Thin Cities (formerly Braille)

In 1972, Italian author Italo Calvino re-imagined conversations between an energetic Marco Polo and an aging Kublai Khan, in which the two discuss the idea of how perspective can interject new hope and understanding into a corrupt world. The book was written in a series of poetic entries, and was titled Invisible Cities (italics).



In 2006, a small band from Illinois was served a cease and desist order, ending a five year run with name Braille. This news came after 3 independently booked U.S. tours, their first nationally distributed full length record and hundreds of shows, many with bands that held their admiration, like Pedro the Lion, Elliott and Denali. Rather than taking this situation as a tragedy, the band decided to take a more optimistic perspective and look at this as a chance to begin a new chapter in the progression of their music.



To champion this, the name Thin Cities was adopted from one of Calvinos entries and their orchestration grew beyond their three-piece format of bass, drums and guitar to include extensive layers and textures. The songwriting process would now include string arrangements and programmed loops, while still heavily under the influence of artists like Sunny Day Real Estate, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sigur Ros and Steve Reich.



"Fourteen" Music Video - Directed by Kevin Parrish, Edited by Eric Mortensen