Zoo Animal

Based in Minneapolis, Zoo Animal has sometimes been identified as a Christian band, but you're not going to get vapid Songs 4 Worship fare or the sort of thing that gets featured at a Cornerstone festival from this act. Instead, Holly Newsom's plaintive vocals and the group's introspective, minimalist pop...

By Tom Murphy

January 10, 2011

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Based in Minneapolis, Zoo Animal has sometimes been identified as a Christian band, but you're not going to get vapid Songs 4 Worship fare or the sort of thing that gets featured at a Cornerstone festival from this act. Instead, Holly Newsom's plaintive vocals and the group's introspective, minimalist pop are elemental rather than contrived. Touring in support of its eponymously titled second full-length, Zoo Animal has a warm and vulnerable sound that makes great use of shimmering low tones to create an atmosphere of dramatic tension. You can hear the influence of the Microphones' subtle sound experiments in there somewhere, and also the touch of renowned Minneapolis producer Tom Herbers, who captures the output of a band that weaves between streamlined songwriting and raw, barely held-in-check emotions.

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Tom Murphy is a writer, visual artist and musician from Aurora, Colorado. He was a prolific music writer for Westword and a documenter of the Denver music scene.

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Twitter: @simianthinker