Moon Duo

San Francisco's Moon Duo was formed in 2009 by Sanae Yamada and Erik Johnson (Wooden Shjips). Inspired initially by the legendary John Coltrane and Rashied Ali, Moon Duo counts such variant groups as Silver Apples, Royal Trux, Moolah, Suicide, and Cluster as touchstones. Utilizing primarily guitar, keyboards, percussion, and vocals, the pair plays space against form to create a primordial and disorienting sonic stew. They released two acclaimed records in 2009: the Love on the Sea 12-inch single on Sick Thirst and the Killing Time EP on Sacred Bones. Escape, their debut long-player on Woodsist, marks the fullest realization yet of the young group's evolving sound. "Moon Duo are the combined forces of Wooden Shjips' Erik Johnson and Sanae Yamada, and following a couple of singles this year, they're releasing a debut full-length on Woodsist in 2010. 'Stumbling 22nd St.,' a gauzy, lo-fi rock number built on a repetitive riff, goes on for nearly seven minutes and presents a pretty epic introduction to this band." --Pitchfork