My first memories of Tartufi consist of spying the lovely graffiti art campaign while pounding the sidewalks of San Francisco. I was in the process of moving to the city from Oakland and my girlfriend at the time was a big Tartufi fan. I distinctly remember lying in bed listening to Us Upon Buildings Upon Us and becoming hypnotized by the beautiful, lulling melodies seeping into my ears. I had not even heard the previous album release, which differs greatly in style, but I was hooked. It was one of the first times I remember being completely blown away by a local San Francisco band; it wasn’t the last, but it was one of the first. The album seemed to bleed one song into the next, building up to emotional peaks and swirling back down into sweet valleys. I couldn’t get enough; I bought the album and started hunting for a chance to see them live.

“Daggers They Would Fly,” the first track on the album, is my favorite. I love the unforgettable creepy vocal opening that unravels into an eerie fade of plucking xylophone. Tartufi have been compared to Built to Spill with a little Breeders action, but really who cares… Tartufi’s music isn’t about categories, it’s about a pure love of Rock and Roll. I didn’t understand how only two people were creating all of this powerful, hungry, complicated noise and how they could possibly pull it off on stage. But I wanted to.

The only other local band that I know that can pull off this mathy, stunningly labyrinthine sound is From Monument to Masses. The thing about math rock and prog rock is how precise and talented you have to be as a musician to play it and pull it off. Not many people can. Not many will even attempt it.

Watching Lynne Angel and Brian Gorman, the Tartufi duo, set up their pedals at a live gig will make anyone dizzy. I kept staring at them, pretty little vintage pale rectangles of metal, one after another, after another… I’m not gonna lie, the set up took a freaking long time, but with 50 pedals how could it not?

But when Tartufi opens up with their relentless sound, jaws tend to drop. All this crazy good noise is suddenly coming at you: layers of abstract lush longing, soundscapes of grace and crashing percussion that pound you into an adoring frenzy. The music is so rich, vibrant, full of guitar loops, keys, and Lynne’s stirring vocals. They make scary enchanting music. With a sound like that emanating from only two people is it any wonder they were voted the “best indie band of 2007” by the SF Bay Guardian readers? I think not.

Going to see Tartufi live is an ethereal experience; it’s like getting lost in the sounds of everyday and never wanting to find your way out. Tartufi pulls off one of the most difficult sounds with only the two of them. They make music that lingers, music that you can’t forget and really, why would you want to? Dear Tartufi, I love you.


[Katie Kaapcke]