moviola

Broken Horses (Early Rarities) (2008):
Anyone following along with the trajectory of the Spirit of Orr ’scene’ is already deeply and keenly aware of the vital role our friends MOVIOLA play in the puzzle. Any methods that result in uncovering truthful moments and in turn inspire the listener to uncover the same for themselves, are methods hard found and precious. This is what we champion, and Moviola was among the earliest and most dependable creators. These tracks (23 of them) collect many of the highlights of the harder to get material by MOVIOLA, mainly recorded in the later years of the 20th century. At 23 tracks this album does not in any way serve as a complete guide to their non-album output during this period. You would be likely to estimate that this is roughly one-third of material that has never appeared on CD previously. What we all do (finally… this first collection has been an 8 year wait) get here certainly does serve as almost a missing album, a lost album if you will. — Ron Schneiderman, Brattleboro, VT, January 2008
World of Wumme blog on Broken Horses
Dead Knowledge (2007):
Moviola's latest (their 7th album in 12 years) is a satisfying, 16-song slab of timeless, cosmic American music. Recorded after-hours in amongst the dusty stacks of their friends’ used record store, Dead Knowledge harkens back to a time when albums were, in fact, pressed into those big vinyl pancakes. In an age where everything moves faster than you can say “Upload,” Moviola remember that sometimes the best pace to set is a leisurely one. No sense in plantin’ roses if yain’t gonna stop and smell ‘em.
Moviola says: “Dead Knowledge is our 7th record in the last 12 years. We recorded it ourselves inbetween the bins at Used Kids Records in our hometown of Columbus, Ohio, after our pals who own the joint went home for the evening. (The opening track, however, was done at 6am on a Sunday morning under a giant ravine/overpass on Indianola Avenue with three accordian players, many birds, and two raccoons). It took a while, yes. Over two years. In that time, we wrote many songs, 16 appear here. We arranged a visit by a string quartet, several horn players, and one semi-drunk choir of friends. We lugged a 1937 Estey piano we bought in Obetz, Ohio up a few flights one Saturday afternoon. We made several videos. We gathered around one mic, we used boxes of records as bafflers, sang in the stairwell, banged on hot water pipes and a giant bass drum from the Elida. Ohio High School Marching Band. In the end, the entire process was as important to us (and as fun) as the end product. Here’s hoping you enjoy.”
Quotation Marks:
“...(Moviola’s) unadorned melodies, gliding riffs and prose coalesce song and story into multi-dimensioned scenes starring characters you can almost touch. Moviola offer a place to shake off your shoes and bleed into the woodwork.” - LA Weekly
“...Mostly, however, Moviola taps the spirit of NRBQ, another open-ended combo that swings to its own trends. The album plays like a murmur from the old world, tracing a fading movement in pop music that never really was.” - TimeOut NY
“...It’s the ability to be quirky, individualist and knowing, include ironic asides, and at the same time communicate real feeling, or to empathize so strongly with another, that you’re actually there with them. That’s the quality that Moviola have. They avoid the alt-country and even Americana ghetto altogether, their range is too wide.” - SF Weekly