Soft Cuff wordlessly guide you through a shape-shifting psychedelic experience to the edge of the universe and the center of your mind with their transcendently groovy EP — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
The debut sonic excursion from the instrumental Florida four-piece proves once again that music truly is the universal language — and that Soft Cuff can speak volumes without uttering a single word. In fact, if anything, traditional vocabulary seems like a black-and-white silent movie next to the cinematic technicolour worlds they conjure from four basic elements: Low-slung backbeats that have you nodding your head as they gently but insistently propel and pull you along flowing rhythmic rivers; nimble neck-climbing basslines that elegantly occupy the sweet spot between subliminal groove and irresistible melody; mesmeric keyboards that evoke everything from midway calliopes to pinging raindrops and heavenly clouds; and guitars that playfully dance across the pedal board in all their wah-wah-loving, reverb-sprung glory.
Unlike that last sentence, though, Soft Cuff are anything but long-winded and overly analytic. The six immersive and intoxicating songs on this EP are prime examples of tasteful understatement. Each of these tracks has everything it needs and nothing it doesn’t. And with an average length of just over three minutes, they certainly don’t overstay their welcome — but they do invite you to mash the repeat button. Or put them on a mixtape with Khruangbin, El Michels Affair, Dengue Fever, Los Bitchos and other likeminded sonic explorers.
According to their bio, the band features the complementary talents of four of Tampa Bay’s most innovative musicians: Brian Schanck, Mikey Bostinto, Tina Sanchez and Shane Schuch. Together they have created a unique instrumental approach shaped by their collective backgrounds in genres from indie to psych to Afrobeat and points between. The resulting vibe can evoke a smoky club from 70 years in the past or an extraterrestrial bistro 70 years in the future. But it always sounds as fresh as your next night on the town.
Schanck and Bostinto have been traveling in the same musical circles since they were high school friends diving into Tampa Bay’s indie scene in the early 2000s. But they didn’t begin playing music together until Mikey’s return to St. Petersburg after a musical odyssey fronting critically acclaimed bands on both coasts. Soft Cuff emerged from their earliest sessions together, when the old friends meshed as if they had been bandmates forever. They quickly settled into a distinctive groove that brought together a lifetime of shared influences.
This six-song offering is from some of those earliest sessions, all of which were written, performed, and produced by Mikey and Brian in their home studio in St. Petersburg. Listen to the Soft Cuff EP below, watch the animated video for Wouldn’t’ve above, and follow them on Instagram.
