Three Thousand Rivers - Body Aha

Three Thousand Rivers

Body Aha
self-released; 2015

4.2 out of 5 - TOP ALBUM

By Matt Jensen

Three Thousand Rivers formed in 2013 and released an EP entitled Like a What? which we happened to review. The band is back with their best work yet entitled Body Aha. Three Thousand Rivers has enough of original elements and stellar delivery that they could compete with some of the more notable, ubiquitous bands that tend to get lumped in with the indie circuit. The music explodes with a visceral emotional intensity that is comparable to Arcade Fire (the band has other similarities to Arcade Fire, more on that later) while having percussion elements that are reminiscent of bands like Animal Collective and The Dodos. At the end of the day these are very well written songs that are delivered in creative and unique ways that carve out their own space alongside these bands.

The band is currently comprised of Noam Hassenfeld, Nick Demirjian, Jack Cashion, Warren Loegering and Zoe Aqua. I loved the way the band implemented violin and saxophone and while the concept is nothing new in the indie world the music feels fresh. That being said every element such as the guitar, bass and drums feels necessary to the whole and any more would probably feel overboard. 

The first song “Body Aha” is no warm up. It starts with the full band intact finding a groove for your ears to enjoy. The verse is immediately enjoyable and infectious but it’s the little things that start to separate the band. It builds up with multiple overlapping vocal parts and the whole band singing a single measure, which are a testament to the band’s attention to detail. The vocal harmonies on this song and a couple of others will unequivocally draw some comparison to Arcade Fire. That’s not a bad thing but it is certainly something people will notice. 

The second track “Between Two Stones” (see video below) is fantastic any way you look at it and a personal highlight. Between the string work, percussive elements and bursting chorus the song is not one to be missed. I have don’t have anything else to say but go listen to it now. 

Luckily, the band continues to hit it out of the park with consistently above average writing. “The Shakes” is a hard hitting rocker with distorted bass and a notable music interlude that starts around the two-minute mark. They close with “Gut” which reminded me of “No Cars Go” by Arcade Fire at times. Either way the song is still a great way to end the EP.  

Three Thousand Rivers is on a roll and I can only imagine good things to come for the band. Body Aha is good enough where people will take notice. Highly Recommended 

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