I got pulled over tonight. Nothing big, just a bad taillight. The cop may have thought I was trying to evade him, pulling into the dark, always vacant Skagit Valley College parking lot late on a Friday night. As soon as I rounded the corner, his lights went on. (more…)

All photos copyright Sara Montour. Words by Fense.

There’s a personality to The Album Leaf that is unquestionable. Their melodies are sweet, adorned with pleasing and hypnotic, dreamy rhythms. Split between swirling dulcet instrumentals and love-at-first-sight vocal tracks, they truly are a band of which to take note. And they have been for some time.

Most of us are pretty familiar with their more recent work, the albums post signing to Sub Pop: In A Safe Place and Into The Blue Again. Well they’re back with their third album on Sub Pop and fifth album overall. A Chorus Of Storytellers came out earlier this month, and The Album Leaf is on tour in support of that release.

A friend of FensePost, photographer Sara Montour, caught The Album Leaf in Seattle last weekend. Here are some of her shots…

The Album Leaf: Falling From The Sun [mp3]

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It’s been a few years since we last heard from The Album Leaf, but they’re back. “Falling From The Sun” renews the band’s focus on vocals. Looking back at In A Safe Place and Into The Blue Again, those albums emphasized The Album Leaf’s ability to create a dreamy, atmospheric tune. “Falling From The Sky” lapses into those areas, but the true emphasis is on lyrics and vocals, and that in itself is a substantial change. (more…)

What a decade it’s been. 2004 was my first year in the so-called Real World; jobs, car payments, instability everywhere. Things weren’t all happy and seemingly upbeat like the mid 90s. After eight months in Seattle, I found myself unemployed and decided it was time for more education. I moved to the greater Portland area and began prep to enter a Masters in Business Administration program, taking night classes at WSU Vancouver and making a frequent trip out to Pullman, where I’d soon attend graduate school. The overall instability and open-your-eyes wake-up calls of 2004 seemed to extend beyond me. Two of the most honest and disturbing albums I’ve ever heard were released this year – another strong one in music overall. (more…)