SWL# 17. Ok Vancouver Ok, "And To Exist"

Record Store Day 2013 brought lots of goodies with it, but one of the lesser-known gifts came in the form of a new LP from Jeff Johnson’s long running Ok Vancouver Ok project. The record, titled Food Shelter Water marks a number of changes for the project, but most notably the official expansion of the act into a threesome (to include Laura House and Liza Moser), and Johnson’s abandonment of his usual four-track recording method. Instead, with the exception of “Loving you”, each of the tracks were recorded live by Eli Moore of the band Lake, and the result is that the whole record is imbued with a feeling of mellow vibrancy that seems handmade for the upcoming warmer months. “And To Exist” is one of the 4 extra tracks that comes with the full download and it's been stuck in my head for the past week. The best way I’ve come up with to describe it is that Johnson sounds like he is simultaneously channeling Brian Wilson, Stephin Merritt, and Yo La Tengo, but even that falls short. All I know is that the powers that be (i.e. the prolific folks at Lost Sound Tapes) have made this record a free download for the time being, so you can head over to bandcamp and decide for yourself. The LP is currently on sale and a run of 100 cassettes are slated to be available as of the 18th of next month (May).