What Kind of Books Do You Read?

Collection Contents

#		Title	Length
1		Beetle in Trouble	1:08	Play
2		Wisemen	3:04	Play
3		Poltergeist	3:50	Play
4		The Bird & The Fish	2:58	Play
5		Trainstorms	2:54	Play
6		Bats in the Belfry	4:05	Play
7		Billy Goats Don't Eat Trash	1:27	Play
8		Donnybrook Fair	3:13	Play
9		A Horse That Will Come When I Whistle	3:28	Play
10		Turpentine	5:04	Play
11		A Story About Sasquatch	0:53	Play

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Description

In less than a year, Nashville trio Umbrella Tree formed, wrote a truckload of tunes, made an album and proceeded to make an immediate impact on Nashville's live music scene, all without much fanfare or any real association with any other established local acts.
How did they do it? For starters, they have some really good songs, but just as important has been their ability to stand out from the crowd by standing apart.
Their music doesn't really fall into any of the popular indie rock subsets in town, or fit in with the more alt-rock aspects of Nashville's non-country music scene, or even any of the other current styles sweeping international indie-dom. After listening to the band's debut disc, ''What Kind Of Books Do You Read?'' we've found that the easiest mathematical path to get to Umbrella Tree's unique sound is The Pixies + Jeff Buckley + The Decemberists + Dresden Dolls = Umbrella Tree.
From The Pixies, Umbrella Tree borrowed the weird, ecstatic male vocal versus cool, disaffected female vocal combination and the famous Boston band's notorious disconnectedness from local trends. From Buckley, the group received the gift of speaker-bending dynamics without ever resorting to heavy metal power chord posturing. Like The Decemberists, Umbrella Tree foregoes self-indulgent soul-baring in favor of fable-like storytelling and strange odes to Western movies and Sasquatch.
But the band Umbrella Tree is arguably most similar to in this musical equation is current Spin-approved buzz band Dresden Dolls, whose obsession with Edward Gorey-like gothic imagery and early-century entertainment reflects Umbrella Tree's own bent toward circus freak show sounds, albeit in a much more rock 'n' roll context.
All these influences add up to an album whose compositional conflicts are ultimately cohesive and whose multiple musical allusions never result in the band bowing to any single one of them.
-All the RAGE, April 20-27, 2006

"If you're going to be weird, then it helps to be good. If you're going to wail and flail, forcing people to either come with you or sit ther gawking, then you need to hit all the notes and include moments of exquisite beauty. Local rock trio Umbrella Tree manage all those things. Artsy, quirky, dramatic - maybe even a little spastic - this band's dynamic balance and emotional intensity remain relatable. Both guitarist Zachary Gresham and keyboardist Jillian Franklin (who pass singing duties back and forth) have expressive, musical voices that prevent their sound from ever veering toward farce. Their songs are atmospheric collections of bizarre images drawing on offbeat themes - Gresham's "Bat's in the Belfry" sounds a bit like your crazy old uncle playing an out-of-tune piano in the attic, but in a charming gothic way. That's the thing about this band: they're idiosyncratic, at times dissonant and often strange, but never boring-especially onstage, where they perform with the reckless energy of a high-speed chase."
-Nashville SCENE, April 27-May 3, 2006

Also on the bill were Imagine Asians, Lylas, Beth Cameron of Forget Cassettes, The Clutters, Apollo Up! and Umbrella Tree, who played way off-beat rock and brought the energy level up midway through the nighteven if their lead singer did look a bit like an extra from Witness.
-Nashville SCENE, April 6, 2006

This unconventional indie trio have the dynamic, anthemic Pixies-esque pop thing down pat, and they splice it together with touches of goth and baroque pop that recall both the Decemberists and 16 Horsepower. Definitely one of the Nash-bands to watch in 2006.
-All The RAGE, March 2-9, 2006