[intro-text size=”25px”]Standing before black curtains and under red spotlights, Silencio took the stage at the Beachland Ballroom’s tavern on May 23rd and delivered a stunning two hour set that transported a receptive audience to the middle of their favorite David Lynch film.[/intro-text]

Formed by Kirk Salopek and David Jamison, former members of Mandrake Project, Silencio owes its creation to the works of film maker, David Lynch, his frequent musical composer, Angelo Badalamenti, and the haunting worlds they create. “The idea was floating around with us because we were both big Lynch fans,” Salopek explained after their set at the bar. “The whole time we were in Mandrake we were talking about doing this.” Singer, Dessa Poljak, captivated the Beachland audience with her portrayal of the classic femme fatale lounge singer. Performing the film’s title track to Blue Velvet she disappeared into Isabella Rossellini’s role and brought a hypnotized audience into Lynch’s subversive world. “That was the first Lynch film I saw,” Salopek recalled. “It impacted me in a big way and never left my brain.”

Any fan of Twin Peaks remembers that familiar musical score as well as of the characters. Silencio reproduces this on stage with amazing precision but are so much more than any cover band. “We’re huge fans of that music so it’s hard not for it to come out in some way,” Jamison answered, “But we don’t go for that dead ringer.” They are able to balance Badalamenti’s signature compositions while at the same time defining their own sonic identity. Interwoven between staggering cuts taken from Twin Peaks, Lost Highway, Wild at Heart, Blue Velvet and more, Silencio delivered their own numbers that were met with equal rounds of applause.

The band also includes Dennis Karl on keyboard, Lee Hintenlang, who brought the house down on saxophone, and Matt Booth on electric and upright bass. Their new album, She’s Bad, coming out in June, offers eighteen genre-defying tracks of original compositions. Silencio maintains their footing in the world of David Lynch with this release but present a more expansive vision that captures a wider scope from the world of noir with tracks like Surf Creep and Booth Shuffle which serve as a bang-on Tarantino homage. Tracks like Low Down Dirge, Black Umbrella, and the titular She’s Bad are examples of the magic the band can produce purely of their own accord.

I asked them what it was about Lynch’s films that first spoke to them. “It’s the whole package. It’s just so left of center that it draws you in.” Jamison remarked. “There’s something under the surface. Everybody is corrupt,” Salopek said of Lynch’s movies. “There’s a mystery in everything. The music [of Badalamenti] is just so cross-genre… he combines these things that are so disparate to one another.”

She’s Bad is available now for pre-order on the band’s website, http://www.delsilencio.net in addition to the band’s other material.