The Marshmallow Staircase - Gunfighters [Summersteps]

At the risk of offending one or many of you, I think the name The Marshmallow Staircase kinda, sorta, you know, sucks. (Though it does sound delicious.) I wasn't too sure what a band called The Marshmallow Staircase would actually sound like--the whole Western visual theme only compounded my confusion--my first inclination was cute electronic pop or something like that, then on second thought it seemed more like a psych band that jammed out to Puf 'n Stuf projections. I was wrong on both counts (though the second was closer) and I'm actually happy I was.
This tape is pretty sweet and The Marshmallow Staircase's sound is in the vein of Chrome, Six Finger Satellite and Brainiac, though more lo-fi, more krautrock, more blown out and with way more bass. And to be honest, the world needs a lot more bands with that DNA.
Thick, swaggering basslines rule the day, seemingly mixed higher than the vocals and every other instrument. Unorthodox, but a move that pays off as Gunfighters manages to feel muscular and slick at the same time. While the kraut-y basslines cut through the synth lather on the jams, The Case snakes little instrumental interludes around the songs sans rhythm section, such as the phenomenal organ-led ditty "Creepy Street" which segues into the rollicking blast of "The Diplomat" forming one of the cassette's pinnacles. Gunfighters closes on a high note too; "I Wanna Be Your Stranger," is sort of a Brainiac covering The Stooges or The Animals type of affair. They dial back the heavy fuzz to rock a lean organ-driven, future-60s jam with oscillations drizzled all over the goddamn place.
Sweet tape, I dig this band. Grab it here!