Kyle Reigle (Cemeteries)
Cemeteries is an ambient/slowcore/dream pop/experimental band from Portland, Oregon. For the most part, it’s the solo project of Buffalo native Kyle Reigle, and Barrow is the third full-length album he’s released under the Cemeteries moniker. When he performs, he brings along his “band”, which consists of his best friend — multi-instrumentalist Jonathan Ioviero (who records his own records as Seismograph, and Kate Davis, who is a musician, photographer, and the founder of the Portland-based boutique label Track And Field Records.
The new album just came out this week, but I had never heard of this project until late last night. I happened upon the album while I was doing some of my routine research on new and upcoming releases, and without even reading a description of it, I was drawn in by the cover art. My understanding is that the cover photo and all of the songs were inspired by the vacations that Reigle’s family would take every summer on the southern shore of Lake Ontario. He was also inspired by the films of John Carpenter. Specifically, The Fog. That movie, incidentally, was Janet Leigh’s last feature film, and one of two films in which she played a starring role alongside her daughter Jamie Lee Curtis.
Although the album didn’t grab me right away, as I gave it a close listen, it really impressed me and grew on me as the record played on. It’s dark, gloomy, and a bit like a spooky dream, but it’s also really beautiful. Although most of the songs have clean gaps between them, I’m guessing that the record was crafted to be listened to in one sitting without outside distractions. Tonight’s song actually bleeds right into the album’s next song, but it still stands alone just fine.
“I Will Run From You” by Cemetaries
There’s something about the intro to this song that reminds me of the Venice-by way of Oakland dream pop/goth/post-punk recording project The Soft Moon. Specifically, this reminds me of the song “When It’s Over” (2010, from the album The Soft Moon. I wrote about that song three years ago here. I wouldn’t say that the songs sound very much alike, but there’s something about the texture and the overall sound and feel that made me instantly recall that Soft Moon song.
The album was co-released by Snowbeast Records (which is owned by Reigle and Ioviero) and Track And Field Records (which is owned by Davis). You can buy a digital download for $1 (or more) here. Each label has produced a limited run of cassettes, and each label has produced a limited run of exclusive vinyl. Snowbeast has “Fog Grey” vinyl, which you can buy here, while Track and Field has “Lake Green”, which you can buy here.
Both labels are indicating that there was a delay on the manufacturing side of things, and the records aren’t available at the moment. Accordingly, neither label has a photo of the specially coloured vinyl.
this is that song 
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