Jigsaw [CDEP/12” Vinyl EP, 2006]

I've been looking forward to hearing more from Patience Please and when I heard that their latest EP, titled Parallel Plots, was stocked at local record stores here in Seattle, I couldn't resist running out to pick them up. I was so early, in fact, that the stores had yet to put them onto the shelves. First I swung by Easy Street Records, where I snagged a copy of the CDEP. Then I drove to Sonic Boom Vinyl Annex in Fremont, Parallel Plots blasting through my lovely Volvo speakers, where the 12” EPs rested atop a pile of yet-to-be-sorted Lps on the counter next to the cashier. He had yet to even hear about them, checking his database before we realized they were right in front of our faces.

Ray Proudfoot fronts the group on gratey vocals and guitar while Keenan Dowers, the sole female, provides the group with organ and backup vocals hummed into the microphone. Rounding out the group are Jordan Michelman on bass and IndiePage's Chris McFarlane on percussion. When they began playing, friends kept asking when the EP would be ready. At this time the group had no name and they, according to the group's bio, kept saying: "Please, be patient." Now... can you imagine where they got the name?

I was curious to hear the new tracks, as I was already familiar with “The Velveteen Rabbit” and “Little Mouthfuls.” Needless to say, I was quite pleased. The EP begins with “Cynics & Critics,” a lovely track filled with the group's signature organ and poppy guitar strumming. As I mentioned before, “The Velveteen Rabbit” and “Little Mouthfuls” were not new to me. Keenan Dowers steps up behind Proudfoot with much stronger backup-vocals in “Little Mouthfuls,” undoubtedly adding to the track. "The Velveteen Rabbit" was one of my favorite childhood stories, though sad. It's a strong track.

Patience Please write very mature songs for Parallel Plots being their debut. The contrast between the loud and the soft is outstanding, and it is most apparent in these final two songs, “Too Forthright” and “Unpublished.” The former has a soft beginning that picks up as the song progresses until two-thirds in, when the instruments drop out for a cappella vocals before kicking back in at the end of the song. “Unpublished” begins with a pop guitar jangle and (my favorite thing in music!) hand claps.

In a debut it can be difficult to pull together a track list of powerful songs. Patience Please seems to have succeeded effortlessly. Not since Voxtrot's Raised By Wolves EP have I heard such a powerful debut. In fact, Parallel Plots may be moreso. Their sound remains consistent as does their songwriting—something that's rare not only in debuts but throughout careers. Thus, Patience Please has talent that should not go unnoticed.

Patience Please: Homepage

Patience Please: MySpace

Patience Please: Fleeting Frequencies  

Patience Please: Feature Band

Patience Please: Seattle, WA [07.07.2007]  

1. Cynics & Critics
2. The Velveteen Rabbit
3. Little Mouthfuls
4. Too Forthright
5. Unpublished