 "Photo: Courtesy of Chris Robley")
He's called the "Stephen King of indie-pop" by music critics, but that doesn't fully capture Chris Robley's technique or style.
Chris Robley & The Fear of Heights will play their layered pop Saturday at Cafe Coda.
Robley's latest album, "Movie Theatre Haiku," combines crafted instrumentals with strong storytelling to form complicated but still accessible music.
Each song is the story of a different character representing some facet of the album's theme. The album explores the psychological, emotional or physical distance between artist and observer, Robley said.
In "Premier," the character is a singer observing an audience at a performance. The singer is a bit resentful of how the casually the audience is treating the performance, Robley said.
"I think I have to relate in some way when I write, but I make sure it's not confessional or autobiographical in any way," he said.
The instrumentals are layered and dynamic. Songs such as "A Memory Lost at Sea" approach cacophony, but Robley never goes overboard.
Six band members will be touring, and even then some of the songs cannot be recreated as the sound on the album, he said.
Robley admits to becoming bored with his own work when recording and mixing. Spending too much time with one project can become tedious, so Robley adds layers and modifies others until the song gets him excited again. Even when the studio engineers were satisfied, Robley continued to work, he said.
"I don't want to put out something that bores me," Robley said.
The album's theme emerged about midway through its creation, he said. The songs he had were thematically consistent, so he wrote the rest of the album with that theme in mind.
In addition to consistency, Robley is careful not to say too much. The unresolved tense nature of his songs make the stories feel more real to him, Robley said.
"I don't know if people pay attention to lyrics as much as I do or some people do," he said.
He's not alone. Physics major and songwriter Don Ashby likes scientific jargon so much he wrote it into songs, he said. The words used in science have an unnoticed, artful quality.
"I try to use them out of context," Ashby said.
Songwriting methods vary wildly among artists, but at the same time draw on a shared tool set. Past experience and upbringing can provide inspiration.
Having been raised in a Christian household, Robley tends to use biblical imagery and metaphors, he said.
Chico State theater and math major Ryan Johnson, uses similar techniques.
Johnson looks to his own poetry writings, some a decade old, for source material, he said.
Stephen King is known for his dark novels and mastery of storytelling, and though Robley admits he is not as prolific as the famous author, his lyrics are downcast and heavy-hearted, he said. The songs are character studies which investigate a melancholic central theme.
"I just can't seem to write a happy song," Robley said.
His songs juxtapose dark, sometimes sad lyrics with pop construction and lively instrumentals.
The layers of horns, strings and percussion are catchy and the lyrics leave the listener uncertain enough to want more, he said.
Robley will share the stage with Chico artists Mumblefinger and Karen Joy Brown Trio at the all ages show.
Randy Davenport can be reached at rdavenport@theorion.com
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