Touch The Buffalo are a rock band from Arlignton, VA. Bodhicitta is the name of their EP and felt like this was a rock EP with just enough variation to create something novel. Funny enough I was just reading about music and psychology where the authors were explaining that the recipe for a “successful” song is something like 90 percent familiarity and 10 percent novelty. I was thinking about that and it feels true to me. The new music I tend to appreciate has a backbone of influence but also pushes some aspect that sounds unique and inventive.
Bodhicitta does this and in particular I would say the use of the ukulele creates this novelty. Whenever I think of a ukulele it’s usually a solo performance in more of an intimate setting. It’s not usually used in the context of a rock song.
“This City’s Burning” is an opening that grabs you and doesn’t let go. The use of dynamics is worked out really well by the band members. Bass or guitar will drop and come back in and then reach for more intense moments. Even if this song didn’t have lyrics I would have enjoyed it. The vocals however are spot on. I couldn’t tell if there was one vocalist doing both parts but there is one vocal echo which follows the leads and is treated differently in the mix.
“In Six Heads About It” was a truly exceptional song and the highlight for me on the EP. It starts with the ukulele, light percussion from the drums, vocals and subtle piano. Once you hear that guitar it creates this wave of distortion and washes over you. I loved the chorus where the vocalist sings “I thought I’d swore I’d never see you again.” The transition back to the ukulele based verse is just as satisfying. It’s a longer song at six minutes and almost wears out its welcome but the change of the vocal melody and additional harmonies make it work.
“The Carpenter and the Nurse” contains some beautiful interplay between pianos. It’s somewhat reminiscent of the band The Walkmen. I have to admit the first time I heard the vocals on this song I didn’t feel it but after a couple spins it really grew on and felt very strong. This goes from an intimate energy to something much more expansive and feels like it can fill an arena. The high point comes when I hear a very distorted guitar hanging on to notes that sound like a rocket zipping through space.
The catchiest song and also the most bittersweet is “Hope’s Song.” There’s a childlike innocence here and some of that is with structure but also the choice of instrumentation. It’s very lush and as the title suggests is very hopeful. My interpretation of this song was that it was about keeping someone’s essence alive after death through memory.
This is a fantastic EP. There are only four songs but found the material to have a good amount of variation. Not so much variation where I thought this was a different band. They were able to establish a daily singular sound which is no easy feat.
Garth Thomas