From Here To Linfinity

Throughout the aughts (or whatever we decided to call that sad little decade), independent music largely dropped its shy posturing and embraced the epic. Many of the underground’s big guns— your Arcade Fires, your Beiruts, your Antonys—steered things into under-explored territory by emphasizing lush instrumentation and meticulous arrangements. Besides scoring your dinner parties, these grandiose bands birthed strong cult followings with a flair for the dramatic. For a new decade, it’s only natural to guess what would happen if you combined their styles together into a musical behemoth with tight songwriting and an uncompromising attitude towards genre. Your result might sound close to Linfinity.

Led by songwriter Dylan Von Wagner, Linfinity was officially kick-started in the summer of 2008.The act was originally an eight-piece, but has since settled on a sixmember assault that includes guitar, bass, drums, strings and keys.The outcome is some of the more assured indie musicianship and writing to come out of Brooklyn recently.

For Linfinity, like many new bands, the path from early acoustic demos to headphonetickling grandeur was undoubtedly costly and time-consuming. Fortunately, a combination of infectious melodies, unique live shows and gracious friends were enough to get the group the right studio environment to execute its big statement. (Now signed to American Myth Recordings with its debut album called Martian’s Bloom on the way in April.)

“On this record, I believed we should spend as much as we can,” explains Von Wagner, who graciously participated in our interview while getting over a bout of food poisoning. “I was raising money from friends and whatnot. People were quite generous to get things off the ground.We didn’t really ask. They came to shows and wanted to help. I’m a firm believer that if you want to compete with the bigger records coming out, you need to be in the same league. Most bigger records coming out on bigger indie labels take around $30,000 to complete.We didn’t get near that, but we didn’t want to cheat.We needed a big room, big equipment and the best producer we could get.”

Martian’s Bloom tackles everything from Southern Gothic tropes and rockabilly to beautiful, stringladen Moorish stomps and bombastic chamber pop. It’s ambitious yet accessible and often feels like a solid mix tape of your favorite headliners.The recently leaked “Holy Rain” falls somewhere between Beirut and Bill Callahan’s recent work, while the title track merges the stark orchestral flourishes of bands like Tindersticks with ’70s FM rock. “Choo Choo Train to Venice” is an oddly sequenced gem that crams a healthy dose of speed into the band’s normally patient formula. Much of the record’s balance comes from how Von Wagner’s core songwriting chops and strong vocals get arranged, skewed and heightened by his collaborators.

“There’s a lot of experimentation,”Von Wagner says in regards to process. “That’s a good part of this band. I’ll come in with some chords and Josh Collins [guitar] will change them around and rearrange.We’ll try it with 50 different drumbeats. I think Josh is the main music guy in terms of translating and getting things straight musically.”

Von Wagner continues, “I’ve played with other musicians where it happens faster, but sometimes the band needs to feel it out until it’s right. It’s kind of also letting everyone do their thing.That’s the thing about Linfinity. If I’m bringing in a song, I can’t be telling them what to play. Everyone puts their stamp on it and feels involved.”

As for the Linfinity live experience,Von Wagner takes pride in leading what he calls a “note-for-note band.”Yes, there are a few more immediate flourishes, but the arrangements on Martian’s Bloom result from tightly knit musicianship rather than studio trickery. Josh Collins (guitar), Nick Hundley (bass), Russ Lemkin (drums), Megan Leach (viola, violin) and Omer Shemesh (keys) round out the lineup, and they’re currently sharpening their swords in preparation to win over audiences when the record finally comes out.

“We’re just at the point where we’ve played in New York for a while and it’s time to go buy a van,”Von Wagner says. “We’re gonna try to tour as much as possible. It depends on how good the record does.We’re getting prepared for battle.”

-- Linfinity Jan. 13, Knitting Factory, 361 Metropolitan Ave. (at Havemeyer St.), Brooklyn, 347-529-6696; 7, $10.