HoboEye Music:
Starlight Mints, Oklahoma

Church bells, horns, piano, violin, tambourine, triangle, synths and sound effects complement the usual indie-rock suspects of guitar, bass, and drums to paint a broad and surreal sonic palate. Opulent chamber pop collides with post punk and new wave, throwing off charged particles of ever changing infectious melody. Lines of poetry that react like lyrical Rorschach tests, blooming images in the mind of the listener.

Starlight Mints are a group of beautiful pop mutants: four singular musical minds whose love for archetypal pop music and AM radio has provided, over the course of two previous acclaimed albums, a rock-solid foundation for a whole bunch of inspired uniqueness, all baked to perfection under the hot Oklahoma sun.

Allan Vest (vocals/guitar), Marian Love Nunez (keyboards), Javier Gonzales (bass), and Andy Nunez (drums) began jamming together in the '90s, giving birth to their own unusual brand of instrumentally complex, surrealistically worded pop sound. The band tour extensively, sometimes playing as a nine-piece, sometimes as a quintet. Their live show is somewhat legendary, having toured on previous records as a headliner and in support of such cult draws as Grandaddy and Flaming Lips.

With Drowaton they continue their quest for the perfect synthesis of conceptual composition and eminently humable melody. The albumcontinually challenges the listener to keep up with its complexities, but rather than coming off progishly, the band's blend of classic string arrangements, cheeky boyish vocals, catchy melody and ornate surrealism is a pleasure - you might call it bubblegum psych. But whatever you call it, it all adds up to something very grand and instantly recognizable: Starlight Mints.

Visit the Starlight Mints' website >