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Testa Rosa IV

by Testa Rosa

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  • Full Digital Discography Full Digital Discography

    Get all 7 Testa Rosa releases available on Bandcamp and save 25%.

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of Testa Rosa IV, Testa Rosa III, Never Marry a Railroad Man, Testa Rosa II, Testa Rosa I, The L.R. Doty (Single), and Songs For Melting Snow. , and , .

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1.
When you see her place you would have to squint (or you’d never guess) just to picture it’s former grace Sunshine dappled grey ivy trellises somehow seem to say, "With the boys all gone no one paints" With troubles of their own they all vanished then, their five cars on the lawn would escape But when it was treeless, Model-As every now and then would come down the way throwing biscuits to her pets She was the only one with a velvet cape, Omega 321 on her bed Tin enameled wares with a blackened rim sometimes green or red on her window ledge shuttered You can’t ask Alice anything anymore but I won’t forget how she stood there at her door
2.
(Not Saying What You) Really Mean I can see it on your face as you look away And there’s something in your voice that your words don’t say Oh what are you thinking about? What are you leaving out? You know that you can tell me anything But the way you leave me guessing is troubling No it’s not like you Oh am I getting through? You know you’re not saying what you really mean You know you’re not saying what you really mean You know you’re not saying what you really mean I try to get inside of your worried mind And I understand the truth isn’t always kind But I have my doubts Won’t you let it out? You know you’re not saying what you really mean You know you’re not saying what you really mean You know you’re not saying what you really mean Or maybe I don’t want to know. Because I can feel you letting go. Even if you’re gonna tell me no. I’d rather hear it from you. You know you’re not saying what you really mean And I can never tell you what you really mean to me You know you’re not saying what you really mean
3.
High Horse 06:23
When I get down from my high horse Then lay me down, put flowers around Play a mournful sound you think I'd know Word gets around in this lonely town That I'd rather drown than than show my cards But you showed be your hand, bet your money your land No one can stand your game of love So I must fold, love Here today gone tomorrow, gone. When I get down from my high horse I'll sink like a stone, entirely alone Ashes and bone into the ground When I get down, I'll be coming round Weathered and brown form my high horse You'll give me your hand when I can hardly stand According to plan I'll take it all By now you must know, all. Here today, gone tomorrow, gone When I get down, when I get down When I get down from my high horse Then lay me down, put flowers around Play a mournful sound you think I'd know
4.
If there was a way we could change things like the summer’s end With actions and Strange Magic Waiting for weekends and babysitting bread We were the captains of our shit But oh we were oblivious To what it really meant to us Now we say it when we need to “Play it as it lays” – it was our way Not an adolescent notion You know where I stand from far away Won't you stay another night or two Won't you stay another night or two Won't you stay another night or forever Fade away, rearranging what we did instead We took the long way to reach it Bumpo, TwoTone, Coronado, Storm And Deaf Ear and Metamorphosis But oh they were oblivious To what it really meant to us Now we say it when we need to “Play it as it lays” – it was our way Not an adolescent notion You know where I stand from far away Won't you stay another night or two Won't you stay another night or two Won't you stay another night or forever Stay
5.
Herring Gull 06:26
There were three maybe four silver needle pines Towering on the shore counting the time Over the wide thermocline Worry and wait she would, staring all the while Iron and weathered wood horizon line Silvery light, sliver eyes Til one night she would stir the ashes grey Turning to winged bird then fly away Into the night she would climb She was a herring gull With her wings open wide she could weave and wave Over a monumental dynamic ray Au Train Bay, Beta Grise Seeing in the water below in the undertow Something in the white water changing the flow Superior agate, meridian magnet She was a herring gull, up in her lift and drag She was a herring gull, up in her lift and drag Ulna and humerus, forelimb and radius
6.
7W 04:38
In 7W I remember Making myself someone else for you until November Saying too much, failing my crush Oh how I wish I hit the pause before I let it go In 7W the air was sterile  Watching pen and paper fall to my peril  Apricot cologne, one call on our one phone Oh how I wish I hit the pause before I let it go In 7W at St Aquinas  Someone said you would never go for a B minus Crumpled in your hand, under the bandstand Oh how I wish I hit the pause before I let it go
7.
All aboard the Milwaukee Road Blinding as the sun is shining on the snow Outside the bright hits your soul Reaffirming something you already know Trees like a strobe-light flashing in your eyes Could be the moment when you realize A great time to go back And would you believe it you don't need to pack A great time to go back is now Winding down the valley wide The only place where you can see the other side Climbing up to the sunny sky And through a frosted window will materialize Trees like a strobe-light flashing in your eyes Could be the moment when you realize A great time to go back And would you believe it you don't need to pack A great time to go back is now
8.
Why don't you see what's out there Annabelle? Why don't you see what's out there in the field? Some ruby red roses like a crown for your hair Why don't you go and get some for yourself? Why don't you see what's out there MaryAnn? Why don't you see what's out there in the barn? Some warm dark horse hair you can add to your coat Why don't you go and get some for yourself? Why don't you see what's out there Valerie? Why don't you see what's out there in the wood? Some deep green emeralds you can wear around your neck Why don't you go and get some for yourself? There’s always so much better for you And pretty somethings for when you are blue Why don't you see what's out there Eloise? Why don't you see what's out there in the lake? Some rings of silver that will shine from your ears Why don't you go and get some for yourself? There’s always so much better for you And pretty somethings for when you are blue Why don't you see what's out there Bethany? Why don't you see what's out there in the snow? Some sparkling diamonds you can wear on your skin Why don't you go and get some for yourself? Get some for yourself
9.
Sirius A 05:03
Love you are one bright chemical Floating above the earth below When I look up you're a silver cup and I know I'm going home Like gold dust you woke me up Glowing a light I'd never know Holding an arrow and a bow We were serious under Sirius a long long time ago Like gold dust you woke me up in your own time Like stardust and phosphorous, angel of mine The brightest star in the sky You're a meteor getting nearer And how I love you so Like gold dust you woke me up in your own time Like stardust and phosphorous angel of mine The brightest star in the sky

about

A musical view-master of life in the storied midwest.

"Continuing a steady every-four-years album streak, Testa Rosa’s fourth full-length racks up more career highlights for one of Milwaukee’s most consistent rock bands. There’s certainly a running theme of looking back, world-weariness but without pessimism; the singing and playing are more vigorous than ever, though. The shimmery jangle-pop of “Alice Anything” and “Play It As It Lays” hearken back to early-’90s R.E.M., owing in part to Shane Hochstetler’s dense, punchy production. Betty Blexrud-Strigens’ ghostly harmonies on “Herring Gull” work amazingly well over the band’s insistent rhythm section, while “7w” and “Great Time To Go Back” take us through alternately sad and sunny nostalgic dreampop. And the album’s centerpiece, “High Horse,” may be the grandest piece of music thus far in the Testa Rosa catalog."

Milwaukee Record

"Frontwoman Betty Blexrud-Strigens and the band have made some of the most overtly wistful songs of their discography to open their fourth full-length album. The pop-rock drive of "Alice Anything" and "(Not Saying What You) Really Mean" illustrate a nice new shade for Testa Rosa, but the band's strong suit remains its way with grandeur, gorgeously realized here with the ominous lullaby swing of "Nature Kills Maidens," and on the 6½-minute "High Horse," which swells from simple piano and Blexrud-Strigens' yearning voice to bold, teary-eyed, full-band splendor."

Piet Levy - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/music/2019/11/29/6-milwaukee-albums-you-have-hear-december-klassik-lresorts-testa-rosa-bravo-mortgage-freeman/4221950002/

"Celebrating the release of their fourth album, IV, Testa Rosa stands tall as far as truth-in-advertising goes. When it comes to catchy, haunted pop songs, they are in a league of their own. Betty Blexrud-Strigens would never call herself a star, but judge for yourself. Her low-key stage charm fits perfectly with an unassuming band who are among the best in town."

Shepherd Express

shepherdexpress.com/music/this-week/twim-nov-28-2019/

"Testa Rosa excels at creating a sound that subtly defies categorization yet remains instantly familiar." - Matt Wild - Milwaukee Record

milwaukeerecord.com/music/exclusive-listen-to-testa-rosas-shapeshifting-third-album-iii/

"If you have fond memories of the music of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, the “golden age of studio recording,” you will find much to like in the music of Testa Rosa. However, fans of contemporary alternative rock should also find themselves enthralled by the rich textures of the band’s sound..." - Bill Lamb - Wisconsin Gazette

www.wisconsingazette.com/music/3rd-time-charms-again-for-testa-rosa.html

"The Milwaukee quintet led by Betty Blexrud-Strigens and seconded by her husband Damian continues to make convincing proof(s) that indie-pop and indie-rock songs can blossom most beautifully when allowed to blossom most thoughtfully." - Jon Gilbertson - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

www.jsonline.com/entertainment/musicandnightlife/new-albums-in-stores-this-week-b99562098z1-323168411.html

"unlike most of what passes for pop music these days, this is music with a sophisticated sound that has more in common with Steely Dan, Boz Scaggs, and Elton John's early work -- and with the vaunted 4AD sound of the 80s and 90s that made albums by the Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil, and Lush so listenable -- than any of the current chart-toppers featuring one-name artists hiding behind a homogenized army of faceless hit producers." - The One True Dead Angel

"Testa Rosa is an absolute treasure with not one song that lacks in quality or artistic vision." - ObscureSound.com

credits

released November 29, 2019

Recorded by Shane Hochstetler at Howl Street Studios.

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Testa Rosa Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Ever glance down at the speedometer and realize those cherries in the rear view really are for you? How could they know that heart-crushing pop music was to blame. Testa Rosa writes songs to make you remember love and forget the speed limit.

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