Like a homemade mix tape, but better

It’s never easy to predict the future. I’ve seen and heard a lot of local bands, and in the last year I’ve had the pleasure to be able to sit and talk with a couple of them. Few have stood out to me like Summer Cannibals. And as much as I’ll miss seeing them for less than 10 bucks, I’m excited to say that they seem like the Portland group that’s most destined for success outside of the Rose City that I’ve seen in some time.

Summer Cannibals have made a fantastic album with No Makeup. It’s fresh-sounding, well sequenced and, most importantly, concise, with 10 songs that clock in around 30 minutes (what is up with all of these bands making 70-minute albums)?

No Makeup is a document of a recently formed band playing recently written songs, the same sort of circumstances that have given music fans so many great punk and DIY albums in the past, from Let It Be by The Replacements to Surfer Rosa by The Pixies (more on them later).

Summer Cannibals is a band with a fairly unique biography. No Makeup was originally demos recorded by vocalist and musician Jessica Boudreaux, with her playing all of the parts of the songs and then bringing the completed tracks to the band. This sort of auteur approach is something I had heard about other bands doing, but never from a punk band like Summer Cannibals. Through this writing style, they’ve managed to make a record that sounds kinetic and raw. The more I listened to No Makeup, the more I found myself wondering what other bands might have influenced and shaped the project to give it this unique sound.

“I feel like The Pixies are probably the common thread between the four of us,” Boudreaux said.

Knowing about this influence instantly allows you to pick out the Pixie-esque textures on tracks like “The Hand.” It especially shows on “Hey/I Was Saved,” with its unique pacing and central bass riff.

But No Makeup has more to it that that. As with so many other bands, though, this record is a product of various, disparate influences, some you might not necessarily expect.

“Marc really likes Nine Inch Nails, like, a lot…he also has Bjork tattoos, so that’s interesting too,” Boudreaux said, outing bandmate and guitarist Marc Swart and some of the more diverse artists that have shaped the band.

Another unique perk of the record is its track sequence. Have I mentioned how well this thing is ordered? From the sounds of it, the flow of No Makeup is not unlike a mix tape you’d make for your friend (do people still make those?). This structuring was intentional, Boudreaux said.

“We knew the order of what we wanted the record to be while we were recording it,” she said. The pre-planned and well-crafted ordering makes the record feel, in that sense, exactly like making a mix tape, only with songs that they had created.

In terms of the album’s fresh, raw sound, the band had an explanation for that, too.

“For the most part, we recorded the album live, so we basically played the full album start to finish over a couple of days,” Boudreaux explained. The live recording, as well as the fresh spin on their influences, created the raw and ferocious sound found on No Makeup.

With the upcoming release of the album, Summer Cannibals have solidified their place as one of the great Portland bands. Not originally from the city, they have come to find many opportunities for a band starting out here—the environment and community included. In their new home, the band has been looking to find something in the local music scene that will push them to new heights.

“We’re still looking for the bands that will make us play harder and louder,” Boudreaux said. “I think you can get stuck in Portland, just being really comfortable. We don’t just want to play shows in Portland for the next five years.”

Despite their desire to branch out and extend outside the city and the Northwest, Summer Cannibals love Portland, Swart said.

“We’ve gotten a lot of support, so I’ve got to say that we’re part of a community,” Swart said.

I have a feeling that the music community in Portland will continue to embrace Summer Cannibals as long as they continue making great albums like No Makeup.

No Makeup is available August 6 from New Moss Records.