Fields Lay Fallow - "One Hundred Years of High Rises..."

This is the one and only release by Philadelphia band Fields Lay Fallow, half of whose members also played in Lancaster's Spirit Assembly. Dynamic, intense and heartfelt, this four piece existed only briefly during the late 90s and probably should have made more of an impact. This 12" is quite excellent and their live set was just as good. Their style sounds like an amalgamation of Shotmaker and Spirit Assembly mixed with something a bit dirtier, like Struggle or perhaps Jara. I would say that Fields Lay Fallow were a bit more technical than any of those bands, and you can see previous statements about how beneficial having a good drummer can be. Georgia's Portrait would also be a pretty good comparison. A couple of these folks went on to play in To The Mean, a band that was active circa 2004 and also had the vocalist from Amber Inn amongst their lineup.

The six songs on this record were recorded in October and November, 1997 at Clay Creek Studio in Wilmington, Delaware by Nick Rotundo. It was released by Atlanta's Lunchbox Records (LBR #9) in 1998. Lunchbox was operated by Steve Wishart, who played in Car Vs Driver and Scout, as well as this band in early 1997. I've always really liked the artwork of this 12", too. The record includes some personal writings by members of the band as well as contact information for various organizations that assist victims of domestic violence, drug addicts aimed on getting clean, and also has contact info for gay and lesbian rights groups. Highly recommended.

-shells of shelter crumble-

Tracklist:
1) Notes on Hate
2) Lockdown
3) Notes on Paradigms
4) Storming
5) Wood for Fire
6) Notes on Fronts

(editor's note: Regarding the show flyer; Catharsis also played that night. Good times.)