Currently comprised of founding member Alexandra Morte (guitar, vocals), Cara LP (drums) and Cheyenne Avant (bass), the Oakland-based indie rock trio Night School can trace its origins to the close friendship of its founders Morte and Baylie Jiminez (drums, vocals). With Morte and Jiminez, the band recorded a split EP with their Graveface Records labelmates, Scotland’s Dott, Carousel. and their debut EP Heartbeat back in 2014. After the recording of the Heartbeat EP, Cheyenne Avant joined the band to complete what would become the band’s first lineup. The following year, the Oakland-based trio toured with the likes of Best Coast, Whirr and Creepoid.
The band’s long-awaited full-length debut Disappear Here was written and recorded over the course of the past two years with Nick Bassett. and the album reportedly finds the band moving away from the doo-wop and 60s girl pop influences of their earliest releases and towards a cleaner, more refined sound, as the band explains in press notes. Along with that such a decided change in sonic direction, the band went through a major lineup change with its co-founder Baylie Jiminez leaving the band during the recording sessions. Jiminez was replaced by Cara LP. And perhaps as a result of both the lineup change and their new sound, Disappear Here‘s features material written by Morte and Avant.
“Marigold,” Disappear Here‘s latest single is a self-assured and shimmering bit of guitar pop, centered around some gorgeous harmonizing and the sort of big, swooning hooks reminiscent of Dum Dum Girls. The recently released video follows the band’s songwriting duo as they go on a pleasant afternoon stroll near the California coast. Interestingly, during their stroll they encounter a beautiful pagan priestess, who quickly disappears when the ladies get near. After touching her left behind chalice, they encounter a bizarre ritual, which frightens them immensely; but they quickly receive acceptance from the priestess and her other followers, who let them join the group. While being mischievous, the video is decidedly feminist.
