The Echo Falls

In today's San Francisco Chronicle Pink Section

2009-12-06T11:18:00.000-08:00

Great review in today's SF Chronicle Sunday Pink Section!

"The 11 songs on this album are all acoustic gems, graced with exquisitely subtle instrumentation and Mandel's soft tenor....."

Reviews

2009-10-22T00:12:00.000-07:00

The Echo Falls debut album released on 11/17/09.

There's been a lot of great press so far.

Click on the link to read more....

KQED radio "The Do List"

"I just love the compositions, I love the subtlety of this music, it's a great trio -- and I think people are going to like it."

San Francisco Chronicle

"The 11 songs on this album are all acoustic gems, graced with exquisitely subtle instrumentation and Mandel's soft tenor."

East Bay Express

Lovely, gentle, introspective — this local folk-rock trio makes marvelously subtle music. Comprised of musicians trained at Juilliard and Oberlin, with one member who works with the SF Symphony and another whose day job is scoring movies for Pixar, the accomplished group of pros showcases its mellow, slightly wistful sound on its self-assured debut album.

Relix Magazine (Dec/Jan 2010)

Consisting of a trio featuring Alex Mandel, a musician who has scored short films for Pixar, The Echo Falls launches his name into the bulging singer-songwriter bag with an invigorating debut. elIntimate set pieces circle the complexities of modern life ("Watchtower", "Fire Down Below"), reassuring reflections rooted in optimism ("Every Second Thought", "There is Time Enough"), the depth of thoughts about fatherhood ("Little One") and a confident promise to a friend, a lover, hell, just plain old you and me ("You Still Have It All"). Mandel is accompanied by David Arend on double bass and David Brandt on drums, vibraphone and vocals -- and they do an admirable job of helping Mandel find a way to express his own cinematic mind films.

The Big Takeover

"The Bay Area is 375 miles from L.A.'s Laurel Canyon, but the 70's singer-songwriter bug must have migrated northwest, where it infected Alex Mandel. The Oberlin-trained Pixar Films scorer's voice sounds like a less nasal Damon Albarn (Blur) or Greg Lake of Emerson Lake & Palmer without the British accents....and there's even a Beatles nod....But his trio's acoustic folk pop is purely of that popular, confessional variety that emanated from the mountains behind Sunset Blvd before real estate values skyrocketed....this is quite nice.

-Jack Rabid

Made Loud

The Echo Falls succeeds at doing a very hard thing: producing a simple, happy-sounding record that supports repeated listening and has depth. Is this album life-changing and earth-shaking? Nope. Is it worth listening to? Yes indeedy. These are little pop gems made for blasting while driving around, windows down, on the first day of spring.

Scripps News

Listening to "The Echo Falls," the self-titled release from a Bay-Area folk-pop trio, brings to mind eating just-harvested vegetables while still standing in the garden: It's fresh and uncomplicated, and nothing is sauced up or overcooked.

Eat Drink Sleep Music

"...the best track of all is “Love Over Time,” which could be the best guitar song Ben Folds never wrote. There’s enough to please many folks on this debut."

Type 3

"Mandel’s unique vocals backed by solid musicianship and songwriting give The Echo Falls a sound that can be best described as timeless."

Metromix

"Frontman Alex Mandel’s voice holds plenty of appeal, and the upright bass and drums/vibes accompaniments keep things simple and stripped down, in a good way."

Cosmos Gaming

Even though the folk/acoustic rock genre has become increasingly crowded over the years The Echo Falls is able to stand out from the other newcomers. Their melodic guitar riffs and mellow vocals are sure to grab anyone who gives them a shot, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they become a bigger name in the near future.

Biloxi Sun Herald

"This group and recording are hard to categorize, but it recalls the halcyon days of California singer-songwriters with a different musical twist . . . many listeners will enjoy it."

Exclusive Magazine

""With Mandel’s instantly likeable vocals, thoughtful lyrics and the band’s memorable and tuneful songs...."

CWG

- live review

"For a three-piece, acoustic-only band, these guys were an orchestra of sound! I was astounded and in awe of the crazy shit that came out of frontman Alex Mandel's guitar. With a simple acoustic guitar, Alex's technique and ability to play rhythm and lead at the same time kept me hanging on to every note throughout their entire set."

- album review

The closer "Fall Asleep in the Sand," has the best atmosphere of any song on the album--sumptuous, tranquil, but with an anxious edge. This is a superbly talented band with a clear sense of their influences, both expected and unexpected (if you listen carefully, you can catch touches of Brazilian jazz rhythms in Brandt's drumming)...

Electronic Musician

This San Francisco Bay Area trio's debut CD, much of which was recorded on a laptop, features intelligent, acoustic-tinged indie rock.

Examiner.com

Songs like "Hummingbird" and "Road to Parnassus" showcase the true essence of what today's indie folk rock has to offer.

Buzz Bands

The smart folk-pop from songwriter Alex Mandel — day job: scoring short films for Pixar — is literate, amiable and, probably, mixtape-worthy.

Gearwire

Alex's Guitar

David's Bass

Dave's Drums & Vibes

Review on NPR This Morning!

2009-10-02T12:16:00.000-07:00

Click here to listen to The Echo Falls reviewed on NPR/KQED this morning on "The Do List"!!!

Hotel Cafe and Cafe Du Nord

2009-08-07T06:30:00.000-07:00

Just confirmed: our LA debut at the Hotel Cafe Saturday 10/3 at 7pm.

The next night, Sunday 10/4, we'll play at the Cafe Du Nord in SF. Buy tickets here.

We've posted more photos on our facebook site; become a fan here.

With Gary Jules @ Cafe Du Nord

2009-07-21T17:53:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who attended our Cafe Du Nord show with Gary Jules!

We're planning to play shows in late September/early October in SF and LA. Stay tuned....

(Found this poster on Sonic Living.com)

CD and poster now available online

2009-06-13T01:36:00.000-07:00

The album will release on 11.17.09. In the meantime, the album is also available for purchase as a pre-release online at CD Baby in both CD or mp3 download. Click the link to the right or right here.

Also, Jason Munn's limited edition print is now available on his website. It's great to see The Echo Falls in the poster shop with The Shins, Beck and Grizzly Bear.

You can also buy the poster and CD at a discount at our upcoming Cafe Du Nord show opening for Gary Jules on June 22 - but please buy tickets in advance, as this show will likely sell out.

Thanks to the attentive crowd who attended our show last night at The Starry Plough!

The Echo Falls CD arrives....

2009-06-01T23:44:00.001-07:00

The CD just arrived!

The CD is available at iTunes, Amazon, and Ameoba in San Francisco and Berkeley.

2 Shows in June Announced!

2009-05-26T23:22:00.000-07:00

The CDs and silk-screen prints arrive this week! We're celebrating with two Bay Area shows in June. We hope you can join us for our 2nd and 3rd shows ever.

June 11, Thursday - The Starry Plough, Berkeley, CA 9pm

and

June 22, Monday - Cafe Du Nord, San Francisco, CA w/ Gary Jules 8pm

Gary Jules is most recognized for his vocal on "Mad World" from the Donnie Darko end credits, but he's an excellent folk singer-songwriter as well. This show will sell out, so please pick up your tickets here.

The Echo Falls first show was 6/6/06 at the Hotel Utah with Brett Dennen. We missed 7/7/07 and 8/8/08, and we can't hold off until 9/9/09. So these will be our second and third shows. We hope to see you there!

The Echo Falls Limited Edition Poster

2009-05-18T00:36:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the release of our debut album, Jason Munn (aka The Small Stakes) is doing a limited run of silk screen posters. They'll be signed and numbered by Jason. We plan to play 2 shows in the Bay Area in June - and they'll be available there.

We started rehearsing today for our upcoming shows, and it felt great to play the songs now that the album is complete!

Artwork and Mastering...New tracks posted

2009-04-14T00:22:00.000-07:00

Jason Munn/The Small Stakes has created amazing album art that will only make total sense when you hold the CD in your hand....

Michael Romanowski has nearly finished mastering the record, and so we're posting the final versions of a bunch of songs from The Echo Falls debut as high-res mp3s.

The album will be available in June, so we're starting to plan an album release show.

The Echo Falls

2009-01-02T00:04:00.000-08:00

Welcome to The Echo Falls blog!

We're finishing up our first album in the next couple of months.

In the meantime, we've posted four songs from the upcoming album.