Kicking off KPSU’s humongous 30 Shows in 30 Days event that will span the month of April, KPSU, Eleven Magazine and McMenamins will present the Brooklyn-based indie rockers the Antlers. Seattle alternative R&B act Shaprece and Portland locals Musée Mécanique will also play on April 1 at the Crystal Ballroom.
Members of KPSU and Eleven Magazine have been floating the idea of a co-presented show at Crystal Ballroom since the summer of 2014, said KPSU Promotions Director Blake Hickman.
Hickman said having a band that is relevant to both the catalog-based music audience but also a wider music audience was a huge get for KPSU, especially due to the Antlers’ large fanbase in the Pacific Northwest, having performed at MusicFest NorthWest in 2014 and at Sasquatch in 2011.
Evolving from a solo, psych-folk project of lead singer Peter Silberman into a full fledged indie act, the Antlers history begins with various self-recorded albums and EPs in 2006 and 2007 (including one recorded in a bathtub).
In 2009 the Antlers shifted from a solo project into a full group with the release of Hospice. Now incorporating influences of post-rock and dreamy-pop, Hospice was designed as Peter Silberman’s magnum opus, a concept album beautifully describing an abusive relationship by telling the story of a relationship between a hospice worker and patient.
Hospice was one of the biggest indie releases of 2009, earning the Antlers acclaim on year-end lists from Pitchfork and NPR Music.
After the release of Hospice, the Antlers released the louder, broader and more electronic Burst Apart in 2011, earning them Best New Music from Pitchfork again, as well as being voted album of the year by Drowned in Sound.
A duo of EPs followed—the collaborative Together EP and the underwater-sounding Undersea EP—before finally releasing their most recent in-studio album Familiars in 2014.
Familiars represented a slight departure from the indie rock that preceded it and has the Antlers blending indie rock with elements of jazz and blues.
The result is a gorgeous album with music that feels intentional and methodical but with room to breathe.