And to think I made multiple attempts to trade this one in a few years back. Good thing it was rejected from all those stores, because it gave me the opportunity to revisit and appreciate it. There hasn't been much uttered on Albany, CA's long defunct
Pot Valiant if only for the fact that by the time
Transaudio saw the light of day, the web had yet to fully blossom. Replete with ringing, and dare I say even spooky guitar chords, and a whip-smart sense of dynamics, the quartet were clearly groomed on the likes of Seam and Flower (later Versus, but you already knew that). In fact the lead off cut, "Nugget Killer" subtly recalls Flower's "Torch Song." In a nutshell, PV deliver a superb fusion of dense, downcast post-punk with poignant melodicism. Though I can't emphasize the pervasiveness of Seam on these guys, by the mid-album "This Heaven Has Bars," Pot Valiant noodle around with mathy textures a la Slint, which eases in nicely to the more docile second half of
Transaudio. I'm pretty certain that somewhere I've stockpiled a pair of Pot Valiant singles, which I may get to later, but in the meantime you can bone up about one of them
here. BTW, as the brief bio on their Myspace page (linked above) notes, that the group was initially called
The Vagrants, and released a single on the iconic (and insolvent) Lookout Records.
01. nugget killer
02. tapir
03. oar
04. low dexterity points
05. this heaven has bars
06. sick
07. going
08. last sun
09. untitled (unfinished)
Will
Bandcamp work for you?
5 comments:
Thanks for continuing to post truly obscure gems
Could I post your post on Albany Patch? It's a website all about Albany, CA. I can link back to your blog. Really enjoying Pot Valiant as well!
Sure Emilie, no problem. What's the website address by the way?
Nice review of a long forgotten and underrated band. I too have held on to my copy of PV's Transaudio for many years. I recall originally purchasing it used from Amoeba record store in San Francisco - prob mid '90s? I agree with you in regards to the heavy Seam influence. I love Seam, so if a band like PV can pull it off well, I am game for sure! I actually lived in Albany, CA for 7 years (1999 - 2006) and at some point during that time I asked a few local folks if they knew who PV was or where they are now -- no info was forthcoming. I love the fact that this little band was around for a short while and put out this great album. Willfully obscure indeed.
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