David Obuchowski of Goes Cube has been a fan of country-goth singer (and Maura Magazine pal) Edith Frost for a long while—he even wrote her a letter expressing his admiration for her work eleven years ago. Frost didn’t reply to that note, but last year a direct message on Twitter led to a few emailed notes back and forth, which led to the Texas-based Frost joining the Colorado-based Obuchowski’s new project, Distant Correspondent. The band, which also includes drummer Michael Lengel and former Meanwhile Back In Communist Russia vocalist Emily Gray, has been recording ever since, and the first taste of that partnership, “Merge,” is streaming below.
“Since 2003, I’ve dedicated myself musically to Goes Cube,” says Obuchowski. “And while Goes Cube is still at it (we’ll be recording our third album sometime soon), Distant Correspondent has given me an opportunity explore my other musical influences. The fact is, I don’t just listen to metal; the music I fell in love with at 12, 13 years old was new wave, shoegaze, and punk. And I just never stopped listening to that kind of music. While Goes Cube has allowed me to channel my punk side, all of these other influences were in me, untapped until now. For the past year, I’ve been writing furiously for Distant Correspondent, and now we’ve got about two full albums worth of material, and yet nearly everyday, I’m either starting a new song, or working on finishing one I started a day or two earlier. It’s been incredible, how much we’re doing.”
Frost entered the Distant Correspondent picture last fall. “[Obuchowski] asked if I’d be interested in working with him on Distant Correspondent stuff—maybe vocals on one song. As soon as I said yes to that, I was pretty much in the band; I did the vocal on one song, and he gave me another and another and another, and we were both thrilled. It’s ideal for both of us. I was having so much trouble coming up with ideas and inspiration, and he got me all excited again!”
“Edith and I have fantastic chemistry when it comes to music,” says Obuchowski. The band’s still looking for a label and hopes to hit the road soon: “When [Frost] was here, we decided to do a small show just as a duo. We found that we perform together as well as we write together, and now we can’t wait to get on tour.”
Listen to the moody, pulsing “Merge,” a lovely showcase for the vocal interplay between Obuchowski and Frost:
“‘Merge’ is one of my favorite songs we’ve recorded,” says Obuchowski, “because I think it kind of captures our sound really well. Some of our songs are maybe slower and melodic, some a little mathier with more changes. But I think ‘Merge’ is a great representation of What We Sound Like.”
Visit Distant Corespondent on Twitter and on Facebook, and check out the progress of their first music video on Tumblr.
