Genre: Indie
Hometown: Coram, NY

“Remember when pop was experimental? Remember when it had authentic and integrity? Remember when it was beautiful, when it spoke to you, moved you. Remember when it had the ability to shout from the rooftrees whilst simultaneously whispering in your ear? Remember when it wasn’t all dance routines and designer clothes? The Last Charge of The Light Horse do and The Sand Reckoner is the proof.” Dancing About Architecture, Dave Franklin

Last Charge of the Light Horse was formed in 2004 as a vehicle for songwriter Jean-Paul Vest’s off-beat tunes. The lineup of the group evolved in the early years before stabilizing for the past decade as a quartet, with Vest joined by drummer Shawn Murray, lead guitarist Bob Stander, and bassist Pemberton Roach. West-coast pals Jim Watts and Pam Aronoff have also become regular contributors on the group’s releases, with Watts also mixing and co-producing every Last Charge release since 2011’s Curve EP. To date, the group has released five albums and three EPs, gaining mention in several “Best of the Year” lists and heavy rotation on college radio, charting as high as #1 on stations in the U.S.

Never content to stay with one musical style for long, Vest’s musical restlessness stems from a life on the move. Born in Alabama to a boogie-woogie piano player and a French schoolteacher, by the time he was a sophomore in high school, Vest had lived in four different states, spent a year behind the iron curtain in Romania, and a summer exploring Europe on his own. High school in Texas was followed by college in the Bronx, which in turn gave way to a series of jobs ranging from church organist to forklift operator, and eventually to a career in publishing. Each stop brought new cultures, new cadences of speech, and new music to explore.

So it’s little wonder that his songs read like a collection of postcards. Snapshots of familiar places. Letters from dear friends and distant relatives. Some offer (as a friend once wrote), “wry, plain-spoken observations of the quiet joys and terrors of normal life,” while others are densely packed, like a book that you want to read slowly.

The guitar-bass-drums roots rock of the band’s early releases has increasingly mixed with a willingness to experiment with varied styles and arrangements, to the point where Stander’s scorching guitar solo at the end of “Spoken” sounds right at home next to the banjo and tablas on the 5/4-time admonition “The Bill Comes Due.” Those seeking a haunting clarinet solo or a bright trumpet fanfare need look no farther.

Octet, the band’s 7th release, was originally conceived as a solo, acoustic album. The 8-song suite was written in an unusual 4-day burst of creativity in late February of 2021. And while keen listeners may notice the unusual time signatures (7/4, 5/4, 11/8), the music is deeply rooted in the songwriting traditions of 60s and 70s rock, folk, and pop.

Photo by Dustin Finn