03/26/08; The Skyline Network: Ruling Us Lately
Their latest track, "The Life of Walter Price", is their strongest homebrew yet, causing us to spend a stalk-tacular amount of time on their MySpace page. More than ever before, Pam Cantu's voice is the plant living on the top of your cubicle wall, a conspicuous reminder of organic beauty in a place where scientifically tested shades of the most-boring grey, window-blocking right-angled insult walls and teeting stacks of trade magazines conspire to deny you your love of natural light. The rest of the biblically named men of the band (David, Tomas, Zach) nail the songs simple, sparking sunlight on the river arrangement. It's like they took our cookout to San Marcos and floated the entire thing down the creek without getting our laptops wet. We love them for that. ( link )12/31/07; Space City Rock: Featured Bands
PIANO VINES: Yeah, I've been fully intending on putting these folks on here for a while, but I held off in the foolish hope that I'd either eventually A) get to see 'em live or B) manage to glom onto an actual CD. Neither of which, unfortunately, have happened. That's partly my own damn fault, obviously -- I just can't get out as much as I could in the Good Old Days -- but it's also a little frustrating to be teased with these awesomely beautiful recordings on the band's Myspace site (see the link above) and yet not be able to play 'em anywhere other than my damn computer. Argh. Seriously, I need-need-need to get a Piano Vines CD, and quick, before my brain melts and drips out my ears.In all seriousness, this duo/occasional trio (main members Pam Cantu on vocals/keys/guitars/xylophone & David Howard on vocals/guitars/keys/bass/drums/etc., with Nolan Burke helping out with the live drums and keys) is one of the most promising bands I've heard in a while, local or no -- I love Cantu's clear-as-a-bell vocals, which bring to mind Feist or maybe the kids in Eisley, and the music underneath it is sweet and gorgeous and driving like all those old Parasol indie-pop gems I/you loved back in the day (c'mon, you know you did, just admit it). The songs they've currently got up are light and airy but never insubstantial, instead swirling and charging along in a sunshiny haze that nicely skirts dreampop and building intricately to a perfectly-executed close. Some of the songs come off like Broken Social Scene minus the half-assed-ness, while others come near to Ambulette (esp. the Maura Davis part of the band) territory. Trust me: these folks know what they're doing and can pull it off in a way that should make indie-pop-ish record labels all 'round the country pay attention.Again, though -- no CD as yet. Which sucks, 'cause it means waiting a while longer for the band to really blow everybody away. I've heard rumors that they've got something in the works, so keep your fingers crossed. ( link )
06/07/07 issue of the Houston Press:
Pam Cantu breaks out some rocking lullabies
BY DUSTI RHODESWith a voice reminiscent of Tori Amos, Leslie Feist and Elizabeth Elmore, local gal Pam Cantu leads Piano Vines through rocking lullabies with the help of bandmate David Howard. The pair creates steady rhythms enhanced by Cantu’s wide-ranging vocal abilities in songs that expand from an ambient opening and are driven forward with an acoustic guitar and a tight, quick drumbeat. Others show the duo’s playful side, with a power pop feel à la The Reputation or Eisley. Not only does Cantu sing like an angel, she’s quite the looker as well. So, guys, try not to fall in love when Piano Vines play in a lineup of other locals, including The Dimes, The Riff Tiffs, Earnie Banks and The Brood.