State River Widening
Named after the title of a Chinese propaganda photo, London-based trio State River Widening comprises multi-instrumentalists David Sheppard and Keiron Phelan, along with drummer/percussionist Jon Steele.
Sheppard is the former guitarist with '90s baroque pop group Balloon while Phelan played with ex-The Sound frontman, the late Adrian Borland.
Friends from school (in south London) Sheppard and Phelan began experimental recordings in 1996, soon hooking up with drummer Steele to leaven their intertwining, Nick Drake-like acoustic guitars with vigorous-yet-dexterous drum work. Thus, in May 1998, was State River Widening born.
A debut single, Unsung Couples, was released on the Gold Hole label in November 1998 to the delight of journalists still in thrall to all thinks post-rock. SRW's hypnotic cycles of avant-rock melody seemed to chime with an audience then thrilling to similarly inclined practitioners such as Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Tortoise – though SRW's sound was immediately identified as being very much their own.
Further singles and compilation tracks appeared before the November 1999 release of SRW's eponymous debut (on fast rising independent imprint Rocket Girl), which drew plaudits from the likes of Delusions of Adequacy, who remarked that the band's "intoxicating back-to-nature acoustic explorations supplied the Anglo-agrarian answer to Chicago's urbanite post-rock crowd." A clutch of rare live dates followed with the band treading the boards with the likes of Low and Piano Magic.
Rocket Girl Releases
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State River Widening
Early Music -
State River Widening
State River Widening
Available Through Rocket Girl Mailorder
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State River Wid...
Desertesque (Fo...