Trails and Ways’ Trilingual EP is an amalgamation of both Californian musical tradition, and gathered inspiration of international influences. When lead singers Keith Brower Brown and Emma Oppen returned from Brazil and Spain (respectively) to their home in Oakland, California, the two were able to incorporate their individual cultural experiences into a vision for a musical project. They then teamed up with guitarist Hanna van Loon and drummer Ian Quirk to complete the band, and for the most part have been releasing singles over the past year.
Trilingual EP binds together the effects and samples of the California electronic movement, percussions and syncopation of Brazilian jazz, and the tight harmony and high tempos of Spanish pop. Brown and Oppen interchange lead vocal positions in each song, Oppen lending a clear and aggressive energy to her tracks, while Brown transforms his into relaxed dreaminess. Throughout the album, there is a strict sense of tightness, from the pinpoint harmonies, to Quirk’s complex and immaculate drums. Van Loon provides heavily reverbed electric guitar that lifts and carries each track with energy and danceability. Trilingual EP is a fusion of Latin and West Coast sounds that blends together into a colorful and lively collection of clean and vibrant tracks.
“Como Te Vas” kicks off the EP with a dance track that incorporates flamenco-like clap tracks and the wide range of Oppen’s vocal skills, introducing Trails and Ways as a high-energy group that isn’t afraid to make you dance. “Nunca” is a slightly more mellow, but still driving track that features Brown’s vocals, which wind their way through the song like a warm breeze. Also highlighted is van Loon’s guitar stylings, which carry the track melodically and rhythmically. “Mtn Tune” closes the EP wtih beachy sounds and heavy, funky bass. The track combines both the attitude and fun that Trails and Ways puts out in their music.
Releasing under Non-Market Records, Trilingual EP is essentially the first hat that Trails and Ways has thrown into the ring. There is a highly enjoyable creativity and vividness inherent in their sound that comes across through their intense rhythms and energy. Judging by their debut, Trails and Ways has a high musical potential to infuse different musical cultures in a way that is both seamless and captivating.
