Not surprisingly, this is a group that welcomes, even accentuates, what some might consider imperfections —the pause for breath, the click of a tongue against the roof of a mouth — staccato, organic sounds that add to the humble surface allure of the songs. My Invisible’s seven tracks are part of an ongoing song cycle of conceptual tone poems, each reflecting a different state of being. “Receptivity” uses samples of Japanese children’s songs, plucked, pizzicato strings, mournful cello, and even the player’s breathing to build into a kind of gentle roundelay. Other songs — such as the fierce “Aggression” and the playful, painterly “Duplicity” — are less linear in construction, unfolding with narrative digressions one associates with prose writing.
Which makes sense, be¬cause all three members are writers who met through Brown’s Literary Arts program. (Mellis is also co-editor of local literary journal Encyclopedia, the first issue of which is due in June; go to encyclopediaproject.org f0r more information.) Accordingly, My In¬visible’s lyrics are as carefully crafted as the music, referencing sources as diverse as Adorno, Heinrich Heine, MC Lyte, and SF punks the Afflicted, with equal affection for all.
In live performance the band is less conceptual and more freeform in approach, constantly switching off on instruments, varying textures, harmonizing, and allowing for seemingly spontaneous “atonal band cheers.” From the sublime to the ridiculous and back again . . . My Invisible in a nutshell.
MY INVISIBLE + HUMANWINE + AMBITIOUS ORCHESTRA | May 13, 2-5 pm | AS220, 115 Empire St, Providence | 401.831.9327
