As I wrote in the post about Tape Deck Mountain, concert goers always experience scheduling conflicts at the big music festivals. Intense festivals such as NxNE can have as many as 25 bands playing at the same time, so there’s bound to be at least two artists playing during a given time-slot that you want to catch. But without the correct formula for time travel, you’re out of luck. Unfortunately, this was the case for me and my mission to try and catch Secret Cities’ sets over the NxNE weekend. Things didn’t pan out and now the more I listen to their 2011 sophomore album, Strange Hearts, the more I regret not catching them. Luckily, I was able to sit down with them for a little bit at Wrongbar to discuss the new album, their current tour, biggest influences, and their unique songwriting process.

The name Secret Cities fits perfectly with these musicians. The band is an anomaly of sorts when compared to the practice schedules and writing styles of a majority of other bands. Fargo, ND and Kansas City are Secret Cities’ two hometowns, but the band really only gets together when it hits the road for long stretches. The formation began on an Elephant Six message board when guitarist Charlie started speaking with drummer Alex and decided that it would be best to start recording some pop songs. MJ (vocals, piano) joined the mix as a good friend of Charlie’s, and thus began the creation of the penpal pop band. Sure, Postal Service may be the best known for this writing M.O., but that was a duo. Adding more minds and opinions to the mix doesn’t make the process any easier, but Secret Cities pull it off successfully.

All of the songwriting and recording is done through trading tracks and communicating via G-Chat to discuss ideas and revisions. Alex (drums) is the Kansas City resident, and was by himself throughout the recording process of Secret Cities first album, Pink Graffiti (2010). That album was a five-year-long journey that involved a multitude of correspondence between he, Charlie and MJ, which consisted of a “wait and hope” approach to see if the other members enjoyed what was being sent around. On Strange Hearts, the process was made much easier, especially since Charlie and Alex were able to live together in Kansas City. Instead of a marathon of five years, Strange Hearts took about three months to write, record and master.

The new album sits on my “Best of…” list for the first half of 2011 and is possibly one of the more underrated albums that has been released so far. No other artist or band attempting to channel the vibe of 1960′s psych-pop has done so with the quality that Secret Cities has. And they’re not just playing the role of copycats either. Originality and talent is strung throughout the album, whether it’s sunny acoustic pop, such as “Love Crime”, or an easy-going melodic tune such as “The Park”–every instrument meshes with just the right amount balance.

The vocals are what really stand out on Strange Hearts. The echoed voices of Charlie and MJ sound as if they’re being sung in a great hall or church. MJ’s songs carry a Michelle Phillips type quality to them, particularly during the finale “Portland,” and the moody psychedelic folk of “Pebbles.” Charlie sounds as if his voice was pulled directly off the streets of Haight-Ashbury, with the ability to fit on a bill at a Warfield or Fillmore show out in San Francisco during the 60′s. The versatility, for he and MJ to fluctuate between octaves, is what gives each song its initial jolt. As the pop chord structures fall into place, the songs feel as if they had been a part of my record collection for years. It’s a modern day time-warp that is fun to revisit.

[mp3] Secret Cities // The Park from Strange Hearts

The band is finishing up an intense winter-spring touring schedule that started in February, brought them to SxSW in March with more U.S. dates in April before a month-long European tour in May, and a final U.S. run throughout all of June. The band may only be together when they’re on the road, but when they hit the pavement, they hit it hard. The band finishes up on July 1 (today) and is deserving of some rest and relaxation as they go their separate ways. Which is itself a further challenge as band members will now be living in four separate states (including touring guitarist Trevor). The situation shouldn’t be anything difficult for them though; they’ve been recording in separate cities since their existence, so it appears they wanted to up the ante a bit.

[mp3] Secret Cities // Love Crime from Strange Hearts

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