2:54 – “Crest”

As a kid reading my Creem magazine on a Sunday I would fantasize about being in a band where it was just me and the guys banging out a few tunes in the garage. I’d maybe sometimes include my best girlfriend in the equation just because it seemed I’d need someone who’d really understand me. Well, that never happened, but watching 2:54‘s new video for “Crest” from their recent release The Other I, damn if I didn’t flash back to those cooler-than-thou little vignettes in my head.

Not only does this black-and-white clip make you feel like you are one of the band (in fact it’s possible they’re telling you what key to play in at the very beginning), but the underground (and I mean that literally, not metaphorically) sensation brought on by the strobe-like filming gives the sense that the camera was swinging from the ceiling like a bare light bulb. Sisters Colette and Hannah Thurlow are ultra-cool, but not in that untouchable mean-girl way, more like hang-on-the-street-corner types, which I’ve no doubt they did in their hometown of London as they were building up the band in 2010 with Joel Porter on bass and Alex Robbins on drums. The joint is thick with guitars, too, as both the sisters play while Colette sings and basically seems to pretend you’re not there while “Crest” rises and falls. The vibe of a really good Siouxie and the Banshees moment is another thing that made me nostalgic for my Creem days, but Alex’s Fugazi T-shirt brought it right back to the more-recent now in sound and sartorial choice.
They’re soon to be bringing their act stateside and if this video is any indication of the live show, the coolness factor combined with the tunes will be magnetizing.

2:54 Live Dates:
2/27: Rough Trade – Brooklyn, NY #
2/28: DC9 – Washington, DC #
3/1: Johnny Brenda’s – Philadelphia, PA #
3/3: The Silver Dollar Room – Toronto, ON #
3/4: UFO Factory – Detroit, MI #
3/5: Empty Bottle – Chicago, IL #
3/6: 7th Street Entry – Minneapolis, MN #
3/8: Barboza – Seattle, WA #
3/9: Mississippi Studios – Portland, OR #
3/11: The Rickshaw Stop – San Francisco, CA #
3/12: The Echoplex – Los Angeles, CA #
3/13: The Hideout – San Diego, CA #
3/14: VIVA PHX Music Festival – Phoenix, AZ
# – w/ Honeyblood