Lindsey, you forgot your glasses.About a story underground and lounging amongst scattered drum cases and
other instruments, the entirety of Empty Space Orchestra is gathered in
silence while a surging whirlwind of an instrumental rock song thunders
through the room. Lindsey Elias is tapping her feet with the rapidity
of the last bounces of a ping-pong ball, matching the complex rhythms
booming from the computer speakers, which makes sense, because she's
the drummer.
Leaning back in a chair in front of a computer supplying
the aforementioned song, Shane Thomas unleashes a grin from the side of
his mouth as a heavily distorted guitar melts into the song, which
makes sense because he's the guitarist. Bassist, and the band's newest
member, Patrick Pearsall and keyboardist Keith O'Dell stare at the
floor, taking in the song, which they tell me is called "Clouds."
This
is a live recording of a recent rehearsal in the underground practice
space that they share with a number of other local bands, but the new
sound of Empty Space Orchestra comes through clear. It's a tougher,
bigger, beefier, faster sound than on the exclusively instrumental
debut disc, Big Bang, which it should be mentioned, won't hit the
streets until the band's McMenamins show on May 6. A band starkly
changing its sound after only a year in existence isn't typical, and
perhaps not particularly wise, but for Empty Space, a staggeringly
unique rock/jazz/everything else band that's achieved almost un-rivaled
popularity in Bend, it's all understandable.
