'Volunteered Civility and Professionalism'
(Dischord Records)
Ryan Nelson's DC lineage reaches back first to The Most Secret Method (in which he drummed), and later on, Beauty Pill and the Routineers (where he also drummed). Nelson is also the artist responsible for a fair share of distinct DC-inspired artwork to grace the covers of albums from his previous bands, a ton of gig flyers and a postcard series. Up until last year, his time was spent behind the drum kit, but Soccer Team changes all this. Soccer Team is the song writing product of Nelson and former co-worker Melissa Quinley. It's a series of atmospheric vignettes recorded late at night in Nelson's Southeast DC basement. The songs offer an intimate portrait of life in and around the song writing duo, animating day-to-day minutia, terse analogy and a few amazingly sculpted instrumentals. Drummers, by and large, are not usually the song writer of a band. They're simply along for the ride to help someone else realize an artistic vision. This is not the case with Nelson or Soccer Team for that matter. I'm led to believe that the songs contained within have been on the back burner in Nelson's head for quite a long time, and that he finally felt the need to step out from behind the drum kit and commit his brand of song to tape. Hopefully, Soccer Team finds its way out of the basement and onto the stage soon..
For further info on Soccer Team, log onto dischord and say hi to Ryan Nelson if you're doing any mail ordering.
-BT
