HALF STRING - MAPS FOR SLEEP (2LP)

Half String Maps For Sleep on 2LP

Formed in the Fall of 1991 by Brandon Capps (guitar/vocals), Kimber Lanning (drums) and Tim Patterson (bass), Half String created a lush, guitar-driven brand of noise pop. Their sound was an antidote to the “desert jangle” bar band scene that dominated Tempe, AZ at the time. While the group shared an aesthetic with much of the British shoegaze scene, and occasionally recalled the spirit of early 4AD and Factory Records, they certainly carved out a beautiful noise all their own. During their austere six-year lifespan, Half String inspired an underground music scene in their hometown, and gained a small but loyal following from beyond the desert.

Half String’s first demo was hand delivered to Independent Project Records’ Bruce Licher during the summer of 1992. Impressed, Licher released the 3-songs as the Eclipse 7” single on his revered post-punk fine art imprint. Matt Kruse joined on second guitar in 1993, adding another layer of texture and intricate melody to the band’s broadening sound. This was evident on Oval, Half String’s second single, and the subsequent Tripped Up Breathing EP, both released by IPR in 1994. Patterson left the band that Winter, and was replaced by Dave Rogers, a multi-instrumentalist who added backing vocals.

In 1995, Germany’s Pop Goes On! and IPR co-released Eclipse*Oval*Hue as a CD mini-album collecting together the first two singles along with three unreleased tracks. Later that same year, the group recorded their debut album, A Fascination With Heights. Issued by IPR in 1996, this would be Half String’s last release before the band parted amicably the following Summer and the fifth addition to Captured Tracks' recently launched Shoegaze Archives series.

Half String Maps For Sleep Track Listing:

1.  Eclipse
2.  Maps For Sleep
3.  Arc-Fold
4.  Pelican
5.  Slow Engine Kill Over
6.  Oval
7.  Sun Less Sea
8.  Hue
9.  Evergreen
10. Quiet Like Seeds
11. Slipknot
12. Brief As Photographs
13. Landscape Burning (1991 home recording)
14. Tripped Up Breathing (1991 demo)
15. Saturnine (1993 live - Beautiful Noise festival)
16. Eyesick (1994 studio outtake)
17. Featherweight (1994 demo)