Tasseomancy is a Canadian
experimental
An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when a ...
band from
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
formed by twin sisters Sari and Romy Lightman.
Biography
Born in c. 1985 and raised in Toronto,
the Lightman twins moved to Halifax to attend university. There the sisters began performing under the moniker Ghost Bees that they described as "experimental acoustic folk".
The duo released their debut EP ''Tasseomancy'' on April 8, 2008, via Youth Club Records as Ghost Bees. The pair toured around North America in support of the record.
As the Ghost Bees project developed, new sounds and influences not heard on the original EP began to be incorporated, prompting the change to Tasseomancy in 2010.
[Ghost Bees Change Name to Tasseomancy, Release Timber Timbre-produced Single]
'' Exclaim!'', September 27, 2010 Sari Lightman explained that "we wanted to have a link to our previous band and not dismiss it entirely. It’s a progression and we wanted to keep something from it".
The sound moved away from acoustic folk to a more experimental and art pop oriented direction, and included flute and steel pan instruments. They released the 7" single Health Hands b/w The Darkness of Things on the
Diamond Rings' boutique label Hype Lighter in 2010.
They began performing in friend
Katie Stelmanis
Kaitlin "Katie" Austra Stelmanis ( lv, Keitlīna "Keitija" Austra Štēlmane, born 1985) is a Toronto-based Latvian Canadian musician, who has performed and recorded both as a solo artist and with the bands Galaxy and Austra. Stelmanis identifies ...
' electronic outfit
Austra
Austra is an island on the border between Trøndelag and Nordland counties in Norway. The island is shared between the municipalities of Bindal, Leka, and Nærøysund
Nærøysund is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is locat ...
as touring backing singers in the same year.
["Concert preview: Austra thrives on touring"](_blank)
'' Edmonton Journal'', October 6, 2013.
The duo recorded their debut full-length ''Ulalume'' under the new name that year. The title of the album was taken from an
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...
poem.
It was released on
Out of this Spark/Turf Records in August 2011. When performing live, the duo were supported by
Maya Postepski (drums /keyboards).
The band released a five track Tasseotape cassette in 2013. In 2015 the duo released a second album, ''Palm Wine Revisited'', on Toronto DIY label Healing Power Records, and toured the US with
Braids
A braid (also referred to as a plait) is a complex structure or pattern formed by interlacing two or more strands of flexible material such as textile yarns, wire, or hair.
The simplest and most common version is a flat, solid, three-strande ...
. They were joined by Johnny Spence (keyboards) and Evan Cartwright (percussion).
In November 2016 they released the 11 track album ''Do Easy'', on label
Bella Union
Bella Union is a British independent record label founded in 1997 by Simon Raymonde and Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins. It is now run solely by Raymonde.
History
After releasing records with 4AD for a large part of their career, Cocteau Twin ...
in Europe, run by Simon Raymonde of the Cocteau Twins, and on
Hand Drawn Dracula in Canada. The album featured bandmates Johnny Spence and Evan Cartwright, as well as Brodie West (alto-sax), Ryan Driver (flute) Simone Schmidt and Alex Cowan (Blue Hawaii). ''Do Easy'' was inspired by the domestic manifesto of
William S. Burroughs
William Seward Burroughs II (; February 5, 1914 – August 2, 1997) was an American writer and visual artist, widely considered a primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major postmodern author who influenced popular cultur ...
''The Discipline of D.E''.According to band member Romy Lightman, "Burroughs's doctrine on finding 'the easy way' struck me as something rare and I hung onto it like a piece of protection. Later on, I discovered that
Genesis P-Orridge believed this text to be one of the greatest magic techniques for retraining the mind". ''Do Easy'' was met with critical acclaim from outlets such as Uncut, VICE i-d,
noisey,
The Line of Best Fit
''The Line of Best Fit'' is an independent online magazine based in London, concentrating on new music.
It publishes independent music reviews, features, interview, and media. Founded by Richard Thane in February 2007 and currently edited by P ...
, MONOCLE, and The Guardian.
''Do Easy''
's music videos were directed by video artist Charles Linden Ercoli, as well as the self directed "Missoula" video. The band toured Japan with
Lydia Ainsworth, North America and Europe with
Andy Shauf in 2017. They are currently working on a new album.
Romy Lightman's latest musical project, 'Lightman Jarvis Ecstatic Band' is a collaboration with musician
Yves Jarvis
Yves Jarvis is the stage name of Jean-Sébastien Yves Audet, . The duo's debut album is called ''Banned'', and it's set to arrive on June 25, 2021 via
Flemish Eye
The eye splice is a method of creating a permanent loop (an " eye") in the end of a rope by means of rope splicing.
The Flemish eye is a type of circular loop at the end of a thread. There are several techniques of creating the eye with its k ...
/
ANTI-.
Name
The cover of the ''Tasseomancy'' EP featured a photograph of the sisters' great-great grandmother Clara Chernos, a
Russian Jewish tea-leaf reader who moved to Canada in the 19th century during the
Russian pogroms. When renaming the band in 2010, the sisters opted for the title of their debut EP, noting "We’re into tea and tea-making, our great great grandmother was a tea leaf reader and she passed it on to the rest of our family".
Discography
Albums
* ''Ulalume'' (Out of This Spark / Turf, 2011)
* ''Palm Wine Revisited'' (2015)
* ''Do Easy'' (2016)
Singles
* "Healthy Hands" (2011)
* "Braid. Wind Is Coming" (2013)
*"Missoula" (2016)
*"Do Easy" (2016)
*"29 Palms" (2016)
As Ghost Bees
* ''Tasseomancy'' (2008)
References
External links
*
Soundcheck #1: Ghost Bees(April 2008,
National Post
The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...
)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tasseomancy
Musical groups with year of establishment missing
Musical groups from Halifax, Nova Scotia
Canadian folk rock groups
All-female bands
Twin musical duos
Jewish musical groups
Canadian musical duos
Musical groups from Toronto
Canadian indie folk groups
Jewish rock groups
Jewish folk singers
Canadian twins