SLANT OF LIGHT – w/ Outro, Ex-Temper – Amherst, MA

Slant of Light: Crafting a unique and expressive brand of post-rock, the band is comprised of Kris Banks (guitar), Trevor Healy (guitar), Jay Labbe (drums), Kelly L’Heureux (vocals), and Josh Owsley (bass). Their
music has been described as “hovering in a delightful interzone – somewhere between Massimo Volume and The Van Pelt, Life Without Buildings and Slint – and the result is music that’s heady but loose, austere but playful.”

https://soundcloud.com/slantoflightsounds

Outro: makes new music – tight, wandering, melodic, out there; soaring, rough, harmonizing, thoughtful – in a warren of drywalled rehearsal rooms in an old mill building in Western MA. They have themes and chops. At the mill, they take smoke breaks with metal legends Black Pyramid and psych-folk masters Gold Dust, nod politely to Murph when he wanders through, and try to outplay the wacko noodlers in the room upstairs. Somehow, from the sonic chaos, Outro’s sound is born. Is it Murmur with a post-punk edge? Is it now rock for the angry ones? Is it angled, or cycled, or… what? It’s Outro. You listen. You decide. They’ll just keep on making it happen. https://outro-band.bandcamp.com/music

Ex-Temper: Ex-Temper creates pivoting, unpredictable, guitar-driven rock layered with catchy melodies and three-part vocal harmonies. Once described as “Fugazi meets the Andrews Sisters” and credited with playing “heavy, head-banging riffs,” their lyrics explore everything from heartbreak and obsession, to prominent social issues like police brutality, mass shootings, the inefficiency of white guilt, and mansplaining; as well as mysteries like the Green Children of Woolpit, and existential questions such as if an organ donor’s consciousness or memories can be transplanted into the recipient’s mind.

Kaliis Smith (guitar, vocals), Kate Dowd (bass, vocals), and Lynn Simonds (guitar, vocals) knew each other from playing in the Northampton, MA music scene with other bands. In 2015 they sought each other out with the intention of starting an all-female rock band that specialized in being kick-ass while maintaining steadfast musicality. Dana Wilde (drums) joined in 2016.

The band has played dozens of shows with venues ranging from basements, bars, all-ages community spaces, and larger venues such as The Iron Horse (Northampton, MA), Gateway City Arts (Holyoke, MA), and The Stone Church (Brattleboro, VT). Ex-Temper has shared the stage with Kristin Hersh, Aye Nako, The Winterpills, Bent Knee, Vundabar, Spouse, GRLwood, and many more.

After years of honing their craft, their self-titled EP was released on March 4, 2022. This release follows up their first EP “Magnetic” from 2018. Both are available on Bandcamp.

https://ex-temper.com/music