Advance Notice: HELEN STELLaR

HELEN STELLaR (Photo by Jessica Holmes)

Ok, so first things first, I’m starting to use “categories” with the idea that there will be recurring columns on this ol’ blog, which also insinuates that I will keep updating it and the blog won’t be some flavor-of-the-week shit. Fingers crossed… In any case, what I call “Advance Notice” (until I find a clever-er title) will be an opportunity for me to point out some of LA’s finer bands before they hit it big time.

{Sidenote: had I actually had a blog in 2005, and had I actually done an “Advance Notice” column then (a lot of supposition right there…), I would have correctly predicted Silversun Pickups meteoric rise to stardom back in ’05 after playing Pikul’s “Kissing Families” to death. Just sayin. Ask my friends all over the globe whom I relentlessly bombarded with “did you get your copy of Carnavas yet?” phone calls…}

Now that that’s out of the way, I’d like to present to you the very first Parenthetical(s) “Advance Notice” artist: HELEN STELLaR.

HELEN STELLaR (Photo by Kristy Sparrow)

There’s a few things you need to know up front about HELEN STELLaR:

1) Everyone I have told about them comments on just how rad their pun-based band name is. Sometimes leading in with a chuckle, sometimes with a mouth-agape “That’s AWESOME!” and sometimes with a “Wait, Helen what?” Don’t question it. Their band name is the rare combination of both funny and awesome without being silly.

2) They aren’t really a “new” band so to speak. They’ve been in Los Angeles for more than a few years now. They released three EPs (which were later re-packaged as a full-length by Cameron Crowe. Yes, that Cameron Crowe. He put their song “IO” on the Elizabethtown soundtrack too.) before taking a hiatus for a few years. After getting back together, they completed a brand new full-length album tentatively titled “If The Stars Could Speak, They Would Have Your Voice” that they are currently shopping around for a home.

3) They have the coveted free Monday night residency at Spaceland for the month of April.

4) I have no idea why they usually have their name typed in all caps with a lower case “a.” It usually looks like this: HELEN STELLaR. (Perhaps an interview is required down the road…)

To be completely honest, I was extremely late to the HELEN STELLaR party. In fact, if it wasn’t for local music maven Kevin Bronson and his Buzz Bands LA blog, I might have completely missed their resurgence in 2009 altogether. Kevin did a great column in November 2009 updating the world on the happenings of a freshly reborn HELEN STELLaR that you can read here. Kevin then put them on one of his Buzz Bands shows in December which I unfortunately missed. Thanks to his recommendation though, I caught them at Spaceland in February and I was thoroughly impressed. They are one of those bands that plays so well live their recordings don’t do them justice. (Though, to be fair, I haven’t heard this finished full length yet and Mr Bronson himself says it is their best material to date.)

The foursome play what I would describe as epic, wide-screen rock music. HELEN STELLaR create music for life’s movie moments. Not following me entirely? That’s fine. Here, let’s try some image association then. Imagine a soundtrack for moments like this:

Photo by gethinched

And this:

Photo by zelnunes

And this:

Photo by oneterry

And this:

Photo by clearskies

And with a sound that is built for life’s movie moments, it’s no surprise their song “IO” was licensed for at least three different films. This is the stuff Music Supervisors everywhere cling to.

HELEN STELLaR clearly have some shoegaze influence in their sound with all the delay and wash in their guitars, but they avoid the needless droning-on of many current shoegaze-influenced artists. And although some may not enjoy the comparison, I even hear some Joshua Tree-era and Achtung Baby-era U2 in the way their songs soar and have an anticipatory slow-burning build to them. But despite my U2 comparisons, that’s not to say in any way that their sound is derivative. What it is to say is that they play catchy, accessible rock music that should get them some wide recognition, which is probably why some other radio station you have most likely heard of did a feature on them and has started playing them recently, despite their still as-yet-unsigned status. They play honest, wide-open, rock music. There’s no flavor-of-the-week, over-reaching, Pitchfork-approved, weird-for-the-sake-of-weird attempts with their sound. And that’s one of the things I love most about HELEN STELLaR. They aren’t playing music for people who won’t care about it a year from now. They’re playing music that they want to play. And because of that, their music sounds like music that a lot of people will want to hear.

I have a strong feeling though that at the end of their April residency, many more people will be talking about HELEN STELLaR. And I think that full-length record of theirs will have a brand new home too. (Attention Dangerbird Records: If you’re reading this, I highly recommend you snatch up these guys…) If you live in Los Angeles, do yourself a favor and catch them at Spaceland while you still can. I don’t think you will be able to see them for free, or at a venue as intimate as Spaceland for that matter, for much longer. Hopefully for the boys in HELEN STELLaR, their ascent will mirror that of their sound; a deliberate build over the years to an undeniable explosion in 2010.

Listen to “Sensation Blvd”

HELEN STELLaR play Spaceland for free (!) every Monday in April.

Monday April 5th: HELEN STELLaR w/ Mere Mortals (another GREAT live LA band), Luna Vista and Hexham Heads

Monday April 12th: HELEN STELLaR w/ The Postelles (a great time to check out this NY band who just toured with Hockey) and Atlanta, GA band The Constellations

Monday April 19th: HELEN STELLaR w/ TBD

Monday April 26th: HELEN STELLaR w/ TBD