Review 01

February 21, 2008 - Eugene Weekly - Dreamworthy - by Anne Pick

Hauntingly sweet and dripping with ambience, the delicate compositions of Levator will float through your dreams. The band's musty yet cool indie pop is detailed and precise, like a recurring dream you just can't forget.
"Perfect World" takes life as a modern-day lullaby. "It's a perfect world and I'm wishing time away…" Sky Lynn breathes into the microphone. Rather than "Hush little baby, don't you cry," this lullaby full of melody gives hope for a world without worries, where time ceases.
Sky Lynn formed Seattle-based Levator in 2003. Lynn spent a year making her first album, Midnight, which she started by buying a computer and software. Late nights spent experimenting and tweaking paused only for life, love and travel. After she finished self-recording and producing Midnight, Lynn dabbled in the art of video production. She created a show featuring seven solo performers with video she specifically shot and edited for each one.
2006 saw the addition of permanent member Rando Skrasek and the recording and release of Levator's most current album, Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive. Over two months, Lynn packed up her van Fridays after work, drove to her father's Oregon ranch, where she grew up, and hammered away on the new material until it was time to head north on Sunday night.
This singer-songwriter has warranted comparisons to PJ Harvey and Mazzy Star, and her song textures to that of Sonic Youth. Levator, Muke and Testface play at 10 pm Wednesday, Feb. 27, at Luckey's. $3-$5. 21+ show.

October 19, 2007 - The Mustang Daily - Levator proves 'Grey's Anatomy' soundtrack-ready - by Laura Kasavan
Listening to Levator feels really good. The artfully constructed and pleasant strains of pop rock feel like trying on soft, multicolored layers of your favorite T-shirts.
This is a band to study to, a band to read to and a band to live to. In other words, Levator and its 2006 album "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" are simultaneously soothing and upbeat.
Perhaps the best way to describe Levator is as the band most likely to land on a future "Grey's Anatomy" soundtrack.
"Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" is a 12-track, hour-long album filled with the breathy and mature vocals of Sky Lynn on guitar backed by the presence of Rando Skrasek on drums.
Absent from the record are building rockers; instead, the artsy and soulful piece is mellow.
The album starts off with "Another Day," a song that sounds as though it is a cousin of "Downtown" by Tegan and Sara, the Canadian singer-songwriter duo.
Next up is "Try...Wait," an eight-minute song that speeds way up before it slows down.
"As Yours Would" is a cool psychedelic experience, and "Fingers & Toes" is a definite highlight.
Lynn sings about "wishing time away" in "Perfect World" to close the album.
Overall, "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" is melodic and dreamy with a definite indie feel.
Levator began as Lynn's solo project when she played her first show in Seattle on March 17, 2003.
The name "Levator" comes from a surgical instrument used to lift the depressed fragments of a fractured skull.
In 2004, Lynn released her self-produced and self-recorded album "Midnight."
Her first album consisted of 12 varied songs, including the popular rocker "Disease" and the piano pop of "White Hair," in which Lynn sang about her visible dark side.
"Midnight" was recorded in her home studio, where she sang and played every instrument including the organ, drums, clarinet and guitar.
She played multiple shows and tours in 2005 in a flexible fashion, accompanied by various musician friends who played with her on moog, baritone guitar, trumpet, bass and drums.
Levator gained another member in 2006 when Skrasek joined. Lynn and Skrasek toured to promote "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive."
The band became a four-piece in 2007 with the additions of Jeremy Mitchell on bass and keyboard, and Nate Henry on tenor sax and keyboard.
Fans have compared Levator to Galaxie 500 and Mazzy Star. The band is also recommended to lovers of Sonic Youth, Elliott Smith, Neil Young and The Cure.
Levator recently completed a month-long West Coast tour through Washington, Oregon, Nevada and California.

October 4, 2007 - New Times - Glen Starkey
Levator, a Seattle band featuring breathy lyrics and atmospheric melodies that are sweeter than a lullaby, plays the Frog and Peach on Sunday, October 7, for a free, 9 p.m. show. This is indie pop at its most lilting, with trance-inducing guitars and lush vocals-completely arresting, thoroughly fascinating.

June 9, 2007 - CD World Eugene OR
Come see Seattle's Levator, featuring one of the West Coast's hardest working musicians Sky Lynn.

February 18-24, 2007 - Seattle Times - ‘The Week Ahead’
Levator is highly pleasant drone rock from the PJ Harvey-esque Sky Lynn.

February 16, 2007 - The Seattle Times - Tom Scanlon
Levator is a meditative (better term than "drone," don't you think?), lo-fi rock band led by PJ Harvey-sounding Sky Lynn.

May 2, 2006 - KPSU.org - Austin Rich
As I am prone to do from time to time, this week I had a special in-studio performance by Levator. Strickly speaking, Levator IS Sky Lynn (on guitar, vocals & effects), who, in the past, has been joined by various other friends and collaborators. This time she was joined by Rando Skrasek on drums, who provided an excellent back-beat for her carefully constructed and beautifully layered songs. Comparisons to Galaxie 500 or Mazzy Star are possible, but Sky manages to reach sonic textures that skirt the edge of Sonic Youth proportions, and has other, more sparse moments that conjur a singer-songwriter motif. But to really get a feel for what I'm talking about, you just gotta tune in.

August 2, 2005 - UrgentCulture.com - Jaime Ohlsson
Levator (pronounced elevator without the e) came next, with the gorgeous Sky on vocals, Robert Deeble on drums, and another guy on keyboards. Sky knows what she is doing, she really knows her instruments, and her vocals come out floaty and sensual.

July 28, 2005 - Fruit Lamp Records
Multi-instrumental whiz Sky Lynn makes beautifully detailed dream pop.

July 27, 2005 - NadaMucho.com - Levator - Mistaking Telephone Poles for Grizzly Bears - Q & A with Sky Lynn - Matt Ashworth
Levator is the solo project of Seattle multi-instrumentalist Sky Lynn. Her first album, Midnight, features 12 impeccably crafted songs on which she played every note herself. In addition to being extremely detailed (especially for a self-produced, self-recorded album), the songs on Midnight are diverse yet cohesive, ranging from building rockers (“Disease”) to gentle piano pop (“White Hair”) to soulful wails (“Hush”).
In preview of Levator’s July 28 show at the Sunset Tavern in Ballard, I caught up with Sky.
NM: You're a hugely talented multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter type. How's that work?
SL: Ha! Well, thank you. I think it works for me because I love all types of music, so over the years I've kept adding instruments that allowed me to express myself in different styles, but because of that I suffer from sleep deprivation frequently, sometimes to the point of hallucinating. The other day I thought I saw a grizzly bear on the side of the road and when I shook my head in disbelief and looked again...it was a telephone pole!
NM: Does this semi-hallucinogenic state contribute negatively or positively to your songwriting? Do you have any songs about grizzly bears and polar bears?
SL: I think it has a positive influence, although it does cloud my memory so I have to record all my ideas while I'm working on a song.
NM: I know of at least three projects you have going - Levator, Max Fischer and Blue Light Curtain. Give me a full list and rundown of which talents you contribute to each band.
SL: I did everything on the Levator record, but I’ve playing with a drummer and a moog player and they will also be accompanying me on tour! In Max Fischer I play the drums very hard. With Blue Light Curtain I play drums and do some vocals. I also play bass and guitar and do some backing vocals for Robert Deeble, who will be joining me at the Sunset on July 28.
NM: Do you have a "day job" on top of all that? How do you do it?
SL: Yeah, I have a regular 8 to 5 day job. Once a month I'll catch up, which means I'll sleep for about 20 hours straight. Besides that, I try to take vitamins, eat healthy food, drink coffee, floss my teeth..
NM: You recently released your first solo album under the name Levator. Tell me about the name, then the album.
SL: Levator has a few definitions. One of them being a surgical instrument for lifting the depressed fragments of a fractured skull and the second one being a muscle that raises a bodily part. It sparks a few different pictures in my mind that I find pretty entertaining. The album’s twelve tracks long and includes a little bit of everything. The songs range from acoustic guitar based tracks, to multi-layered distorted guitars, to piano/organ based songs. It took me 12 months from start (buying a computer/software) to finish (the CD release party).
NM: The songs on Midnight seem very detailed and carefully crafted, which isn't always the case with this sort of "DIY" type of project. How do you recreate this in a live setting?
SL: Thank you! I totally take that as a compliment. I have built a very large pedal board and carefully selected certain pedals over the years that allow me to not only create a wide range of tones, but also to create live loops of guitar and voice. So I sing all my vocal harmonies live and can play off my guitar with other guitar textures or even other instruments.
NM: What's your favorite song on the record, and why?
SL: Oooh, that's a hard question. I'm going to go with Mill Creek because I have very fond memories of where I wrote that song and also of recording it. I wrote it years ago on my favorite little nylon stringed guitar. I was on my way to the ocean only taking the back roads. It was gray and misty, passing through very small towns on narrow lanes. And then in the studio I was able to produce an idea I've had stored in my head for quite some time. I took a section of the song and recorded the chords string by string with an ebow. I wanted a symphonic sound with the guitar but when combined actually only playing a chord. I then separated the tracks of recorded strings, three on the right and three on the left and continued to pan them back and forth throughout the phrase.
NM: I've heard people compare your stuff to both Cat Power and PJ Harvey. Were they influences? Who else has had a big impact on what you do?
SL: That's funny. I get that a lot and can see why. But honestly, I just started listening to them in the last year or two. I guess they influence me as much as anything else I hear. A big impact on what I do? I'd have to say it started with records I pulled off of my parents' shelves: The Beatles, Neil Young, The Doors, Led Zeppelin. From there it moved to The Cure and Nirvana. And now, I suffer from a disease that requires me to buy new albums every weekend.
Note: Levator play the Sunset Tavern July 28 with Robert Deeble (CD Release), Transistor Heart, and DJ Lisa Wood.

December 16, 2004 - The Stranger - Sean Nelson
LEVATOR,MINI-LIFE, RED MARTIAN, 1985, GUESTS (Rendezvous) Levator is Sky Lynn, an almost offensively talented multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter, whose self-produced debut CD, Midnight, will be released tonight at this show. The music on the record is beautifully detailed, veering from dreamy girl pop to heavier, more grown-up rock tones, all marked by distinguished musicianship (Lynn sings and plays every note on every song) and adventorous handmade production. And as if making a record and playing a show weren't enough, Lynn has shot and edited video presentations for each of the seven solo performers on the bill tonight. So here's one CD-release party that might actually become one.

June 17, 2004 - The Stranger - Sean Nelson
Sunday 6/20 THE CHARMING SNAKES, MISTER METAPHOR, WAVES, LEVATOR
(Sunset) Levator is a one-woman project founded on the multi-instrumental skills of one Sky Lynn. The recordings are gently lo-fi, with more chops than your average four-tracker even dreams of. Her voice recalls Alison Statton from Young Marble Giants, if a bit more expressive. The songs, meanwhile, take their own marching orders, moving between rock and folk, gentle and strong, with pleasing dexterity. The live Levator is a question mark, but if the assembled band is anything like the recordings, you’re in for a treat.

June 2004 - NadaMucho.com - Sonja Oliver
Sunday, June 20th NadaMucho.com Hangover Helper- Levator/Waves/Mister Metaphor/Charming Snakes - Sunset Tavern.
Because what goes better on a sweet Sunday afternoon in Ballard than high-quality indie art-rock?

February 21, 2008 - Eugene Weekly - Dreamworthy - by Anne Pick Hauntingly sweet and dripping with ambience, the delicate compositions of Levator will float through your dreams. The band's musty yet cool indie pop is detailed and precise, like a recurring dream you just can't forget. "Perfect World" takes life as a modern-day lullaby. "It's a perfect world and I'm wishing time away…" Sky Lynn breathes into the microphone. Rather than "Hush little baby, don't you cry," this lullaby full of melody gives hope for a world without worries, where time ceases. Sky Lynn formed Seattle-based Levator in 2003. Lynn spent a year making her first album, Midnight, which she started by buying a computer and software. Late nights spent experimenting and tweaking paused only for life, love and travel. After she finished self-recording and producing Midnight, Lynn dabbled in the art of video production. She created a show featuring seven solo performers with video she specifically shot and edited for each one. 2006 saw the addition of permanent member Rando Skrasek and the recording and release of Levator's most current album, Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive. Over two months, Lynn packed up her van Fridays after work, drove to her father's Oregon ranch, where she grew up, and hammered away on the new material until it was time to head north on Sunday night. This singer-songwriter has warranted comparisons to PJ Harvey and Mazzy Star, and her song textures to that of Sonic Youth. Levator, Muke and Testface play at 10 pm Wednesday, Feb. 27, at Luckey's. $3-$5. 21+ show. October 19, 2007 - The Mustang Daily - Levator proves 'Grey's Anatomy' soundtrack-ready - by Laura Kasavan Listening to Levator feels really good. The artfully constructed and pleasant strains of pop rock feel like trying on soft, multicolored layers of your favorite T-shirts. This is a band to study to, a band to read to and a band to live to. In other words, Levator and its 2006 album "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" are simultaneously soothing and upbeat. Perhaps the best way to describe Levator is as the band most likely to land on a future "Grey's Anatomy" soundtrack. "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" is a 12-track, hour-long album filled with the breathy and mature vocals of Sky Lynn on guitar backed by the presence of Rando Skrasek on drums. Absent from the record are building rockers; instead, the artsy and soulful piece is mellow. The album starts off with "Another Day," a song that sounds as though it is a cousin of "Downtown" by Tegan and Sara, the Canadian singer-songwriter duo. Next up is "Try...Wait," an eight-minute song that speeds way up before it slows down. "As Yours Would" is a cool psychedelic experience, and "Fingers & Toes" is a definite highlight. Lynn sings about "wishing time away" in "Perfect World" to close the album. Overall, "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive" is melodic and dreamy with a definite indie feel. Levator began as Lynn's solo project when she played her first show in Seattle on March 17, 2003. The name "Levator" comes from a surgical instrument used to lift the depressed fragments of a fractured skull. In 2004, Lynn released her self-produced and self-recorded album "Midnight." Her first album consisted of 12 varied songs, including the popular rocker "Disease" and the piano pop of "White Hair," in which Lynn sang about her visible dark side. "Midnight" was recorded in her home studio, where she sang and played every instrument including the organ, drums, clarinet and guitar. She played multiple shows and tours in 2005 in a flexible fashion, accompanied by various musician friends who played with her on moog, baritone guitar, trumpet, bass and drums. Levator gained another member in 2006 when Skrasek joined. Lynn and Skrasek toured to promote "Jackson Hwy. Barnes Drive." The band became a four-piece in 2007 with the additions of Jeremy Mitchell on bass and keyboard, and Nate Henry on tenor sax and keyboard. Fans have compared Levator to Galaxie 500 and Mazzy Star. The band is also recommended to lovers of Sonic Youth, Elliott Smith, Neil Young and The Cure. Levator recently completed a month-long West Coast tour through Washington, Oregon, Nevada and California. October 4, 2007 - New Times - Glen Starkey Levator, a Seattle band featuring breathy lyrics and atmospheric melodies that are sweeter than a lullaby, plays the Frog and Peach on Sunday, October 7, for a free, 9 p.m. show. This is indie pop at its most lilting, with trance-inducing guitars and lush vocals-completely arresting, thoroughly fascinating. June 9, 2007 - CD World Eugene OR Come see Seattle's Levator, featuring one of the West Coast's hardest working musicians Sky Lynn. February 18-24, 2007 - Seattle Times - ‘The Week Ahead’ Levator is highly pleasant drone rock from the PJ Harvey-esque Sky Lynn. February 16, 2007 - The Seattle Times - Tom Scanlon Levator is a meditative (better term than "drone," don't you think?), lo-fi rock band led by PJ Harvey-sounding Sky Lynn. May 2, 2006 - KPSU.org - Austin Rich As I am prone to do from time to time, this week I had a special in-studio performance by Levator. Strickly speaking, Levator IS Sky Lynn (on guitar, vocals & effects), who, in the past, has been joined by various other friends and collaborators. This time she was joined by Rando Skrasek on drums, who provided an excellent back-beat for her carefully constructed and beautifully layered songs. Comparisons to Galaxie 500 or Mazzy Star are possible, but Sky manages to reach sonic textures that skirt the edge of Sonic Youth proportions, and has other, more sparse moments that conjur a singer-songwriter motif. But to really get a feel for what I'm talking about, you just gotta tune in. August 2, 2005 - UrgentCulture.com - Jaime Ohlsson Levator (pronounced elevator without the e) came next, with the gorgeous Sky on vocals, Robert Deeble on drums, and another guy on keyboards. Sky knows what she is doing, she really knows her instruments, and her vocals come out floaty and sensual. July 28, 2005 - Fruit Lamp Records Multi-instrumental whiz Sky Lynn makes beautifully detailed dream pop. July 27, 2005 - NadaMucho.com - Levator - Mistaking Telephone Poles for Grizzly Bears - Q & A with Sky Lynn - Matt Ashworth Levator is the solo project of Seattle multi-instrumentalist Sky Lynn. Her first album, Midnight, features 12 impeccably crafted songs on which she played every note herself. In addition to being extremely detailed (especially for a self-produced, self-recorded album), the songs on Midnight are diverse yet cohesive, ranging from building rockers (“Disease”) to gentle piano pop (“White Hair”) to soulful wails (“Hush”). In preview of Levator’s July 28 show at the Sunset Tavern in Ballard, I caught up with Sky. NM: You're a hugely talented multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter type. How's that work? SL: Ha! Well, thank you. I think it works for me because I love all types of music, so over the years I've kept adding instruments that allowed me to express myself in different styles, but because of that I suffer from sleep deprivation frequently, sometimes to the point of hallucinating. The other day I thought I saw a grizzly bear on the side of the road and when I shook my head in disbelief and looked again...it was a telephone pole! NM: Does this semi-hallucinogenic state contribute negatively or positively to your songwriting? Do you have any songs about grizzly bears and polar bears? SL: I think it has a positive influence, although it does cloud my memory so I have to record all my ideas while I'm working on a song. NM: I know of at least three projects you have going - Levator, Max Fischer and Blue Light Curtain. Give me a full list and rundown of which talents you contribute to each band. SL: I did everything on the Levator record, but I’ve playing with a drummer and a moog player and they will also be accompanying me on tour! In Max Fischer I play the drums very hard. With Blue Light Curtain I play drums and do some vocals. I also play bass and guitar and do some backing vocals for Robert Deeble, who will be joining me at the Sunset on July 28. NM: Do you have a "day job" on top of all that? How do you do it? SL: Yeah, I have a regular 8 to 5 day job. Once a month I'll catch up, which means I'll sleep for about 20 hours straight. Besides that, I try to take vitamins, eat healthy food, drink coffee, floss my teeth.. NM: You recently released your first solo album under the name Levator. Tell me about the name, then the album. SL: Levator has a few definitions. One of them being a surgical instrument for lifting the depressed fragments of a fractured skull and the second one being a muscle that raises a bodily part. It sparks a few different pictures in my mind that I find pretty entertaining. The album’s twelve tracks long and includes a little bit of everything. The songs range from acoustic guitar based tracks, to multi-layered distorted guitars, to piano/organ based songs. It took me 12 months from start (buying a computer/software) to finish (the CD release party). NM: The songs on Midnight seem very detailed and carefully crafted, which isn't always the case with this sort of "DIY" type of project. How do you recreate this in a live setting? SL: Thank you! I totally take that as a compliment. I have built a very large pedal board and carefully selected certain pedals over the years that allow me to not only create a wide range of tones, but also to create live loops of guitar and voice. So I sing all my vocal harmonies live and can play off my guitar with other guitar textures or even other instruments. NM: What's your favorite song on the record, and why? SL: Oooh, that's a hard question. I'm going to go with Mill Creek because I have very fond memories of where I wrote that song and also of recording it. I wrote it years ago on my favorite little nylon stringed guitar. I was on my way to the ocean only taking the back roads. It was gray and misty, passing through very small towns on narrow lanes. And then in the studio I was able to produce an idea I've had stored in my head for quite some time. I took a section of the song and recorded the chords string by string with an ebow. I wanted a symphonic sound with the guitar but when combined actually only playing a chord. I then separated the tracks of recorded strings, three on the right and three on the left and continued to pan them back and forth throughout the phrase. NM: I've heard people compare your stuff to both Cat Power and PJ Harvey. Were they influences? Who else has had a big impact on what you do? SL: That's funny. I get that a lot and can see why. But honestly, I just started listening to them in the last year or two. I guess they influence me as much as anything else I hear. A big impact on what I do? I'd have to say it started with records I pulled off of my parents' shelves: The Beatles, Neil Young, The Doors, Led Zeppelin. From there it moved to The Cure and Nirvana. And now, I suffer from a disease that requires me to buy new albums every weekend. Note: Levator play the Sunset Tavern July 28 with Robert Deeble (CD Release), Transistor Heart, and DJ Lisa Wood. December 16, 2004 - The Stranger - Sean Nelson LEVATOR,MINI-LIFE, RED MARTIAN, 1985, GUESTS (Rendezvous) Levator is Sky Lynn, an almost offensively talented multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter, whose self-produced debut CD, Midnight, will be released tonight at this show. The music on the record is beautifully detailed, veering from dreamy girl pop to heavier, more grown-up rock tones, all marked by distinguished musicianship (Lynn sings and plays every note on every song) and adventorous handmade production. And as if making a record and playing a show weren't enough, Lynn has shot and edited video presentations for each of the seven solo performers on the bill tonight. So here's one CD-release party that might actually become one. June 17, 2004 - The Stranger - Sean Nelson Sunday 6/20 THE CHARMING SNAKES, MISTER METAPHOR, WAVES, LEVATOR (Sunset) Levator is a one-woman project founded on the multi-instrumental skills of one Sky Lynn. The recordings are gently lo-fi, with more chops than your average four-tracker even dreams of. Her voice recalls Alison Statton from Young Marble Giants, if a bit more expressive. The songs, meanwhile, take their own marching orders, moving between rock and folk, gentle and strong, with pleasing dexterity. The live Levator is a question mark, but if the assembled band is anything like the recordings, you’re in for a treat. June 2004 - NadaMucho.com - Sonja Oliver Sunday, June 20th NadaMucho.com Hangover Helper- Levator/Waves/Mister Metaphor/Charming Snakes - Sunset Tavern. Because what goes better on a sweet Sunday afternoon in Ballard than high-quality indie art-rock?

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