Dynah
Who knew the Doves and Mansun had been around long enough to become an influence? Who knew Austin’s Dynah would seemingly be taking cues from them? Finally, who knew the local quartet’s self-titled disc would be one of the best debuts of the year? Affixed with guitar textures from an entire ocean away, Dynah can’t hide their love for bands like the Cure. It’s plain as the soaring, shoegazing guitar riff of “Plastiscene” or the suffering drone of “A.M.” Singer Rion Basyus helps the homage along, floating on lyrics like “The truth is no one knows. I’m praying for UFOs to come down and take me all away” on the undeniable “Ones and Zeroes.” The real leader of the band, though, seems to be guitarist/producer Mike Freitag. Under his guidance, the band’s sound takes shape with its creative eyes on the Smiths and Radiohead. That’s why epic songs such as “Cracked Bones” exist as near-classics even if they’re relatively derivative. If Dynah steals, at least they steal from the best. We may catch them red-handed, but their secret is safe with us. Don’t be shocked, though, if this well-kept local secret finds a way of getting out.
This article appears in October 22 • 2004.