Prayer for Animals breeds a kind of shamanic, bluesy trance that falls somewhere between locals like the Strange Boys and Haunting Oboe Music, burdening an unhinged edge in the vocals across melodic guitar jams that paw in any number of directions. Though banging darkly in the psychedelic garage, the quintet is equally likely to unleash boozy acoustic numbers cut with twang and pedal steel, as with the rough mix of “No Bed” that they’ve offered for download below. Expect the group’s proper debut album later this year, and in the meantime you can catch them this Saturday at Trophy’s with Snafu Kittens, Bombs Away, and Base.
Profile: Prayer For Animals
Year Formed:
Aught Five
Members/Instruments played:
Adam Brisbin – Guitar/Vox
Ryan Gitman – Drums
Jeremy Jenkins – Bass
Johnny Pitts – Guitar/Steel
Brent Sluder – Keys/Vox
Former Bands/Side Projects:
Side projects – The Dirty Banquet, The Breakfast Club, Dr. Mewg & The Hitchhiker & LEPER
Former Bands – Adam used play in band called Calendar in his younger days. Ryan was in two different bands before he moved from California; Bare Bones & Goldmind. Jeremy played in Waking Helix, which would later become Ghostland Observatory & he also played w/ Amid The Noise & Haste, which had future members of both Low Line Caller & Haunting Oboe Music.
Albums:
We released a collection of recordings spanning ‘05 & ‘06 called “Songs From the Leaning House”; it was a pretty low-fi/low budget disc.
We are doing a split EP in July w/ Haunting Oboe Music. There will be one original track from each band, one cover of a song of each other’s & one track written & performed together. Should be fuuuuuun.
Also, we are currently working on our new record. We hope to have it out by the fall.
Influences:
Yeti the cat, lassos, blown amps, bicycling in small circles, rickety staircases, Ringo the dog, voodoo magic, tree ball, cowboy boots, Paul McCartney’s music video for “Silly Love Songs”, a distraction in a fire in a barrel, fuzz, house organs & the landscapes of
Texas.
Strangest comment or comparison ever made about your music:
We were told once after a show in San Antonio that our volume made it difficult to “mac on the ladies”.
After a show in Wichita, Kansas an elderly man told us we sounded a lot like a band called Dr. Sniff & The Pink Napkin.
Favorite local bands:
Haunting Oboe Music, Cartright, Prom Nite, The Happy Tingles, Silver Pines, Ghostland Observatory
Favorite local venue:
The Thunderbird Shelter
Upcoming shows scheduled:
Trophy’s May 31st w/ Snafu Kitties, Bombs Away & Base
Hole In The Wall June 6th w/ Red Leaves
Shows over the next month that you’re excited to see:
Tom Waits, Hieroglyphics
Some of your favorite albums from the past year:
Grizzly Bear – Yellow House, Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks – Real Emotional Trash, Panda Bear – Person Pitch…we don’t listen to much of the new stuff.
Ideal band (past or present) to open for on a national tour:
Michael Jackson - Bad World Tour
Austin Sound questions:
Y’all have some pretty fantastic artwork on your show posters. Who designs those, and what would you say is the visual aesthetic for the band?
We design most of our own artwork…& by design we mean steal, manipulate & piece together different images. Not all of it is stolen however, we have some friends who have been nice enough to let us slap our name on some of their work, namely Laura Lee Pfeiffer (brokenarrowart.com) & Emilee Ausmus (myspace.com/minebearstudio).
So, are we praying for all animals or just some in particular? Or are we actually just praying for more animals ’cause we’re hungry?
None of the above. It’s the animals that are doing the praying, you see. But they only pray for each other. We just interpret those prayers in to musical numbers.
Prayer is just a last ditch effort. Honestly, we just try not to indulge.
Song Introduction:
The track is called “No Bed”, it’ll be on the new album. It’s not quite mixed yet, but we think you fine people will get the idea.
Sound Off:
Night is coming & small things without words are going to sleep…sleepy bunnies, sleepy birds, and sleepy children too.
We all make mistakes sometimes.
Rock is dead, but we are all the pallbearers.
You cannot trifle with the inevitable.
Heaven is for those too scared to sleep alone at night.
Dogs have souls too.
Mp3:
No Bed
Websites:
www.prayerforanimals.com
Myspace
