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School of Seven Bells – Maxwell’s (Hoboken, NJ) – Saturday, September 29, 2012

School of Seven Bells' Alejandra Deheza @ Maxwell's
3 November 2012

When I first saw this New York electronic/dreampop band at Princeton, NJ’s Terrace F. Club in February 2009, supporting their debut LP Alpinisms, they were a trio of twin sisters/singers Alejandra and Claudia Deheza (who also play guitar and keyboards, respectively), and former Secret Machines guitarist Benjamin Curtis. Since that show, I’ve seen them four more times, and a few things have changed. First, they’ve officially become a duo after Claudia left the band in Fall 2010. And second, for their live shows they’ve added a drummer, Christopher Colley, who gives their pre-programmed electronic/percussive beats more of a rock kick. And while Alejandra acted as the sole vocalist the last couple of times I’ve seen them (including last year’s opening set for Interpol in Asbury Park, NJ), this show featured a new keyboardist/singer, Allie Alvarado, formerly of Telepathe and Blood Lines. Though Alejandra is a compelling enough singer on her own, Alvarado’s presence brings back some of the unique vocal interplay and harmonies lost when Claudia departed (as well as her keyboard touches). This was most noticeable on selections from Alpinisms and their second LP, 2010’s Disconnect from Desire, both of which had featured the sisters’ intertwining voices.

Not surprisingly, half the set consisted of songs from their third LP Ghostory, released in February. A few of them, like the back-to-back “White Wind” and “Low Times,” featured foreboding, hard-hitting dancefloor beats, which made the back room of Maxwell’s feel like a mini-rave. Deheza, whose exotic looks, short hair bob, silver eye paint, and Egyptian-style jewelry reminded one of a modern-day Cleopatra, sounded hypnotic and heavenly on prettier Ghostory numbers like “Lafaye” and “Scavenger,” and older highlights “Windstorm” and “My Cabal.” It was hard to take your eyes off her, as she systematically scanned the crowd with her slightly saddened, yet spell-inducing gaze.

I will admit that while I enjoyed the first few shows of theirs I’d seen, I worried that having the band play along to pre-recorded rhythms (lovely as they are) could prove limiting in a live setting, since song tempos may not vary from show to show, and spontaneity might be sacrificed. However, the band have successfully overcome that obstacle, by shifting the live focus to highlight not only the indelible melodies, but more importantly what’s going on within each song – Deheza’s mesmerizing voice, Curtis’s layered, My Bloody Valentine-inspired guitar blizzards, tension-packed keyboards and drums, beguiling harmonies, etc. All of these elements serve to enhance and build upon the electronics, not be confined by them. The result is that in person their music engulfs and entrances you, even more than on record. It makes for a distinctive double-whammy of muscle and beauty that keeps getting better with each show.

Upcoming School of Seven Bells dates (co-headlining with Twin Sister):
11/26 Black Cat – Washington, DC
11/27 Union Transfer – Philadelphia, PA
11/28 Music Hall of Williamsburg – Brooklyn, NY
12/1 SPACE Gallery – Portland, ME
12/2 The Sinclair – Cambridge, MA