Viva Voce - Rose City reviews
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| Pastemagazine |
 holed up in Portland since 2002, Viva Voce’s Kevin and Anita Robinson have dusty country-folk in their blood and gritty rock on their minds, and they’ve teased out this tension over four progressively darker LPs of dreamy musicality, layered over what could suffice as a lovely, bare-bones husband-and-wife duo. For Rose City, a kinda-sorta homage to their adopted hometown, they’ve brought on locals Evan Railton and Corrina Repp to beef up their sound—not that it needed beefing up, but it’s nice to hear them having fun with some talented pals. Portland is hardly hurting for love these days, and the album wisely limits its fawning to the chomping title track; over glimmering harmonies and shuddering guitars, the Robinsons & co. more often wax poetic on the passing of time and romantic disaffection than the virtues of their ’hood. But Portland’s role in producing such a subtle, consistently searing act should be compliment enough....full text |
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| Pitchfork |
husband-and-wife bands) is that we hope that the elusive magic that keeps people together or the visceral drama that tears them apart is audible somewhere in their three-minute pop nuggets. We're hoping to be a fly on the wall of their indie rock domicile. And though those sorts of bands-- from Yo La Tengo and Low to the White Stripes and Quasi-- release wonderful music, we are rarely given an actual glimpse into the intimacy of the relationship that crafted it. Viva Voce, a Portland-via-Alabama spousal duo, is one such group.
On their four previous records, Viva Voce gave us stomping stoner anthems and warmly jangling pop, all crafted with an incisive eye for melodic detail. But on their latest offering, Kevin and Anita Robinson have not only pared things down, writing and recording everything for Rose City in less than a month, but built things up as well, adding two additional members to flesh out their lineup. The result is a fresh-sounding collection that feels easy and unpretentious yet urgent, an album that is markedly different from its heavier 2006 predecessor, Get Yr Blood Sucked Out, but one that continues its organic, imaginative bent. And though its songs may not explicitly deal with life in the Robinson's marriage (sadly, there's no hit single called "Honey, Take Out the Trash"), they definitely give voyeuristic listeners the feeling of a couple letting two new people into their insular world and offer songs that pulse with the immediacy of their off-the-cuff creation....full text |
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| Popmatters |
You have to applaud Viva Voce for its effort. Formed in 1998 around husband and wife Kevin and Anita Robinson, the twosome got the ball rolling in Alabama and then spent a little time in Nashville before moving to Portland in 2001. They have since planted deep roots in the community, becoming something of a fixture in the Pacific Northwest scene.
The duo’s first label went into liquidation shortly after releasing its 1998 debut Hooray For Now, which resulted in the pair taking some home time to regroup and nurse a young family, but they got back on the horse. In 2003, the band released the born-again debut Lovers Lead The Way on its own label and in conjunction with Asthmatic Kitty. The Heat Can Melt Your Brain was released on Minty Fresh the next year. The band then scored opening slots touring with the Shins and Jimmy Eat World, while its next album Get Yr Blood Sucked Out saw release by the notable Barsuk label. Viva Voce now slowly spirals outward, getting bigger and bigger every year, and it has all been built on the family Robinson’s own gumption and grit....full text |
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