Bleeding Rainbow play the Media Club Sept. 5. Photo credit: Zia Hiltey.

Preview – Bleeding Rainbow at the Media Club, Vancouver, Sept 5 2013

– by Shaun Robinson

Sarah Everton and Rob Garcia, a couple who until earlier this year were also known as the band Reading Rainbow, aren’t afraid of change. Their debut album, Mystical Participation, was a collection of noisy, distorted pop songs that sounded like they were recorded on a thrift store tape deck. On 2010’s Prism Eyes, the noise and distortion were still present, but lead singer and drummer Everton’s sugary vocals shone through more clearly, and the twee pop of their debut gave way to garage-rock swagger.

For their third album, Yeah Right, the change is exponentially greater. The songs have a shoegaze vibe, with droning guitar, effects pedals, and dreamy vocals. Everton has moved from drums to bass, to allow her to concentrate more on singing; she also dyed her hair grunge-blonde. The band has added two new members, doubling its original size. They’ve even changed their name – they’re now known as Bleeding Rainbow, a change that was made, according to their website, because Carrie Brownstein made fun of their old name.

Apparently, it’s working. The new album has gotten plenty of attention from the indie music press, and has earned endorsements from all living members of Nirvana – Krist Novoselic mentioned them in a tweet, and Dave Grohl endorsed them on Marc Maron‘s podcast, WTF.

By the time Bleeding Rainbow shows up at the Media Club on Sept. 5, odds are the band will have gone through several more changes. If the pattern holds, they’ll be changes worth investigating.

Video – Bleeding Rainbow, “Waking Dream”: