DeVotchka: From Burlesque To Success

New To Me

If you are like me, you might already know DeVotchka and not know it. Their music graced much of the soundtrack for the film Little Miss Sunshine yet  did so in such an integrated and seamless fashion that you might not be profoundly aware of it if until you watch the film a second time-which I highly recommend. I remember loving the music the first time around but was more aware of the inclusion of Sufjan Steven's songs and of course the unforgettable use of "Superfreak" by Rick James.

It wasn't until I had the chance to see DeVotchka live this year at SXSW that I really got to know them in their own right. Our group was heading out for a full night starting off at the Anti Records/Utne Reader showcase at the Cedar Door in downtown Austin. The line-up started at 8pm and went until 2am showcasing Anti bands Islands, Tim Fite, Man Man, The Weakerthans, Devotchka and Billy Bragg. We had plans of moving on after Islands but the night just kept getting better and better, the crowds bigger and bigger and we stayed put, thankfully, because it was DeVotchka that stole the show and won my heart. Here's a video from that very night:



I was so intoxicated with the songs that they played off of their new album A Mad and Faithful Telling that I got it the day I got back and have spent the last few months getting to know the band's catalogue. Their music is such an interesting mix of western and eastern influences and manages to meld Spanish, Eastern European and Gypsy Punk sounds together so effortlessly that you can't quite put your finger on their dominant influence. Having been a fan of bands like Calexico, Beirut, Gogol Bordello and even Balkan Beat Box, I felt like I had found a band that combined the best of those and then added a layer of passion and intensity on top of it.

That first night, I was very taken by lead singer Nick Urata's voice and I kept trying to put my finger on who he reminded me of. We kept tossing out comparisons: Morrissey, Jeff Buckley,Roy Orbison, Rufus Wainwright, Chris Isaak. All are present and yet his has an aching warble to it that is wholly and romantically his own. I saw them again in New York last month at a much larger venue and the show was even better; with Urata whipping the crowd into a frenzy of twirling, mad, carnival sounds and then dropping back to a pin drop quiet ballad accompanied by just a bass and violin.

From my perspective, Devotchka's music is classical, cinematic, jubilant and poignant  all at once. Truly worth discovering.

Vitals:

Band Members:

Nick Urata- vocals and theremin, guitar, bouzouki, piano, and trumpet
Tom Hagerman- violin, accordion, and piano
Jeanie Schroder- backing vocals and sousaphone and double bass
Shawn King-percussion and trumpet

Conceived:

The band was conceived when Urata moved from Chicago to Denver in 1997 after the a few band start ups went south and busking for tips outside the el trains in Chi-Town wouldn't pay the bills. Teeming up with the others, they became the unlikely backing band for Dita Von Teese's traveling burlesque show. The band released their first album Supermelodrama in 2000 but didn't really take off until 2006- the year of Little Miss Sunshine  and break thru performances at that year's Bonnaroo and SXSW festivals.

Roots:

This is a band where the roots are plainly evident: Urata is from Sicilian and Gypsy ancestry while drummer Shawn King was raised by Lithuanian Polka musicians and wanted to be a mexican mariachi horn payer. All band members play multiple instruments and keep learning new ones that most of us have never heard of.

Sound & Sounds Like:

DeVothka's sound can traverse the musical globe but it always feels highly cinematic in scope to me and yes, even a little melodramatic (as the title of their first album Supermelodrama so aptly foreshadowed). It is no surprise that their songs have been used to such great effect in films for they have that big, sloppy, 'cue the string section' sound but done in a way that feels au currant or as many have described "Fellini meets the Spaghetti Western".

The combination of trumpets, strings, acoustic guitar, upright bass and indigenous eastern Euoropean instruments is not new in and of itself but the way that DeVotchka combines them with the poetic lyricism of Urata's crooning voice is the sonic equivalent of combining a Gabriel Garcia Marquez short story with  a Milan Kundera novel. Complicated. Tragic. Otherwordly. Romantic.

Bar Talk:

-The band's name comes from the nadstat term meaning 'young girl' as it was used in the book and film A Clockwork Orange but Urata is quick to point out that in no way is it meant to be violent or demeaning to women but rather to reflect the theme in the book of Slavic people beginning to assimilate into western culture and the whole concept of cultures clashing. The term is also slang in Russian for "chick".

•Little Miss Sunshine was nominated for a 2006 Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack, but lost out to Ray.

•Even before Little Miss Sunshine, the DeVotchka song "How It Ends" was featured in the trailer for the 2005 film Everything Is Illuminated.

•When times were tough in 2005, Urata agreed to let McDonald's use one of their songs for the re-introduction of the McRib sandwich...until he saw a rough cut of the finished product and declared it "the worst possible kind of combination of art and commerce", smartly backing out of the deal. The McRib? Can you blame him?

Essential:

With six studio albums, it is hard to pick just one but I think the standouts are 2004's How It Ends and 2008's A Mad And Faithful Telling. The band is currently touring in Europe but you can catch them in August at Lollapalooza in Chicago or in September at Monolith at Red Rocks near Denver. Tour Schedule

LINKS: Official Site