriting. Talking of this new track, Verdoes said;

"Night Walk is the second piece of the narrative found on The One & The Other. It follows the characters underground into the bizarre world of the NYC subway system late at night. After the stimulation of the city the dull and muted journey through dark tunnels mirrors the loneliness and isolation that happens on the return to daily life. The joy of the heights of the buildings is replaced by the underground pathways of depressive thought as The One navigates home alongside a sleeping and foreboding Other."

The new EP 'The One & The Other' is out Sept 18th on Brick Lane Records

www.bricklanerecords.com www.benjaminverdoes.com www.facebook.com/benjaminverdoesmusic www.twitter.com/BenjaminVerdoes

[weclosetonight]

Benjamin Verdoes - Highly Emotional

Benjamin Verdoes – Highly Emotional

Sometimes you’ll read a title of a track and think ‘Well that’s a bit arrogant, how do they know that I’m going to feel highly emotional when I hear this?’ Of course, many of you are probably not quite so self-obsessed as me and you’ll know that the title has nothing to do with you. Still, Benjamin Verdoes is about to make every last one of you who presses the play button below begin to bawl as…

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Seattle beat-maker Benjamin Verdoes premieres new track 'Highly Emotional' at Consequence Of Sound

New EP 'The One & The Other' out Sept 18 on Brick Lane Records

Benjamin Verdoes will release his new solo EP, The One & The Other, via Brick Lane Records on September 18th.

Listen to the First Single "Highly Emotional" Over at Consequence of Sound

Benjamin Verdoes first gained notoriety through his eccentric and unpredictable song writing in Mt. St. Helens Vietnam Band, who released two records on Dead Oceans. Verdoes, a multi-instrumentalist, has spent the last five years developing as a producer and beat-maker. His most recent EP, The One & The Other continues a pattern of experimentation and curiosity. The new songs make for a clear and exciting departure from his last solo record, The Evil Eye (Brick Lane Records).

www.bricklanerecords.com www.facebook.com/benjaminverdoesmusic www.twitter.com/BenjaminVerdoes