Consisting of guitarist Sean Geisthardt and drummer Dan Barnett, the pair has just completed a four-track EP titled Invisible People that draws on the dreamy, somber electro-post-rock of Radiohead and Caribou (circa Andorra), as well as West Coast experimental electronic acts like Jogger and Nosaj Thing.
Geisthardt and Barnett first began collaborating about a year ago as members of Tulip Wars, a five-piece band with a straightforward take on indie and surf-rock traditions. After six months of successfully gigging around town, the band went on hiatus when lead singer Tara Davis moved to Panama, a break that gave Goer an opportunity to explore some new ideas. Their sound evolved with very little discussion, flowing naturally from their shared influences. "We kind of jumped right into it," Geisthardt explains, "just sending tracks back and forth."
Sonically, Invisible People lands somewhere between the Tulip Wars' indie sensibility and Tamed Animals, Barnett's solo project, whose output ranges from richly textured ambient music to bursts of dystopian house.
While there are only two members, Goer sounds like a much larger band, owing to the methodology of e-mailing tracks back and forth, building layers upon layers of guitar, drums, percussion and synthesizers. Even though the technique produced a cohesive EP, the act might need some more time before returning to local stages. They're still working on the best format for two guys to play multiple parts simultaneously.
"The thing is just figuring out how to do it live with a track and not make it be stale and stagnant," says Barnett. "We might play with the vocals recorded on a track, which is weird."
"If it's coming out of the speakers and we made it, it shouldn't really matter what we're doing, as long as we're doing something," Geisthardt interjects. "If there are live instruments, hopefully people will be interested to some degree."
It might be a challenge, but Geisthardt and Barnett are enjoying themselves enough that they'll keep Goer going while they figure out the recipe for live success. Tulip Wars could return to action later this spring, once Davis returns from Central America, and although they're excited to get back to their original project, even if the band does reunite, that won't spell the end of their new side project. Goer is here to stay.
Follow Backbeat on Twitter: @westword_music
