Pennsylvania’s Balance And Composure have grown a lot since they formed in 2007. The band’s third album, Light We Made, is their biggest step yet, applying a swirling, Radiohead-like approach to writing that’s resulted in a dark, mature record.
Almost everything I play is usually centred around blues progressions, due to their dark undertones
“We used the term ‘adult tones’ a lot,” explains guitarist Erik Petersen. “These are simple tones that leave the guitar playing itself exposed.”
Blue tone
Songs such as Spinning, call to mind Failure’s intelligent brand of heavy smarts, with Erik and co-guitarist Andy Slaymaker’s Strat and Vox AC30/Fender DeVille combos handling tonal duties.
However, B&C’s influences can be traced back further than the 90s. “Almost everything I play is usually centred around blues progressions, due to their dark undertones,” explains Erik. “Those themes draw me in. There is a distinct similarity in our music and blues underlinings - and that’s not by accident.”
- For fans of: Radiohead, Failure
- Hear: Afterparty
“It sounded so amazing that people said to me, ‘I can hear the bass’, which usually they don’t say to me very often”: U2 bassist Adam Clayton contrasts the live audio mix in the Las Vegas Sphere to “these sports buildings that sound terrible”
“It didn’t even represent what we were doing. Even the guitar solo has no business being in that song”: Gwen Stefani on the No Doubt song that “changed everything” after it became their biggest hit
“It sounded so amazing that people said to me, ‘I can hear the bass’, which usually they don’t say to me very often”: U2 bassist Adam Clayton contrasts the live audio mix in the Las Vegas Sphere to “these sports buildings that sound terrible”
“It didn’t even represent what we were doing. Even the guitar solo has no business being in that song”: Gwen Stefani on the No Doubt song that “changed everything” after it became their biggest hit
