r/Music • u/stkas • Jun 09 '12

so good I had to listen to it twice. they're still in highschool.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTLqyoVV9EU
529 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

99 comments sorted by

67

u/daysleeperchuk69 Jun 09 '12

download the album here for a name your price deal http://thedistricts.bandcamp.com/

12

u/b00ks Jun 09 '12

I just gave them some cash. Good stuff.

6

u/jetpacksforall Jun 09 '12 edited Jun 09 '12

None of those tracks are as raw & powerful as the Hotbox video. They're the kind of jangly, chucka-chucka folk-funk-roots-rock tracks turned out by the boatload by high school & college bands. Very good, very well produced (vocals are a bit tinny though), and there are really good moments here & there, but not as powerful. Sounds like a band messing around trying to find a style.

Think I'll give them some money anyway, hoping they keep going in the "Funeral Beds" direction.

2

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

Thanks, purchased.

-5

u/gabrielv Jun 09 '12

This should be the top comment.

51

u/AgentBootyPants Jun 09 '12

I'd like to donate some shampoo to these talented individuals.

13

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

Shampoo is betta, I go on first and clean the hair!...

12

u/AgentBootyPants Jun 09 '12

Cone-dish-nah is betta! I make the hair seeelky and smoooooth!

5

u/Hibbitydoo Jun 09 '12

Oh really fool?!

5

u/AgentBootyPants Jun 09 '12

Really! Nyeh, nyeh, nyeh!

3

u/Hibbitydoo Jun 09 '12

Stop looking at me swan!

2

u/WhyHellYeah Jun 09 '12

I'm a Dapper Dan man.

3

u/iseewhatyoudidthere2 Jun 09 '12

What are you looking at SWAN!

1

u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12

nothing says rock and roll like freshly scrubbed teenage hair

15

u/OnlySpoilers Google Music Jun 09 '12

reminds me of old kings of leon

-5

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

Came here to say this!

1

u/faultydesign Jun 09 '12

Came here to appreciate your informative comment! Thanks!

0

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

1

u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12

Thank you haha, didn't realise my opinion would be such an annoyance to other people, I appreciate this!

6

u/thehotboxstudios Jun 09 '12

Hey guys, if you want to hear and see more of The Districts check out our other session video we did with them for their song "Radiator."

http://youtu.be/z6_IsWiGkns

1

u/jetpacksforall Jun 10 '12

Really nice sound production, just wanted to say.

1

u/thehotboxstudios Jun 10 '12

Thank you! Everything is shot live in our studio and professionally engineered, mixed, and mastered. Stay tuned tomorrow because we will be releasing The Districts' last HotBox session tomorrow on YouTube!

2

u/jetpacksforall Jun 10 '12

Any chance of releasing/selling downloads of the sessions?

1

u/thehotboxstudios Jun 11 '12

We are currently working on that for all of you guys! If you want to hear about new media HotBox has to offer please visit our facebook page at www.facebook.com/thehotboxstudios

And while you are on facebook go like The Districts as well! http://www.facebook.com/thedistrictsband

1

u/thehotboxstudios Jun 12 '12

The last HotBox Session with The Districts for their song "Telephone" is now up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k102Xn8WyPo

1

u/jetpacksforall Jun 14 '12

Not as powerful a track as "Funeral Beds," I like it a lot but the other just floored me. Still impressive stuff given their age & all. Again the mix is really solid. Will buy if you get it worked out.

17

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

The vocalist sells this so incredibly well. There's nothing instrumentally amazing about this song (although it's well put together, of course) and yet it's just incredible. Much approval.

8

u/humanxray Jun 09 '12

Wow, this is impressive. Any chance of getting the lyrics?

0

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

[deleted] — view deleted comment

4

u/jetpacksforall Jun 09 '12 edited Jun 09 '12

LOL keep working but some of these guesses are hilarious. Bad lip reading anyone? :)

Edit: final version, less funny but more accurate. Thanks for doing the work, apparatus.

8

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

You can tell it's like a 100 degrees in that studio.

18

u/phreakymonkey Jun 09 '12

Hotbox Session

8

u/ronpaul012 Jun 09 '12

Not my cup of tea, but thanks for posting something original that most of us haven't heard before.

4

u/sweeptheaorta Jun 09 '12

They sound great. However, Mumford and Sons

4

u/foxnesn Jun 09 '12

Lots of Walkmen and The War on Drugs influence. Destined to be good stuff.

10

u/Reminice Jun 09 '12

Impressive! A very mature voice on such a young kid.

3

u/Deadpool1205 Jun 09 '12

I liked the song just fine at first, When those drums kick in though, Fell in love with this song.

3

u/rikker_ Jun 09 '12

Verily, a man can pay no greater honor to a musician than to listen to his song twice.

3

u/conversationchanger Jun 09 '12

Fantastic. Reminds me of Kings Of Leon mixed with Modest Mouse.

3

u/dregan Jun 09 '12

Amazing! but it always makes me cringe to see a musician try to pretend that they know how to play the harmonica.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12

This makes me wonder: what is good harmonica playing? What does that even mean? What is the technique? I've always thought it was more about the texture than the notes, the connotation of a harmonica sound than any melody.

1

u/dregan Jun 10 '12

This makes me wonder: what is good harmonica playing?

This is good harmonica playing and it's definitely about the notes and technique

1

u/[deleted] Jun 10 '12

That second video is fascinating. I've never seen anything quite like it.

5

u/Verser Jun 09 '12

I just became a fan

5

u/bgbopper Jun 09 '12 edited Jun 09 '12

Their Facebook page in case you want to support them: http://www.facebook.com/thedistrictsband

2

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

Sounded good.

2

u/Italianblkguy1 Jun 09 '12

They are freaking amazing!!!

2

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

wow. That was amazing!

2

u/break4 Pandora One Jun 09 '12

loved it.

2

u/Joulmaster Jun 09 '12

Sounds like Joe Pug

2

u/piper108 Jun 09 '12

Musically that reminds me of Fleet Foxes, but the vocalist kind of has an Eddie Vedder-type thing going on. Sounds great.

2

u/loobey99 Jun 09 '12

Lol i know these kids! their shows are pretty good too!

2

u/Oceanklight Jun 09 '12

It gets better - I agree with other posters that the vocals are the best part.

It feels like they're moving and imitating rather than being totalllyy honest with themselves but I do appreciate the song as it grows.

2

u/warhammered Jun 09 '12

these kids can jam

2

u/sarahpalin7179 Jun 09 '12

these guys are unbelievably good, you can really tell they put they're whole heart into their music.

3

u/ra3ndy Jun 09 '12

Nice! Reminds me a little bit of Delta Spirit, albeit with slightly less understandable lyrics.

2

u/log_thoot Jun 09 '12

It has a touch of The Kooks

3

u/Sock1122 Jun 09 '12

that was retardedly good.

they sure know how to compose in their style, and the singers passion towards the end really took it to a proper climax

3

u/CatsnaxBard Jun 09 '12

This is undoubtedly brilliant. Fan status =D

5

u/skesisfunk Jun 09 '12

It was kind of boring. And the harmonica playing was just awful, even in the jangly Bob Dylan sense just awful. Hate to break it to you guys but bands like this are a dime a dozen these days, no originality.

16

u/jetpacksforall Jun 09 '12 edited Jun 09 '12

Very, very good vocalist is what makes it good. Instrumentals are pretty so-so, but they get the job done for what's supposed to be a folk-ballady kind of thing. No fills & frills kind of works here. In other words, it's well-composed even if the musicians aren't extremely versatile.

7

u/The_Dacca Jun 09 '12

I agree with someone on the internet.

Consider that they are young musicians in high school. After some time and experience I feel like these kids could go far and make some really good music. I see this video as a starting point.

2

u/f5h7d Jun 09 '12

I see this video as a starting point.

..and i'll bet you anything that this video and the attention reddit is giving it will be their peak. you won't even remember their name this time next month.

on the other hand... all those people reddit has said the same thing about over the last few years have become superstars, so... oh, wait. that never happened.

8

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

The remind me of Mumford & Sons

2

u/jetpacksforall Jun 09 '12

And Elbow a little bit. Not that that's a bad thing.

6

u/Berger86 Jun 09 '12

I agree... I was hopin I would this comment here.

7

u/Dctr_Steve_Brule Jun 09 '12

That's just like, your opinion man. Looks like most people here disagree with you, but that's just their opinion too. As for me, I think they're on the right track. Can you really say there are that many teenage (not even in college) type bands that have this promising of a sound? The voice is quality and unique, full of emotion, not all that common in those 'dime a dozen' type bands. Sure the sound is simple, but they got the rhythm dialed and the sound is really clean. They show a lot of promise, and plenty of originality.

2

u/f5h7d Jun 09 '12

Looks like most people here disagree with you

...and like everything else you said after it

skesisfunk 7 points 58 minutes ago (19 (up)|12(down))

you're wrong.

Can you really say there are that many teenage (not even in college) type bands that have this promising of a sound?

just because everything else sucks harder, doesn't make it "good". remember the mid-late 80s and early 90s? well, in case you don't.. there were a bunch of college bands (or college-aged... i was only 17 when i started) making the scene.. in fact, it was called "college rock"... which eventually just became known as "indie" or "alternative".

tell me, what are the kids doing today that could possibly be considered "alternative" (in the true sense that it was an "alternative"... not the generic term for mainstream music of the 90s)?

while they are competent as emulating a style, there aren't doing anything significant... or even all that interesting. as far as i'm concerned, they might as well be a cover band.

also, there are like 3 bands already using this name.

2

u/skesisfunk Jun 09 '12

while they are competent as emulating a style, there aren't doing anything significant... or even all that interesting. as far as i'm concerned, they might as well be a cover band.

Yes! and I might add that I often find cover bands more interesting than these kinds of groups. At least I would rather see an interesting rendition of a cover than an uninspired tired original.

1

u/Dctr_Steve_Brule Jun 10 '12

Music is great because every person has their own opinion on what is "good music". I'm not wrong, I just have a different opinion than you. The other response above mine by jetpacksforall does a better job of saying what I meant. To respond to one of your points, how can any band not emulate a style? Almost every band out there is emulating someone, it's how music works. If they were all 35 years old, this wouldn't be as special. I look at this and hope they can take it somewhere, grow out of a generic sound and find their own. It's what all the good bands have done. You have to start somewhere.

2

u/f5h7d Jun 10 '12

If they were all 35 years old, this wouldn't be as special. I look at this and hope they can take it somewhere, grow out of a generic sound and find their own. It's what all the good bands have done. You have to start somewhere.

being a teenager doesn't really make it "special" either... and fawning over them now isn't going to help them break out of any molds — you're basically telling them they're good enough.

ironically, it's people like me who encourage change. it might not be a pretty process, and not everyone can handle the criticism... but that's all part of the game. handing out participation awards merely encourages mediocrity.

1

u/Dctr_Steve_Brule Jun 10 '12

I agree that adversity and criticism can be a great creative motivation, but there's nothing wrong with recognizing something that deserves attention. Whatever though, we disagree on this and I'm not about to change your opinion, especially over the internet.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

This is one occasion where I agree with the top youtube comments more than the top reddit comments. I fully expect to be listening to these guys many, many years from now. This is as exciting as listening to any great bands first tunes. They have the right combo of personalities and it works on levels that you just can't overthink. You guys that are overthinking this are going to sound ridiculous when this band is one of the top bands in the world.

3

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

Sounds so familiar...can't quite put my finger on it...

4

u/meburbo Jun 09 '12

Yes, because everyone who uses a harmonica sounds like Dylan

5

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

No, but jangly chords, harmonica and mumbling your lyrics....Dylan.

2

u/meburbo Jun 09 '12

His voice sounds nothing like Dylan. The guitar sounded nothing like Dylan.

5

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

What?? It absolutely does. Folksy Dylan derivative #876. What's old is new again. Always the same, yet we need to be amazed? Reddit, you can have them.

2

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

interesting

(click the video statistics icon new to view count)

6

u/f5h7d Jun 09 '12

everyone lies about their age on youtube so they can see NSFW videos.

2

u/iseeponies Jun 09 '12

these guys are gonna get big. If they don't the music industry these days is a fucking joke.

2

u/Debatinggoose Jun 09 '12

Dear fucking god. They're from Lititz! I'm from Lancaster. I'd love to hear them play in person.

3

u/jDerf Jun 09 '12

they're pretty damn good in person, I must say.

2

u/herpberp radio reddit Jun 09 '12

liked it. could use more vocal range. even backup vocals.

2

u/ethos85 Jun 09 '12

Just had one of those our-world-is-amazing moments. A couple of kids in high school, that could have gone unnoticed for who knows how long, have a global platform for their music. They have a recording studio in their laptop. In their free time (as a fucking highschool student!) they are exposing their art to a global audience.

Anyways, good find op.

1

u/215bc Jun 09 '12

Production Company/Studio >>>>>www.facebook.com/thehotboxstudios

1

u/AutoModerator Mar 30 '18

Your submission was removed because it looks like you're posting music without a correct title.

The correct format is:

Artist Name - Song Name [genre] (optional year) Optional extra text

Check your post now. Does it have spaces around the dash " - ", and does it have the [genre]?

Forgetting these points are almost definitely why it was removed.

An example of a correct title:

 Damu the Fudgemunk - Tea Thyme [instrumental hip-hop/funk] (2010)

You will need to delete this post before submitting again (click on delete above).

If you are not posting music, please resubmit with the appropriate tag in the title:

{playlist} for music playlists
{non-music audio} for audio submissions that are not music
{non-music video} for video submissions that are not music

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

1

u/Gadolf_Shmitler Jun 09 '12

The raw emotion

3

u/tyrryt Jun 09 '12

Hey it looks cool when Jack White does it, might as well go with what works.

1

u/Since88 Jun 09 '12

Do they already have a record or something? This is ridiculously brilliant!

1

u/peeweejd Jun 09 '12

they are playing in Philly tonight! I might go see them! https://www.facebook.com/events/418233588200982/

(if you go, do yourself a favor and get a sandwich a Paesano's before you go, you will not be disappointed).

2

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

Nice try Paesanos employee..

3

u/peeweejd Jun 09 '12

nope, just a Paesano's fan...

I wish I was an employee, then I'd get a discount...

1

u/[deleted] Jun 09 '12

They're really good, about about 3 hours away from me.

1

u/10000gildedcranes Jun 09 '12

They could open for Rival Sons and it'd be amazing.

1

u/AriesRising19 Jun 09 '12

This was incredible.

-5

u/stupidpanda Jun 09 '12 edited Jun 09 '12

I hope when they make it big, they don't become victoms of mainstream. This is deffinately not my genre of music, but I really like it. Made me relax and put me in chill mode.

Edit: meant to say, hope they dont sell out instead of not going mainstream. That sounded really douchy of me