Craft Spells [From The Morning Heat, Captured Tracks]

Craft Spells' debut album, Idle Labor, drops today on Captured Tracks and below is the latest single to be released from the album. Justin and his new band will be in San Francisco May 5th in support of Beach Fossils at Slims with Melted Toys just added to the bill.

From The Morning Heat

Craft Spells [After The Moment Music Video, Captured Tracks]

After The Moment

Woodsman / Craft Spells / Melted Toys / Skeletal System [Milk Bar, San Francisco 11.11.2010]

Skeletal System

Craft Spells [Love Well Spent, Live Clip]

As the caption read, Stockton and Sacramento are only separated by about 45 minutes (35 really), yet the two neighboring towns seem like distant strangers. Sacramento’s music scene is booming thanks to the likes of Ganglians, Zach Hill and GGreen while Stockton’s is just getting started and yet there really has not been much cross pollination between the cities; the Bay Area seems more closely connected to the state’s capital yet it is almost 2 hours away. But hopefully with the talents of the Central Valley’s new generation of musicians and film makers things will change. This collaboration between Sacramento based Terroreyes.tv and Stockton’s Craft Spells will hopefully bridge the gap over an empty void that has gone on for far too long. Sean once again uses his brand of cinematography to capture a very special performance by Justin and Frankie for the track “Love Well Spent”. Craft Spells’ debut 7” can be found here on Captured Tracks

Craft Spells [Party Talk 7'', Captured Tracks]

Its been a long long time coming and I can't believe I was able to keep this a secret but two days ago was the official announcement that Craft Spells had signed to Captured Tracks and will have a 7'' released on the Brooklyn label. July 31st marked my last night in my home town of Stockton and it was spent listening to the sounds of Justin and Frankie at a house show. Even as the adrenaline was at a high, they took time out to make the special announcement of a Captured Tracks deal, which is huge for Stockton (seriously, there was Pavement and then....) but what is more important is that the town with a ugly reputation has produced something beautiful and like I have said so many times, something to be proud of.

Party Talk

Craft Spells [You Should Close The Door 7'', Bataille Records]

Sometimes one does not have to look very far to find the best things in life. Most times, those joys and pleasures are right under the nose; one just needs to know where to look. Being a Stockton native, I was not very thrilled with the music scene here. For a town that could be called home for idols such as Pavement and Dave Brubeck, I had pretty much given up hope with finding anything of substance. Then comes Craft Spells, a duo from my backyard who make music that is so varied it is hard to group them into a single genre. Some tracks are electro rock with heavy beats over synth melodies; others are more shoegazing pop songs. Needless to say, Stockton has another band to get excited about. "You Should Close The Door" will be released as a 7'' single on Canada's Bataille Records within the next couple months as well as full length record which is still in progress.

You Should Close The Door

The Fog Rose High

Azalea