Darsombra of Baltimore, Maryland is a cinematic conceptual art band, a self-described trans-apocalypic galaxy rock group.
It’s certainly unlike anything you’ve seen or heard before, but you’ll get your chance June 22 at Zigs.
“I think a lot of people describe it (their music) as sort of like synesthesia,” said Ann Everton, Darsombra’s video artist. “There are a lot of people that come up to us after the show and say, ‘that was like an acid trip, but I didn't take any acid.’ We get that all the time.”
Darsombra is a duo featuring Everton and Brian Daniloski, the music side of the band. They’ll be playing a show at Zigs on Thursday, June 22 and told Sudbury.com that not only is this isn’t their first trip here to the Nickel City, but as “armchair geologists,” they are excited to come back to the crater.
However there are a few more stops before they arrive. They spoke to Sudbury.com from the side of the road in small town Ohio, making their way to their next stop.
Daniloski began in what he calls a “traditional metal band,” but could never keep a drummer. “We'd always lose drummers, so the band would be constantly going through these periods of inactivity, and I got really bored,” Daniloski said. “At the same time, I was starting to see a lot of other bands that are one-person acts, with more experimental kinds of stuff happening. And I thought, ‘Well, hey, that looks like a fun project I can do.’”
He said he intended for it to be a stopgap, a way to keep busy while the band found a new musician, but once the metal band officially fell apart, the one-person band became his regular gig.
A little while later, he met Everton, whose background in art came from her grandmother and parents, who encouraged her to follow her visual passions. Everton and Daniloski immediately bonded over an unlikely fact: both are “huge nerds” for Canada’s Rush.
“Even though we sound nothing like them, they're definitely one of our big influences, among many,” said Daniloski.
With Daniloski writing the music and Everton creating a visual spectacle to accompany, collaboration has been wonderful for both, they said.
“That’s the best thing about working in any kind of a van for collaboration is you get ideas you would never get if you were just working with yourself,” said Daniloski. “Other people who push you in directions you might not even have thought to go into and that's definitely an enriching experience.”
Their process is music first. “A lot of times, I'll have an idea or we'll just jam and record our jams,” said Daniloski. But far from a haphazard process, as Daniulowski said is a common thought for experimental bands, there is a great deal of composing that comes next.
“We'll go back over the recordings and be like, ‘Well, that's a cool little bit, that's another cool little bit’ and we'll compose something a little more structured out of those loose jams.”
Once the song is finished, Everton takes over. “It’s like a soundtrack in reverse,” she said.
Everton’s videos are inspired by the music, images she has been struck with as well as things she just wants to see: perhaps basset hounds in Napoleon hats. So, she creates.
“Whether it's taking footage we’ve already shot and interpreting it into the song,” she said, “or whether it's actually conceiving new footage like we did in April for a new song we have coming out.”
That new footage called for friends and family to dress for a Renaissance Festival and pretend they were dying of the Black Plague. “But we figured what the hell, sometimes you have an idea, and you just have to follow it through,” said Everton.
When asked what it’s like to be a little outside the box when it comes to the typical music scene, Everton said it is a blessing and a curse.
“Obviously you want to be unique and original as an artist, but there's a point where you're so unusual that people don't know how to categorize you properly and it's a little tough sometimes to find your niche,” said Everton. She said that she would love it if people left a Darsombra show believing they can be or make anything they want.
“You want to be a performer, you won't get on stage, you don't think you can do X, Y and Z? It doesn't matter, you really can do anything,” she said. “When it comes to art and creativity, there should be absolutely no boundaries, no restrictions, no holding back.”
Darsombra will be performing June 22 at Zigs Bar (54 Elgin Street), with Mark Howitt opening. For more information, check out their website at darsombra.com
Jenny Lamothe is a reporter with Sudbury.com
