Officially, Philadelphia-rooted Psychedelic/Garage Rock outfit Purling Hiss consists of three members, but the brain stem of the whole affair is undoubtedly singer/guitarist Mike Polizze. Polizze, who is also part of Birds of Maya (another Philly band), was initially the lone player on Purling recordings until he turned it into a band in August of 2010.
The project was — and, to be realistic, still is — the product of Polizze messing around with a grab bag of elements, from sound levels to white noise to the song structures. Aesthetically, the guitarist's ideology happily feeds off of tricks and philosophies proofed and perfected by distortion pedal daredevils of the '60s and '70s. In an interview with online ’zine The Agit Reader, Polizze said, “The physical sound of tape recordings or Classic Rock references can evoke a nostalgic feeling or memory,” and confirming that nostalgia certainly penetrates Purling Hiss' jam-session-born, jam-packed songs.
“The Hoodoo,” off last year's Lounge Lizards EP, evidences this perspective well, as reverb-coated melodies sizzle and fly freely, and Polizze uses the chorus to exclaim “Hoo! Doo!” in the goofy EP highlight. Hell, even the “Hoodoo” video — which involves atrocious filters and awkward fade-ins laid over footage of the guys rocking out in a small space — revels in the group’s status as a charming, wistful mess.
PURLING HISS plays Sunday, Feb. 19 with DR. DOG at 20th Century Theatre. Buy tickets, check out performance times and get venue details here.
