Song of the Day: The Republic Tigers - Buildings & Mountains

photo by Michael Forester

Every Monday through Friday, we deliver a different song as part our Song of the Day podcast subscription. This podcast features exclusive KEXP in-studio performances, unreleased songs, and recordings from independent artists that our DJs think you should hear. Today’s featured selection, chosen by Midday Show host Cheryl Waters, is Buildings & Mountains by The Republic Tigers from the 2007 self-titled EP on Chop Shop Records.

Dreamed up by Kenn Jankowski (vocals/keys/guitar) and Adam McGill (vocals/guitar/samples), this Kansas City quintet came together following the dissolution of Jankowski’s previous band, Astralwerks’ Golden Republic. They’re the first band to be signed to Atlantic imprint Chop Shop Records, an imprint founded by the very apt Alexandra Patsavas, the one responsible for bringing the indie scene to television programs like The O.C., Grey’s Anatomy, and others. Somehow I doubt The Republic Tigers will need much help in finding an audience. This EP is full of psych-pop slam dunks, rife with dense vocal layering and cinematic orchestration. If you like what you’re hearing now, mark May 6th on your calendar -- the day Keep Color, the band’s first full-length, hits stores. The RTs are currently touring the East Coast in anticipation of that release. You can do some anticipating yourself by watching this video for Feeling the Future, one of many great tracks from the upcoming album: