P:ano
Friday, July 19
The Hive
I felt quite self-satisfied and indier-than-thou as I walked to the Hive with friends on Friday evening. What better way to kick off the weekend than with an intimate CD release and party at a recording studio? Never mind that I was in fact crashing the event, never having met Nick Krgovich or even heard his group, p:ano. Never mind that at all… Soon, however, all thoughts of self-congratulation left my mind as I settled down on the couch and became completely entranced by p:ano’s show. The Hive’s cosy living room was the perfect environment for p:ano’s unusual and compelling brand of atmospheric, classically-inflected art-pop. Nick (piano and guitar) was joined by Larissa Loyva on organ, vocals and trumpet, Chris Harris on bass, guitar, and piano and Justin Kellam on drums. Their organic, keys-driven sound made me think of an acoustic Stereolab with Stuart Murdoch on vocals, if that makes any sense. Larissa’s exquisite vocal harmonies and soulful trumpet were the perfect complement to Nick’s piano, and Chris proved especially versatile, moving instantly to fill the gaps as Nick switched instruments. Playing a selection of new and older tunes, the band improvised freely and unselfconsciously, constantly in communication with each other. While Nick may be the captain of this endeavor, the p:ano players are an incredibly skilled bunch in themselves. The performance was at once joyous and haunting, and Nick and Larissa’s lyrical musings on both exceptional and everyday life and love are still running through my mind. The party itself rocked out. As one would expect from such cool musicians, p:ano also have cool friends. If only every Friday night could be so delightful…

Susy Webb