Rose City Band

About

Rose City Band’s music is sun-kissed timeless country rock whose seemingly effortless momentum carries the joy of its creation without ignoring the darkness pervading our consciousness. Led by guitarist/vocalist Ripley Johnson, the music of Rose City Band is rooted in his love of private press records of the mid to late 70’s. The band, in addition to Johnson, features pedal steel guitarist Barry Walker, keyboardist Paul Hasenberg and drummer John Jeffrey who enmesh a keen sense of rhythmic drive and melody with gentler, sumptuous atmospheres. Sol Y Sombra digs its heels into insatiable grooves, its parade of catchy songs conjuring a sunset drive through an open desert, both a celebration of a sojourn and a reach for the warmth of home.

The contrasts of Sol Y Sombra, the musical equivalent of bright stars in a night sky, are to Johnson an inevitability. “With Rose City Band, I'm generally trying to make uplifting music, good time music,” says Johnson. “This time I couldn't avoid the shadow being more of a presence. There's no getting away from it. The shadow is always there. So, I left it in.” Like many genre-breaking private press albums, the melancholia-infused Sol Y Sombra’s contrasts equally enhance moments of joy and movement whilst elevating the music with its honesty and intimacy. Nuanced performances and interplay between players unfurl like desert flowers splashing color onto an arid landscape. The ensemble's buoyant moments still glide with ease, but there is room to revel in respite of the shade of a dark cloud. For Johnson, the album finds places where the conscious meets the unconscious, the songs emanating the more mercurial and curious aspects of their sonic dream world, using darker hues to paint the panorama around them.

Sol Y Sombra’s opener “Lights on the Way” is halogen on the highways, a beam of light pressing onward past dashed lines and soaring with Johnson’s guitar work and lush harmonies. The album’s first half is rife with blissful Americana, from upbeat rollicks to ballads dripping with sweet molasses. Walker’s pedal steel speckles the slow-motion shuffle of “Evergreen” with glinting starlight. His playing throughout pairs perfectly with Johnson’s effervescent guitar lines, exuding the casual virtuosity of pedal steel country legends while lending remarkable modern twists to his graceful licks. Across the album, Johnson’s tasteful guitar interjections and soothing voice are met in kind with the versatile playing of Walker, Hasenberg, and Jeffery, with special guest performances by synthesist/vocalist Sanae Yamada. Album closer “The Walls” perfectly captures the band’s explorative and expansive songs, Hasenberg’s soulful organ driving the album to an emotionally cathartic conclusion.

Throughout his prolific career with Wooden Shjips, Moon Duo and now Rose City Band, Johnson’s music has consistently centered around exploration and discovery. Sol Y Sombra imbues his penchant for space and resplendent tonality with a denser amalgam of his influences. Johnson tactfully incorporates new elements with deftness and fluidity, while holding the band’s center intact. “One of my takeaways from making this record is that I spent a lot of energy trying to do things a little different but ended up back where I started in many ways,” notes Johnson. “And that's OK.” Through a delicate balance of the somber and the serene, of subtle evolutions and familiar sounds, Sol Y Sombra makes for a holistically joyous experience, finding solace in both sun and shade.

Tour Dates

    The Crystal Ballroom Portland, OR w/ The Dandy Warhols
    The Crocodile Seattle, WA w/ Lee Baggett Tickets
    Fox Cabaret Vancouver, BC w/ Lee Baggett Tickets
    Mississippi Studios Portland, OR w/ Lee Baggett Tickets
    Miniplex Arcata, CA w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    The Chapel San Francisco, CA w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Lodge Room Los Angeles, CA w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Soda Bar San Diego, CA w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown, CA w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Valley Bar Phoenix, AZ w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Sister Albuquerque, NM w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Globe Hall Denver, CO w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Urban Lounge Salt Lake City, UT w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    Neurolux Boise, ID w/ Tan Cologne Tickets
    007 Prague, CZ Tickets
    Noels Ballroom Leipzig, DE Tickets
    Neue Zukunft Berlin, DE Tickets
    Voxhall Aarhus, DK Tickets
    Babel Malmo, SE Tickets
    Blaa Oslo, NO Tickets
    Fasching Stockholm, SE Tickets
    Pustervik Gothenburg, SE Tickets
    Loppen Copenhagen, DK Tickets
    Nachtasyl Hamburg, DE Tickets
    Kleine Freiheit Osnabrück, DE Tickets
    Bumann & Sohn Cologne, DE Tickets
    Vera Groningen, NL Tickets
    Fuzz Club Festival @ Effenar Eindhoven, NL Tickets
    The Garage London, UK Tickets
    Hare & Hounds Birmingham, UK Tickets
    YES (Pink Room) Manchester, UK Tickets
    Stereo Glasgow, UK Tickets
    Brudenell Social Club Leeds, UK Tickets
    Arts Club Loft Liverpool, UK Tickets
    Strange Brew Bristol, UK Tickets

Tour Dates

    The Crystal Ballroom Portland, OR w/ The Dandy Warhols
    The Crocodile Seattle, WA w/ Lee Baggett Tickets
    Fox Cabaret Vancouver, BC w/ Lee Baggett Tickets

More dates

Videos

Tracklist

00:00:00

    Sol Y Sombra

  • 1 Lights on the Way
  • 2 Open Roads
  • 3 Rolling Gold
  • 4 Evergreen
  • 5 Sunlight Daze
  • 6 Radio Song
  • 7 Seeds of Light
  • 8 La Mesa
  • 9 Wheels
  • 10 The Walls
  • Tracks

Discography