Sitting perfectly in Highland Park, Blkbrn has the new spot for bands to perform.
Behind the dispensary sits The Loft– an open warehouse space with crisp acoustics, ample space for bands to perform and move freely.
It maintains an authentic DIY atmosphere, complemented by a smoking section conveniently located across the street, where music lovers can enjoy the show and enjoy some grass.
ROTOSCOPE performed their new EP, Two Images, front to back and back to front – followed by some old Roto classics (yes, they played “Orange”).
Two Images Unpacked
Five-piece ROTOSCOPE is Alessandro Barlotta on drums and Nachi Anand on guitar. Logan Mele plays bass guitar, and Jack Engdall plays guitar and sings. Miranda Lynch plays the keyboard.
“We’d been working on a record beforehand, that we still very much like, but it’s proving to be a lengthy process, and I was jittery to get these new songs out,” Jack said.
The EP balances abrasive emotional themes, with the first two tracks being louder and more confrontational, and the last two delving into vulnerability and yearning.
Two Images consists of four songs: “Permanent Stuff,” “Jesse Sayner,” “Tokyo,” and “Vibe Martyr.”
ROTOSCOPE recorded Two Images in one day.
“We called up our friend Nathaniel Philip, a prince, and we recorded it live in his basement…the prince’s castle… over the course of a day,” Jack told me.
Most of the songs on the EP were intended for Jack’s solo project. Every time he had a new song, he would bring it to the band.
“Playing it [a new song] with them is a lot more fun than recording synthesizers alone at home in my underwear,” he said.
Two Images opens with “Permanent Stuff” going into “Jesse Sayner,” Nachi’s favorite on the EP.
Jack said, “‘Jesse Sayner’ came about naturally during a rehearsal jam earlier this year… it was the first time Miranda had been a part of making a new song from scratch,”- a quiet milestone for ROTOSCOPE.
Distant vocals and slow, steady drums ease in before snapping back into that signature Roto sound, with strong bass and clashing cymbals driving it forward.
The man himself, Jesse Sayner, spoke about how special it is to evolve alongside ROTOSCOPE.
“It’s really beautiful that I’ve been able to see ROTOSCOPE at all stages… It feels like I’ve been growing with them, every show they get better,” he said.
Jesse remembers hearing that key “Intro” riff for the first time
After Jesse’s shoutout comes “Tokyo,” Alesandro, Jack, Miranda, and Logan’s favorite on the EP.
I love how the track kicks off with Sandro counting off on the drumsticks, immediately setting the energy.
Lyrics for “Tokyo”
IF I WAS THE GREAT UNKNOWN
WOULD YOU LEAVE
OR COULD YOU GO
YOU STAND
IN HIS DOOR FRAME NOW
I LIVED SO FAR ANYHOW
IF I WAS THE GREAT BEYOND
I’D SLEEP THROUGH ALL MY ALARMS
YOU TEXT LIKE AN ANCIENT CURSE
MY PLANS ONLY MAKE THINGS WORSE
I DUNNO
MOVIN’ RIGHT BACK COS YOU KNOW I GOT TO SAY IT
SETTLED ATTACK YOU KNOW IT ANYWAY I KNOW
I’M SAFER ALONE
STEP RIGHT BACK STEP RIGHT IN
GOT NOTHIN’, GOT NO PLANS I’M SHATTERED
BUT MOVING ALONG
STEP RIGHT BACK STEP RIGHT IN
I’M ON MY OWN AGAIN
YOU’RE ALL ALONE AGAIN
THE TOWER OF SUN
ARCHITECT CONFRONTATION
TRANSCEND MAN
PAST EQUIPMENT
THE GREAT BEYOND SAID
LISTEN TO ME
(OH WON’T YA LISTEN TO ME)
STEP RIGHT BACK STEP RIGHT IN
I’M ON MY OWN AGAIN
YOU’RE ALL ALONE AGAIN
THE TOWER OF SUN
ARCHITECT CONFRONTATION
TRANSCEND MAN
PAST EQUIPMENT
THE GREAT BEYOND SAID
LISTEN TO ME
(OH WON’T YA LISTEN TO ME)
LISTEN
(Mumbled)
OH YOUR LITTLE LITTLE LIFESPAN
OH NO NO NO
I’M SAFER ALONE
I’M SAFER ALONE
SAFER ALONE
“Tokyo” captures walking on thin ice to avoid a fracture, blending feelings of distance, frustration, and vulnerability.
The lyrics reveal a struggle to communicate, a longing for connection, and a simultaneous desire for self-protection.
“‘Tokyo’ was the only song on the EP I went into recording without a part already written,” Miranda said, “I was humming along trying to figure it out… I recorded my part in one take, so it really just came from the heart- I think that’s pretty special.”
“Vibe Martyr” eerily starts as the last song on the EP.
“‘Vibe Martyr’ started as probably the best pop song I’d ever written,” Jack told me. I was shocked, because it does not sound like a pop song.
“Sandro told me he wanted to deconstruct it entirely, which led to how it sounds today. It feels a lot closer to my real feelings on the matter now,” he continued. “…I love it, but I hate Sandro for making me confront my actual emotions instead of comfortably hiding behind pop music.”
The yearning is felt in my soul during this song.
Some of the lyrics are:
RIDERS ON THE STORM
AGAIN
YOU COULD NEVER HELP YOURSELF
SOMETHIN’ BOUND TO HAPPEN TO YA
YOUR STARE’S NOT GOOD FOR HEALTH
GOT SOMETHING TO MOVE TOO FAST
AND I CAN’T EVEN TELL
MOVING WITH YOUR OWN
MUSCLES
INTO A C.P.O.
YOU KNOW, OH
NO
….
AND I SEE YOU WHEN YOU MOVE
AND I SEE YOU WHEN YOU MOVE
AROUND
AND I’LL SEE YOU WHEN YOU MOVE
AND I SEE YOU WHEN YOU MOVE
AROUND
THIS TIME AND AGAIN AND AGAIN AND IT GETS YOU NOWHERE
AND THE CITY BURNED DOWN
AND I SEE YOU WHEN YOU MOVE
AROUND
About halfway through the song, the bass drum comes in behind Jack’s vocals before the cymbals lead into that coming-of-age movie feeling.
Something about this part just makes me want to recreate the scene in Perks of Being a Wallflower.
The repeated lines “You really had to go away,” give loss and separation.
Jack revealed to me, “The first time I heard the playback of the noise buildup of the track on the EP, I got a bit weepy. Hearing the band collectively, and scarily accurately, might I add, translate my feelings into a catastrophe of sound was a really wonderful thing that I don’t take for granted.”
“Two Images feels like the missing link between our previous release and next album,” Logan shares,” It shows how we are growing into our sound while still making what we want to hear.”
Alessandro agrees with Logan and adds, “Two Images is good because I play motorik beats on it, but I don’t on ROTOSCOPE EP.”
I asked the band if they could get one lyric or thing from the EP tattooed on them forever. What would it be?
Alessandro said he would get a lyric from “Permanent Stuff,” it would read, “I just dislike you, I won’t fight you.”
“Maybe a simple sketch of our noise machine with the ROTOSCOPE logo and a green line next to it, framed like the Two Images poster,” Logan said, “Tough question because Jack has made so many tattoo-worthy visuals.”
Jack would get the two rectangles from the EP cover.
ROTOSCOPE Two Images Release Night @ The Loft
The Loft at Blkbrn was the perfect space for ROTOSCOPE to palindromically play Two Images.
“Everybody involved was legitimately so kind and really gave us both full support and full creative freedom,” Jack said about the venue, “They’re getting involved with the community in a great way.”
Solitude opened the night, followed by Melancholy Party before ROTOSCOPE.
Across the way was a designated area to smoke and still enjoy the music. Hanging out before the show, I spoke to one of the security guards. He told me that he would go to shows like this when he was younger.
I love hearing other people’s local music scene stories. It’s encouraging for me to keep interviewing and photographing my friends and other local bands.
I was so eager to hear songs from ROTOSCOPE EP.
Alessandro’s favorite song to play live was “Same Sound,” a song from their first EP. They rarely play songs from this EP, (bummer for me). “River Breather” is insane. But the live versions are always better than what I listen to on Spotify.
“Every time we play [the first EP songs] live, it is a testament to our constant growth,” Sandro told me, “We get noticeably tighter and our dynamics just feel so much more natural.”
Hearing the songs from ROTOSCOPE EP for the first time in a while felt nostalgic for me, and Logan felt the same way.
“We haven’t played ‘Intro’ in so long… playing it makes me nostalgic because it’s where it all started,” Logan shared.
ROTOSCOPE’s set wasn’t just a set in a warehouse behind a dispensary; it felt like a reflection of how far they’ve come and how connected they still are to where they started.
Very cool to watch and be a part of. Nights like that remind me why I continue to do what I do!
ROTO 4 EVER
Listen to Two Images on Bandcamp or wherever you stream your music. Follow ROTOSCOPE on Instagram.
