ENTIRE REARVIEW MIRROR CATALOG NOW ONLINE!

It is with great pleasure that I write the first "regular" blog post on this site about Rearview Mirror. Former guitarist and current Brahman Shamanator Matt Olson recently uploaded RVM's entire catalog to their new bandcamp site where it is currently available in all its glory for streaming and purchasing. Blown Out, All Lights Off, and their Self-Titled Disc are all "Deluxe Editons" with a whole mess of demos, alternate recordings, live tracks, B-sides, and otherwise previously unreleased material.

The collection of recordings I'm most pleased to see given a proper release is the 24 track "Rarities" which includes songs recorded in MPLS and LA during 2003-2005 for what I've dubbed "The Lost Album". This was the era after they had parted ways with original drummer TJ Kammer and record label Palm Pictures when they were "giving it another go" in Minneapolis. In terms of creative output, this was a very productive time and it spawned some of their best (and largely unheard) tracks. Songs like "Tendon", "Bapboo", "Watching", "For a Time", and "Rigid Sphere" showcase the band at their best--hard-hitting & creative songwriting, memorable melodies, and wicked guitar--it's just too bad that their fans could really only hear these gems at live shows--until now.

That's what really makes this catalog archive so sweet. It's a final testament to, a proper home for, and an ultimate collection of music that captivated an entire region and sub-culture of people, if only for a fleeting moment in time. The band has moved onto other projects and there's no longer any reason to hold back material from those that care to listen. And believe me, there are still plenty of people out there that care to remember--I have a playlist on YouTube with 20 videos of RVM live performances (which will be greatly expanded in the coming months) and I get messages every so often from random people sharing memories and wondering what the band is up to now and where they can find more RVM content. Most of the videos have between 500-800 views.

With the dust settled and the perspective of a few years, the band's legacy seems to be the countless number of people from the Driftless Region, myself included, that decided to pick up an instrument, form a band, open a venue, or pursue a career in the music industry because of the inspiration they found in the success of these four kids from Cresco, IA. Independent music is simply not very common, visible, or as culturally relevant as it should or could be in certain rural areas of the upper midwest. Although there seems to be more bands, venues, and opportunities in those areas now than there was when I was coming of age and I like to think the band played a small part in making that happen. That alone, along with the memories, is worth another look in the Rearview Mirror.