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Music

This Modern Love: Snowmine

The Brooklyn quintet answer our OkCupid-cribbed questionnaire, plus watch an exclusive live performance of "Rome."

Even though the art of the physical mixtape is deader than Kim Jong-il I’m happy that my friends still send me playlists of selections which they think I’ll like. On one such mixtape a pal added a couple of songs by Brooklyn quintet Snowmine. In particular “You Want Everything” which iTunes tells me I’ve (obsessively) listened to 32 times in two weeks. It’s the kind of gently chiming indie that’s unabashedly soft-centered, depicting the often uncomfortable push and pull of romantic relations, recognizing the troughs yet refusing to relinquish the bad times because the peaks taste so deliciously sweet. At least that’s what it sounds like to me. Sonically it’s a midpoint between first album-era Coldplay and Phoenix: instant hooks that pack an emotional punch.

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Thankfully it’s not the only impressive offering on their debut LP. Released this past February, Dialects (via Mystery Buildings) is crammed with mini-epics such as “Rome” (performed, live and exclusively in the above video) or “Columbus” (below) with its gauzy Fleet Foxes-esque harmonies and fulsome strings. As Snowmine’s music strikes such a resonant romantic chord, it seemed only fitting to get singer Grayson Sanders to fill out our OkCupid cribbed questionnaire: This Modern Love. His answesr are revealing, cheeky, tender, and vague, but it was his response to “What six things can’t you live without?” that made me realize Grayson might just be the man for me. Just kidding. Jeez, this is a music site not Tinder.

Age/Sex/Location:
Male. Quarter Life Crises in a concrete jungle.

Sexual preference:
Polyphonic, experimental, open-minded. Top and Bottom end.

My Self-Summary:
Self-loving-and-loathing. Crazy. Falling in love with the world repeatedly despite its misgivings. Running up peaks and drinking from troughs. Stretching tensions and relishing releases.

What I'm doing with my life:
Finding new things to stick in front of a microphone, while constantly making mental notes to remember life goes on outside.

I’m really good at:
Listening.

The first thing people usually notice about me is:
I'm a ten-handed ten-legged Manosaurus Hex.

Favorite books:
Vonnegut, Asimov, Orson Scott Card, Roald Dahl. Favorite movies:
Dark Crystal, 2001:Space Odyssey, Altered States,

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Favorite TV shows:
When?

Favorite music:
Bjork, Pink Floyd, Boards of Canada, Fela Kuti

Favorite food:
Flaum. [Does he mean Flaums?]

Six things I could never live without:
1. Sleeping Puppies.

2. Sleeping Bunnies.

3. Sleeping Baby Owls.

4. Sleeping Baby Elephants.

5. Peanut Butter.

I spend a lot of time thinking about:
Why people hurt each other.

On a typical Friday night I am:
In five places at once.

The most private thing I'm willing to admit:
One of us has a tail.

You should message me if:
You can message me if.

Snowmine Tour Dates
2/5 Allston, MA @ Great Scott
2/7 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s (Co-headline with Norwegian Arms)
2/8 Baltimore, MD @ Metro Gallery

Sometimes Kim likes to curate her friends Tinder selections. She's on Twitter - @theKTB