"Music from the city about the beauty and mind of the country" reads the description on Redfeather's Facebook page. For a band that's garnered comparisons to Fleet Foxes and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in their short existence, the description couldn't be more appropriate. Sprung from the mind of Mark Etherington (also the drummer of Antiwarpt instrumental outfit set and setting), the band that would become Redfeather had its beginnings in the shoddy innards of an AC-free South St. Pete apartment he shared with this writer just under a year ago.
Back then, Etherington worked under the solo moniker Mountain Holler, penning the early stages of riffs and words that would eventually become intricately lush Redfeather compositions with names like "Into the Wind," "Falconer" and "Hollow the Sun." Etherington eventually corralled a troupe of musicians to expound upon the solo sound of Mountain Holler, first bringing in a couple, Jaqueline Titus (keyboards, vocals) and Doug Gialluca (bass), before rounding out the lineup with drummer Todd C. Smith. Redfeather became a fully realized concept in a surprisingly short period of time and haven't looked back since, playing nearly every show they're offered (including a gig at a nudist festival) and recording material in their home studio.
Draped in reverb and harmony, Redfeather's songs are often a twofold attack of subdued beauty and primal intensity, a trait not often found in the delicate, folky workings of comparable bands. Etherington's crystalline declarations are bolstered by Titus' honey-sweet harmonies and hauntingly melodic songwriting on tracks like "Hollow the Sun."
Redfeather just finished a four-song EP recorded at Smith's Paper Sound Studios in downtown St. Pete, and they'll release it in conjunction with their Antiwarpt performance. To listen to Redfeather, visit mountainhollerredfeather.bandcamp.com. (8:45-9:15 p.m., Cafe Bohemia)
Check out Redfeathers's pre-Antiwarpt III video spotlight below, presented by CL in collaboration with St. Pete Beat/Creative Motion Inc.
Antiwarpt – Red Feather from ryan zarra on Vimeo.
This article appears in Jul 26 – Aug 1, 2012.