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Black Heart Procession performs "Not Just Words"

The Black Heart Procession’s music is often described as bleak, yet still beautiful. Not unlike Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds or Tindersticks, the Black Heart Procession provides a soundtrack for desperate times filled with isolation and heartache. Its chilling sound is made all the more compelling with the incorporation of piano, violin and musical saw into the more traditional lineup of guitar, bass and drums. Formed in San Diego in 1997, the band came out of the ashes of the criminally overlooked Three Mile Pilot. After signing to Cargo Records for their first recording, the band moved to the influential Touch and Go label where they began to receive a wide variety of critical acclaim. Two years ago, with the release of Amore Del Tropico, the band began to delve into lounge music and traditional blues, which widened their pallette, as well as their audience. Scaling back a bit after that successful experiment, 2006’s The Spell (Touch and Go) is a torrid song cycle filled with lyrical meditations of loneliness and despair. With slow-moving rhythms, delicate instrumentation and deeply honest and moving baritone vocals, The Spell may well be the Black Heart Procession’s second consecutive masterpiece. Also performing are the Devices and the Castanets.

friday, august 4. Doors, 9pm. Mohawk Place 47 E. Mohawk St (855-3931) www.mohawkplace.com. $12.