Finally getting my newest segment, Tunesday, up and running. Every Tu(n)esday, I’ll feature various musicians that I’m currently addicted to listening to. Music is art for the ears, and I’ve made it a goal of mine to explore one new band/artist a week on the basis of expanding my horizons and thus reinforcing my melomania.
DIIV, originally known as “Dive,” was the moniker of a solo side-project by Zachary Cole Smith, a Brooklyn-based guitarist of Beach Fossils (another of my favorites!) , that eventually expanded into a full-fledged four-member ensemble. DIIV began getting press as early as the band’s formation in 2011 and received abundant praise from Pitchfork surrounding their June release of Oshin.
I found out about this band through multiple outlets: I first heard about DIIV from Michael Avishay of Ghost Animal (currently on hiatus, I believe) on his Twitter account. Avishay & I have a similar auditory aesthetic, so I hold his recommendations to high esteem. Later, I saw the review of the full-length on Pitchfork’s site after hearing a few of the band’s singles on LastFM radio. If you like the bands Craft Spells & Wild Nothing, I’m sure you’ll love DIIV as much as I do.
I’m still clinging on to summer vibes, but I think this album also provides a good segue into the Autumn season. Oshin leaves you feeling nostalgic for weeks-long roadtrips and drunken nights with friends at shows but is also chill enough to enjoy for the long trudge to class each morning. By far, one of my favorite albums of 2012. Good job, fellas; I look forward to more from y’all.
