Shana Falana has been making waves all over the United States and Europe officially since 2011, releasing two albums on Bandcamp and a cassette only document of earlier work, is now releasing her debut LP titled Set Your Lightning Fire Free. The album was put together in just a week and was taken with the approach of think of an idea, get it on tape, and move on, which has not hurt the record one bit. Shana usually is one to labor over arrangements and piecing takes together to make the perfect song, but she wanted to try something different for her first album. Joining Shana full-time now is Mike Amari on drums and he helps a great deal in filling the voids between Shana’s beautiful abstract ideas. Their creative force makes for a great pairing of sound that will make you revisit Set Your Lightning Fire Free again and again.
The album gets going with “Gone” and has Shana layering her own vocals on top of one another over dreamy synthesizers that is all chugged along by Mike’s constant beat and is a great opener for a record. Right off the bat you are diving head first into psychedelic pop and that is where you stay for the entirety of the record. In songs “Heavenstay” and “Know UR Mine” the ’80s new wave sound, that has slowly making a comeback, has been turned just a little askew and brought into the 21st century by Shana and Mike. “Go” is a heavy song both lyrically and musically, bringing in some middle-eastern instrumentation alongside a howling Shana. “Anything” sees the duo go for an industrial sound that give an early Nine Inch Nails vibe. “There’s Away” has some of the best instrumentation on the album to go along with Shana’s vocals sending the song continuously farther into the ether of psychedelia through the almost six minutes that it lovingly takes up on the record.
Shana on past tours has used visuals behind her to make the whole show more of an art piece than a concert. The music on Set Your Lightning Fire Free is set up to perfectly go along with these visuals. The pulsating guitar riffs, soaring vocals, and strong drumming on all the new songs that Shana Falana has laid down on the debut record will only be more pleasing in person. Starting with a week run in New York including April 2nd at The Low Beat, April 3 at BSP Kingston, April 4 at Shea Stadium, and April 7 at Bug Jar, the Kingstoners will criss-cross the country through May to support the record. Though it is officially released on April 7th, the band will have copies on tour.
Key Tracks: Gone, Anything, There’s Away
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