Art Rock, that’s a pretty broad term. And yet, when describing Providence, Rhode Island’s Roz & The Rice Cakes, the term Art Rock fits squarely in the center of any definition that attempts to describe this band’s sound. But under the stuttering time-changes, the crescendos and the complex arrangements, at the heart of these songs, there’s a simple pop quality that roots the band somewhere down a back alley where Fleetwood Mac and Henry Cow mingle with Bettie Serveert and Gwen Stefani. Roz & The Rice Cakes is equal parts experimental and catchy, energetic and bookish, daring and sugarcoated.
This new double A-side (Close Encounter/The Conversation) sees the band’s further evolution as they embrace additional electronic and percussive elements, while maintaining their highly original art pop sound.
Since 2008 the group has been touring the US non-stop, either headlining or supporting such artists as Passion Pit, Andrew WK, The Joy Formidable, OK GO and Tera Melos. They have played such national stages as the Newport Folk Festival.