Ton-Taun, a four piece band from Lancaster, PA has released their sophomore album Exporter independently. A local band that most recently appeared and opened for Isis of Thunderheist last Friday for WDCV’s fall concert; The Perfect Storm, they succeeded to impress those select few who turned out for the free event. A band that released their first album barely over a year ago, a purely alternative rock sound is apparent along with modern influences like Modest Mouse and Wilco. However, the band itself is comprised of avid music lovers and listeners, and their other more subtle influences allude to the works of the infamous Miles Davis.
The premier track of the album, “Headdresses,” is pleasingly haunting yet repetitive. Soothing yet contradictory in its angst, it opens with steady guitar riffs and lyrics alluding to child-like images of finger-painting and feathers. With a pleasant harmony reminiscent of mindless whispering, Ton-Taun’s members sing of an assumed woman with a heart as hard as a diamond that one day the singer will tear out. The track ends with lead vocal Jordan Capizzi singing the repeated line “I was happy to see how scared you are of me, right now,” along with a reference back to the title of the song. The band actually played this song live at the concert, and the emotion and energy of the song shone through.
The sixth track of the album, “The Coca-Cola Factory,” could be considered a sort of sing-along drinking song for misfits and those of us who are more often than not down on our luck. Upbeat despite its melancholy lyrics, this track is catchy and easily relatable to any struggling, nostalgic college student. The song has a simple message, we were all meant for more than what we have or do, but something just went wrong along the way. It’s all a bitter twist of fate.
Young in terms of their years as a complete band but also experienced with two complete, original albums already under their belts, Ton-Taun has the potential to speak to a generation obsessed with consumerism, debauchery and the longing for a place in the world.
