(Photo Credit: Si Moore)
Tiny Ruins - Olympic Girls Review:
Meticulously crafted, melodically intricate, visionarily cohesive, and hauntingly beautiful vocally. These are the phrases that come to mind when thinking on Tiny Ruins' latest effort Olympic Girls. The band's fourth effort shows such mature focus and poise musically, lyrically, and vocally.
Some of our favorite tracks included "Kore Waits in the Underworld" with intricate lyric play. "Holograms" with it's hook that reminds of more classical offerings as Hollie Fullbrook beautifully holds a fantastic note as she sings "holograms" it is so exquisite in it's delivery, it's the best note I've heard in a minute and I've heard plenty. The melding of lyrics and music "On Million Flowers" is playful and sensationally done.
Overall Thoughts: If for some reason you missed this one over the last couple of weeks, please do yourself a favor and rectify this error immediately. This album deserves your attention and you'll be a better alt fan having heard it. I don't know how else to show you what you're missing if you haven't heard this already, but it's worth your time.
Rating: 5/5
We had the opportunity to interview emerging alt-folk group Tiny Ruins! This New Zealand four-piece's meticulous attention to melody and vocal detail will be sure to have you jumping out of your chair. Riding a great wave of self-made momentum, Tiny Ruins are a band to keep your eye on. Check out what they had to say below!
1. How did you come to pursue music and how long have you been at it?
"I started playing cello at seven years old and fell in love with music. Classical music was the bedrock of my initial music education. Classical music requires discipline and it has a rigidity to it. By eleven I started teaching myself guitar and by 14 I was in bands with people from high school. I took cello seriously until I was about 18 years old."
"I then went off to university and wrote songs to express myself. After a while, I had a decent number of quality songs and I began to open up to friends with my music. I did an open mic night and did a demo. Eventually, I was discovered by a record company called Spark."
"I've spent eight years as Tiny Ruins. It was never my intention to get into music, but sharing songs makes them more meaningful".
2. Could you walk us through your process of writing music?
"I used to primarily write lyrics and put those to music. Now I sort of write guitar and lyrics together and allow them to come together organically. I will say though it is different for each song though. Some songs take 20 minutes to complete and others will take a year and a half. I tend to write in spurts, I'm not an everyday writer per se."
3. What artists have inspired you in your career?
"I was obsessed with The Beatles when I was younger, when I inherited my parent's vinyl collection. I have fond memories of The White Album."
"As I got older I tried to fit in more a bit with my musical tastes and began listening to artists like The Smashing Pumpkins, PJ Harvey, and Cat Power. I also discovered Bob Dylan and Neil Young at this time."
"In my 20's when mp3 sharing was huge, I began to get into a lot of country and a lot of blues music as well. I'm also a big fan of Nina Simone."
4. Do you have any favorite music gear (guitars, amps, effects pedals, keyboards, etc.) that you love to use? If so, what’s the story on them?
"I have a Martin Dreadnought that's I just got that I love. I learned on a 70's Suzuki that my Mom got in Spain. For amplification I use a Sheldon tube amp, I also have a TC Electronic Hall of Fame Reverb Pedal that I use the 'Shimmer' feature on a lot. Tuning-wise I use lots of open tunings."
5. Can you describe the vibe at your live shows? Also, what do you enjoy most about a venue when you do a show?
"As a whole band we play with all four of us, though there are times when I will play solo. Our band is an extremely collaborative effort with Cass Basil, Alex Freer & Tom Healy all having their own stage presence. Additionally, most of our songs just sound bigger live."
"Regarding venues, where the bar is in the venue can have a huge impact on on sound. It's better if it's in a different room altogether. I love the variety of venues and their character, that's a great part of touring."
6. What is one thing that you want the public to know about your music?
"Something we are proud of and challenged by is that we have grown very organically. Any success we have had has been grass roots."
7. Do you have any upcoming projects you would like fans to know about?
"We just released our album Olympic Girls on February 1! We also hope to tour later in the year."
For more information on Tiny Ruins visit their website at https://www.tinyruins.com/. Stay up to date with Tiny Ruins by following them on Spotify!