Gamble House

September 19, 2010

We met up at Keith’s house one Sunday, tucked up in the hills by the reservoir. It was one of those unbelievably enviable houses with a view, backyard, and basement rehearsal / recording space. The boys had just returned from a tour opening for Rogue Wave, and were all, as to be expected, in pretty good spirits about everything.

It was a bit of a challenge fitting everyone and their equipment into the little space (and still having room for two cameramen), but I think it added a bit of intimacy to the extensively orchestrated sound (there are only four of them, but they manage to juggle multiple instruments — keyboards and guitar in the same song, and my personal favorite move, the drummer / glockenspiel). Of course, the obvious comparison Gamble House will get is to Grizzly Bear, maybe with a touch more of that west coast 60′s influence (note the guitar solo in “Bonny Doon”). But it’s not a bad thing, in fact, far from it. These are brilliantly crafted songs, not to mention the impeccable, polished delivery. The kind of careful and subtle arrangements that reveal themselves in repeated listenings and unknowingly whittle themselves into the back of your brain, until you find you’ve been subconsciously humming bits and pieces of them for days.

Find out more about Gamble House at gamblehousemusic.com.

Camera: Elliot Glass & Allen Kelley
Sound: Elliot Glass
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