Since releasing their debut album, Wish And Wait, on the independent label Eyeball records in the spring of 2003, the Washington D.C.-based band Del Cielo has received critical acclaim all over. Not just in their music, but in their positive ethics as a band. With their new full length album, Us Vs. Them, released on Lovitt Records, Del Cielo are just getting started. They have been together for about three years, and haven’t slowed down since their first show. On top of that, they make solid, sincere, heart-felt indie rock music, brought together by singer/guitarist Andrea Lisi’s songwriting, and backed up by the pounding and precise rhythm section of bassist/vocalist Basla Andolsun and drummer Katy Otto.

On Us Vs. Them, Del Cielo show a great leap in their songwriting abilities. Since Wish And Wait, Del Cielo have truly settled into their own distinct sound, writing more complex tunes that show growth in their chemistry as musicians.

The songs on Us Vs. Them take more interesting twists and turns in their arrangements, as the songs on Wish And Wait were basically band accompaniments to songs that Lisi wrote before the conception of the band.

Us Vs. Them sounds more like they wrote the songs together, and the arrangement of the songs goes far beyond the standard verse chorus, verse chorus formula. You can hear serious influence from bands such as Sleater-Kinney and other D.C.-based acts in Del Cielo’s music. If you listen closely, you can even hear the influence of hardcore bands such as Majority Rule, especially in Otto’s drumbeats.

Andolsun also contributes backing vocals on several tracks, which she didn’t do on Wish And Wait. This adds interesting and unique, melodious lines, fleshing out Del Cielo’s sound.

Del Cielo rock out on tunes like: “Too Scared,” “Three More,” “Us Vs. Them,” and “My Suzanne.” They tone it down on the summer-fun sounding tracks, “Joe Goth,” and “Richmond.” And they touch you deeply with the sincerity of tracks like: “Cry Your Eyes Out,” and “You Win.”

While each track has its own feel to it, the common themes that pop up in the lyrics of each song ties the album together.

The lyrics in Us Vs, Them are frighteningly honest, and probably have the ability to make the subject of every song squirm in his/her seat upon reading the lyrics. Lyrics touch on everything from relationships gone wrong, to the divide between people involved in the independent music scene and those who aren’t. The band seems to especially focus on that topic, making it the inspiration for the title track.

Lisi also sings about old boyfriends, feeling looked down upon in the punk music scene, and even particular cities she doesn’t like. Reading through the lyrics of this album is a journey into the heart of the band, and proof that Del Cielo are one of the most sincere bands in all of music today.

Beyond the music they make, Del Cielo practice incredible, positive ethics both as a band and in each member’s personal lives. Otto works for the Empower Program, a D.C. based non-profit organization that works toward ending violence, bullying and exclusion in adolescent settings.

Andolsun is an animal rights activist, and Lisi volunteers at the Empower Program as well. As a band, they play several benefit shows all over the east coast, and the majority of the D.C. shows played are benefits for organizations such as Rock For Choice, or Take Back The Night rallies (marches creating awareness about, and bringing an end to sexual assault).

Del Cielo use being a band as a platform on which to work toward positive social change, and to maintain women’s rights. There aren’t very many bands out there today who are more socially conscious, positive, or who make better music than Del Cielo.