Alright. I admit it. I used to be a raver. Yes, I used to wear excessively baggy pants and stay up all night dancing. But can you blame me? In my high school years, I was too busy playing mom to my little brother and pretending to be responsible to do all the really rebellious things I wanted to do. So when I moved out, I went a little crazy and started going to raves. It was a rather short rebellion by most standards, though, and by the age of 20, my attendance at raves was becoming less and less frequent. I was tired of the drugs, the druggies, the fake-smoke-choked air, the crowded rooms, the excessive ticket prices, the heat of the club, the late hours.... Meanwhile, my taste in music matured as well. I no longer liked whatever made me feel like moving; I wanted music that actually made me feel.

Unfortunately, I didn't know about FCS North at the time. In fact, I'm not even sure if they existed back then. But I'm pretty sure that I remember buying coffee from Andy Sells and Chad States at my favorite coffee shop then, and I always thought they were nice guys. So when I heard they had a band, I was interested, but I never expected this....

I remember my roommate Jeremiah had dragged me with him to a bar they were playing at. Though I will admit that I was probably drunk and details elude me, it was just Andy and Chad with a drum kit and keyboards, but they played so furious and perfect that it sucked the audience in. Maybe in the days of Nirvana, Seattle audiences weren't shy about showing their appreciation, but from what I've seen, playing to a Seattle audience is like talking to an autistic; you're happy if they show some sign of recognition, no matter how small. So it was really surprising when people started to gather around and some even danced. But, watching FCS North never felt like the spectator sport that most shows do. Andy's crazy drumming and Chad's careful additions suck the audience in, until you feel like you're sitting in their brains.

I'd love to know what influences them. The music they create is atmospheric but danceable; it's a bastard love child of jazz and hip-hop that's grown up into a ravishing beauty. The organic drumming and breathy overlays reminisce about life in mother's womb, while the intricate lacing of the keyboards and samples keep a busy mind from getting bored. The music changes enough so you aren't wondering if you accidentally have your CD player on one song repeat, but it is seamless. The best example of this is "Things Will Change", which features a few breathy parts where a woman quietly asks things like "do you care?", but also has a heavily distorted, silly-sounding sample from a De La Soul song.

But my favorite song on this disappointingly short album is "Grey Gardens". It is backed throughout with a delicious sample of pouring rain. Over that is a slow, throbbing that sounds like heartache, and a very gentle melody. They slowly add more to the song, but it never stops feeling intimate, like that moment in the rain when you pause, and look around. The rain makes everything so beautiful, it hurts. You don't care that you have no hat or umbrella. You don't feel the rain drops trying to invade down the sides of your neck. There is no one else nearby; they're all inside, hiding from the harmless rain. At this moment, everything is grey and perfect, and even the things that are moving are somehow still. And you don't want to move yourself, because this moment is the most peaceful moment you've ever known....

So yeah, I used to be a raver. It was fun while it lasted and, like all phases that we go through in our search for ourselves, I learned a lot. But the noise, the smoke, and the drugs never really made me happy. The electronic beats were fun to dance to, but they were just noise in the end, just distractions from the truly lovely things in life. The electronic music I listen to now is as magnificent as a simple breath. 8/10 -- Eden Hemming Rose (25 May, 2005)