What is Casio-love music? I'm not sure I can answer the question, but the phrase comes to mind when I listen to harm. Made up of well-known local musicians Cindy Yogmas, Andrew Beckerman and Kyle Bittinger, harm began in 1997 while all were students at the University of Pittsburgh, prompted by Beckerman receiving a Casio keyboard from his grandmother for Christmas.
After three releases (including a double-cassette release!), many other bands and a recent tour, the group's new self-released EP, The Blue Globes, finally came to my ears. If the sheer number of Casio keyboards used on this record -- a total of 18 -- does not win you over, consider the fact that harm could be the love child of a bizarre triangle between The Flaming Lips, Spoon and Postal Service.
After several listens, those 18 keyboards' warm sounds, the simple acoustic guitar and Beckerman's vocals draw you in to the harm world, and leave you wondering: Where is that double-cassette release, along with a cassette deck to play it in? harm's music is happy, yet still features deep and carefully chosen lyrics -- no fillers. The dense sounds these three generate throughout the album are so familiar they make you feel like a child again, though the thoughtful vocals won't let you feel childish. harm will do you no harm, trust me.
(If you would like to see the keyboards used on the album, visit www.casiocore.freeservers.com/index2.html.)
