RULING US LATELY: PIANO VINES

The other day we were having a seriously VIP cookout with the guys from So Many Dynamos. In spite of their being from a city that also homes the St. Louis Cardinals, cursed redcoats of the National League Central, the Dynamos are actually fantastic people and since their band name sounds like it could be a reference to our fotbol club, we can give them a pass. During this afternoon of delight, talk turned to their local music scene and mention of their local "Broken Social Scene Band" and "Arcade Fire Band". Chuckles abounded. But it got us thinking as our Portugean man-servant Raoul flipped the Kobe Beef burgers on the grill - setting aside the pigeonholing and style-biting fun-poking that might come with it - where are the densely composed, sweetly performed, catchy as all can-be local pop acts with that signature uplifting panache that has been ruling our own non-Houston listening lately? Surely the City of Syrup has more to offer than the heavy diet of castor oil we've been taking in lately.

So, mid conversation about, we brought up The Piano Vines. After some "kids these days" grumbling about a band that appears to have spent more time in the studio than on the stage, the conversation moved on, but by that point we already had the Vines on the mind, and an awareness that we have not shared our fondness for them with you yet, just as we will never share the recipe that made those burgers so delicious. BUT SHARING TITE JAMS IS WHAT WE DO. WE ARE SUSPECT IN OUR DUTIES! FORGIVE!

Their latest track, The Life of Walter Price, is their strongest homebrew yet, causing us to spend a stalk-tacular amout 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, Matthew, 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.

As we alluded too, Piano Vines don't get out much. They are, however, doing a stint at the Westheimer Block Party on April 12th, 3:45pm, Avante Garden outside stage. Stoked.

Stream: Piano Vines - The Life of Walter Price