Ex-Optimists - Bee Corpse Collector

Name: Ex-Optimists
Album: Bee Corpse Collector
Year: 2013
Style: Shoegaze Math Rock
Similar Bands: Ride, Slowdive, Superchunk, Track Star, Ride, Lush, My Bloody Valentine
"One-Word" Review: Fuzzy Throttling Dreampop
Based Out Of: College Station, Texas
Label: Sinkhole Texas

 Cover, Record, Credits

Back, Record, Lyrics

Bee Corpse Collector (2013)

1. Postcards 4:39
2. Summer at Sea 3:10
3. Never Lose that Feeling 3:43
4. Dead Eyes 8:00 / 
5. No-High Fives 4:36
6. Let's Go to Sleep & Dream 1:30
7. Portrait of an Artist in Flames 2:41
8. Do No Harm 12:23

Album Rating (1-10): 8.5

Members & Other Bands:

• Steven Kennedy - Bass, Guitar, FX, Producer
• Kelly Minnis - Vox, Guitar, Keys, Drums, Percussion, Producer (Daughters of Joy, Great Unwashed Luminaries, Invasion Boys, Magic Girl & her Ex-Husbands, Redchapterjubilee, The Hangout, The Inators, The Tron Sack, Vast Massive Satellite, Vegas in Flames, Victory Lap, Before the Mast, Jay Satellite, A. Michael Collins)
• Michael Scarborough - Guitar, FX, Producer (Magic Girl, Machine Meets Land, The Hangouts)
• Jessica Kempen - Tambourine (Guns of Detroit)
• Chico Jones - Engineer
• Blake Bickle - Mastering
• Justin Scarborough - Artwork
• Wonko the Sane - Artwork
• Whitney Lee - Photos
• Jason Smith - Photos
• Jake W. Hayward -Photos

Unknown-ness: Never heard of this band. But the black screen printed packaging and pretty splattered record made this an easy buy. Based on the cover, I expect this to have some big psychedelic overtones. How heavy or what direction they go: prog, indie, jam band, pop will be seen.

Album Review: There are some slight trippy elements that basically revolve around echoing reverb, and a little distortion, but it is mostly shoe-gazing math rock. I feel like I've heard a hundred opening bands like this over the years. Sinkhole records is singer Kelly Minnis's baby. There are a lot of solid catchy pop hooks imbedded in the meandering guitars and fuzzy soundscapes. It feel like it could fit into some of the 80's-90's Church-like dark-dreary brit pop pop, or a lot of the mid 90's alternative bands, but it also fits into 2013.The sound like the band you drag your girlfriend to, but end up having a fight and breaking up.

Stand Out Track: No High Fives, Postcards

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