Ex Pilots: Presented By Red Brick + Capital City

EX PILOTS (PIT) Ex Pilots is a Pittsburgh-based indie rock/noise pop group established in 2015 by Ethan Oliva. The project began with the release of "Findlay", a compilation of four-track cassette recordings spanning 2009 to 2015, and has since evolved from Oliva's solo effort to a six-piece live act. Post "Findlay", their output has grown to include two full-length LPs via Smoking Room Records, a split cassette with Gaadge, and several singles. The group's influences are varied, from Guided by Voices to Hüsker Dü to My Bloody Valentine, and encompass every sonic nook and cranny in between. VISITING HOUR (RVA) Where does the day end, and why must we lie still in images of past and present; amongst the multitudes of invocations brought forth on a Sunday afternoon; forever in contemplation of the wind and where it may lead. Now present, you find yourself wrapped in the warmth of indecision and possibility; as this record plays... as Visiting Hour takes you someplace familiar yet all the while unknown. For the sounds contained within this music are not all too distant, but this is not a mere regurgitation. This is a testament of truth; of passion built from years spent in the presence of one another. And with this release, the Richmond quintet has begun to plant a new seed in the sonic landscape of today, echoing the harmonious cacophony that is heard in Creation Record’s catalogue, while simultaneously blending the calming restraint of Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker with the visceral, untethered instincts of Lungfish. And surely it would be a great omission to neglect Red House Painter's imprint on guitarist Kevin McCormick’s foundations; listen to the conclusion on “New Eyes” and note a similar amalgamated and reserved beauty found on Songs for a Blue Guitar or Old Ramon. But moreover we come often to a similar place… feeling how it feels to be felt… “We’ll find each other / Back where we lost another,” reflects vocalist Ren Schwarz on “Sacred Estate”. “Grass is swollen / Gravels’ unrest / Heartaches a million / It always feels like a test.” Much of the words in this release evoke Anne Waldman’s or Charles Olson’s most personal ruminations concerning the beauty of existence and longing. And one returns to these themes throughout the record, for its consistency is pure in every form. This is an introductory offering from Visiting Hour… from Kevin McCormick, Ren Schwarz, Willy Anderson, Brendan Reichhardt, and Zack Rogers. This is to ease the load; for this world is an increasingly unforgiving place, but there is peace to be had in its corners.