I can remember Archie Moore walking into The Record Co-Op at the University of Maryland with the first Slumberland Records EP. I think we may have even sold a few copies on consignment too in that last half-year before the store folded. Suddenly, Archie had gone from being one of the store's customers with the best taste (along with Kelly from the band, and Pam from Black Tambourine), to being someone making exactly the kind of music I'd be seeking out even if I didn't know the guy who made it. Velocity Girl redefined expectations of what a "D.C. band" could sound like, and started a trend on their eventual home label of Sub Pop of non-grunge groups getting a lot of deserved praise in an era ripe with flannel-clad macho dude bands. That's not to diminish the great stuff on Teen-Beat and other DMV-area labels, or even their peers on Slumberland, but it was undeniable then that Velocity Girl was special, and capable of doing so much by blending their reference points (Flying Nun, C86) into something wildly accessible to American ears.
And the not-so-secret weapon in the Velocity Girl arsenal was the voice of singer Sarah Shannon. Her vocals and stage presence drew in those looking for an American dream-pop band to swoon over, even though no one used that term yet in those days. Her singing could be dreamy or as clear as a bell, giving a center to the ruminations and riffs of the players -- Brian Nelson, Jim Spellman, Archie Moore, and Kelly Riles -- behind her. When the band broke up, Sarah continued with Starry Eyes, featuring Nick Pellicciotto (later in High Heavens), Jim, and Kelly. After that, and looking to pursue her own brand of indie, Sarah recorded some tunes with Geoff Turner (Gray Matter, Three) and Adam Wade (Jawbox, Shudder to Think). Those recordings are collected here now on Demo 98, a release from Snappy Little Numbers in partnership wtih Minty Fresh.
What's here is likely to pleasantly surprise Velocity Girl fans. While Sarah's voice is the link to her past, the material is necessarily heavy in a different way. "Wheel in a Wheel", premiered below, is crunchy and an obvious rocker. While there are touches that could lead one to link the vibe here to bands like Belly (VG touring partners, of course), I think the song stands on its own as a sort of break with Sarah's past, and an experiment with a new direction. It works though. "Marvel" has the kind of hook we'd associate with any of Geoff's or Adam's Dischord bands, while a hard run at "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight" re-casts the Richard & Linda Thompson classic as a post-punk beast. "Gone" and "Learn the Ride" let Sarah lead the way, while she modulates her approach and the material meanders a bit. "I Don't Want to See the Light" is a slow-burn, and sort of post-grunge in style (if that makes sense).
Demo 98 offers a showcase for the talents of Sarah Shannon, a what-might-have-been picture of other genres she nearly set out to master. Fans of Velocity Girl are in somewhat new territory here, though there are the familiar pleasures of hearing Sarah's voice take flight. These are demos, yes, but ones with enough heft to crank up. Sarah's ability to adapt to these players makes sense, given her work with Jim Spellman, himself a vet of Dischord band The High Back Chairs before he joined Velocity Girl. But no matter the collaborators, this is Sarah Shannon's show, and in that sense, Demo 98 is a revelation. Her voice is the star here, and most of this material suits it very well.
If you didn't get tickets to the upcoming Velocity Girl reunion show, you might want to play this and console yourself as you search for a ticket source. If you, like me, did buy tickets to that show, you'll want to rock out with this as a way to remind yourself of why Sarah Shannon was one of the very best vocalists in American indie.
Demo 98 by Sarah Shannon is out now. You can pre-order here, or via the Snappy Little Numbers Bandcamp page.
More details on Snappy Little Numbers here.
[Photo of Sarah Shannon by Cromwell Denosta]