music

WHAAAA!!!! I’m so sad to read that one of my favorite electronic/pop bands, Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head, aka NPSH and also Brite Futures is disbanding. (NPSH was the original name, they changed it to Brite Futures after Natalie Portman was allegedly annoyed. Vegans are the worst!)

I first saw NPSH when they opened for Lily Allen at First Ave. in Minneapolis. They had to play in front of this white sheet that was hung up as part of Lily’s act. They had a small portion of the stage, with all their instruments crowding the area. At the time, there were 5 of them in the band, pictured above.

As it goes with many opening acts, you kind of just want them to get their shit done and leave so you can see who you bought the ticket for. But this was different. They were young, poppy, energetic and with some seriously fun, dancey songs. It’s not often a band can make you dance and fall in love with them upon first listen. I’ve forgotten more opening acts than I can remember. NPSH was definitely the best fresh opener I’ve ever seen in my entire show-going experience. (The Pussycat Dolls opening for Britney? Uh, hell nah!)

I am sad, but understanding that one of my most beloved bands, NPSH (I never call the Brite Futures, it just feels wrong) is breaking up. They formed in high school, never got a really solid radio hit even though they totally deserved it with their weird electronic dance pop.

Here’s what they had to say on their Facebook page:

Friends, BFFs, everyone,

It is with many bittersweet feelings that we announce that as of next month* Brite Futures will cease to be an active band, and we will no longer be creating or playing music together. After almost seven years as a band (more than a quarter of our lives) we’ve unanimously reached the decision that it’s time to move on to other adventures—the irony of which, for a band with our name, is not lost on us. This separation is not due to a falling out or any ill feelings between us personally, but with the band’s momentum dying down and other aspirations beckoning, we’ve begun to look toward the next stage in our lives. And that’s exciting at the same time as it’s sad to leave behind a pursuit that saw us grow up together, from awkward high school spazzes singing about our first beards to more confident young adults.

For a project that started on a whim as an “acapella electronic band” at a high school lunch table that was never meant to leave our parents’ basements or a few friends’ iPods, we’ve experienced more in our time together than we could have ever dreamt. Of the band posters lining our bedroom walls that we gazed at daily while growing up, we’ve had the privilege of touring or performing alongside six of those pictured (Lily Allen, Weezer, CSS, The Go-Team, The Ting Tings, and The Faint). We’ve also been signed to a major record label, had music and a video in a major motion picture, and played shows across the country and internationally. Our high-school-sophomore-selves probably wouldn’t believe it if we told them now. Just the fact that people all around the world have listened to the music we created almost entirely out of a small bedroom in Seattle is mind-blowing, and we’ll be forever grateful. I think we can be proud too.

SADSIES! Read the rest of their farewell letter over at their Facebook page. RIP my beautiful NPSH. I will forever jam to your songs in my car, at the gym, and on sunny days laying outside. Love you guys, and can’t wait to hear any of your next projects!

Listen to these songs and fall in love with a dead band:

LA Noir (The breakdown in this song gets me every time, it’s fucking fantastic)

Iceage Babeland

Beard Lust (I listened to this song for two weeks straight in May 2009)