2 + 2 = folk

True to their name, Maps and Atlases have led the way to a combination of the mind-bending melodic complexity of math rock and the utilitarian accessibility of folk.

This Chicago quartet's debut record label EP, 2007's Trees, Swallows, Houses, burned a new pathway through the brains of many music listeners with tracks like "Every Place Is a House," which eschews the hackneyed verse, chorus, verse construction of pop for something much more open-ended. The band's approach to song structure seems to be based on absolute freedom and formal perfection.

On each of four EPs, Maps and Atlases buries straightforward folk-pop compositions in a dense electron cloud of guitarists Dave Davison and Erin Elders' fret board tapping, Chris Hainey's thunderous drumming and Shiraz Dada's syncopated bass lines, a layered sound that speaks to a laborious, perfectionist approach to songwriting.

Dada tells The Prague Post that Maps and Atlases' finished songs are often "very different from the original idea. We'll deconstruct and reconstruct until the song feels right," he says.

Bands such as Don Caballero have previously combined melodic instrumental complexity and guitar showmanship with pop, but Maps and Atlases goes a step further, adding intelligent, accessible lyrics sung in Davison's nasal yet inviting voice. The band has said that their initial modus operandi was to combine complexity and musicianship with a songwriting style that was as inviting as possible. But after playing together for five years, the band still doesn't have a formula for creating new material. As Dada says, "We are always experimenting."

Maps and Atlases' experimentation has been evident in their progression from tight-laced, chaotic rock on Trees, Swallows, Houses to a more purely conceived folk on You and Me and the Mountain, released in 2008. The band's songwriting has further expanded, or perhaps settled down, on 2010's Perch Patchwork, their first full-length album and their most traditionally accessible recording to date.

Much of the material on Perch Patchwork maintains the band's early complex guitar riffing, but often as mere overdubs and harmonies rather than as the core element of each piece. "Solid Ground" is a straight-ahead folk number with a few idiosyncratic guitar fills, while "Pigeon" has a shade of African rhythms and harmonies.

"Sometimes, especially on Perch Patchwork, Dave has a vocal melody and a basic framework laid out, and we add parts to it and layer over it until it becomes a finished product," Dada says.

Maps and Atlases are based in Chicago, a rich musical home, though Dada is the only band member native to the city. The rest of the group converged from Hawaii, Texas and Philadelphia to attend Columbia College Chicago, where they met and began playing together. Chicago has more than its fair share of musical talent, playing host to groups as varied as Wilco and Andrew Bird (not to mention Chicago), and Dada says living in the Windy City has been a blessing for the band.

"Chicago is less competitive than some other cities, so instead of breeding a scene of negativity, there's an overwhelming sense of positivity and support, and that's very fun to be a part of. As much as we love to travel and be in Europe, it's always satisfying to come home and see friends, family, my cat and my neighborhood pub," he says.

Fortunately, Maps and Atlases will delay their return trip to their local pub to play what is sure to be a calculated, catchy set at Klub 007. The band has previously toured Europe, but this will be their Prague debut. According to Dada, crowds have responded to their sound differently in every country throughout the Continent.

"Some crowds ... are quiet and attentive; some are loud and rambunctious; some like to dance, and some like to stand and watch. Cities have their own standards of show-going appropriateness, and it's always fun to see what each new place might be like," he says. Hopefully, the crowd in Prague will be enthusiastic enough to convince Maps and Atlases to keep the city on their musical map.  

Stephan Delbos can be reached at
sdelbos@praguepost.com