Rev Ezra – “Strange winds”
-There’s a mysterious energy to this track that immediately makes it stand you. Yet, at the same time, it somehow feels familiar and enjoyable. It’s not the kind of mysterious that makes your skin crawl; it’s more like opening a sense of curiosity. Some of the chord work reminds me a bit of a musical. The Americana (i.e. country and folk with dashes of many other things) composition style here feels delightfully grounded while the atmospheric parts make it feel whimsical. The combination is truly unique and we’re happy to support it here.
Paul Cook and the Chronicles – “Chin up”
-The folk energy of this track feels a bit like a Greenwich Village mid-60s style. The easy going guitar works really well with the vocal harmonies on this one. The thing is there are a lot of people who try to make a sound that can hang with Simon and Garfunkel (etc.) but so few are able to actually pull it off without it sounding derivative. Paul Cook and the Chronicles actually cultivate some new ground with this track while paying homage to classics like another Paul… by the name of McCartney. This is an absolute gem of a song for folk revival fans.
Dustbowl Collective – “Blue”
-I like the adjective “unhurried.” It’s a worried that is characterized by what it isn’t rather than what it is. This song, “Blue” by the Dustbowl Collective is “unhurried.” It could be a lot of other things, too. It’s sweet. It’s endearing. It’s charming. It’s “easy on the ears.” It’s romantic and beautiful and flows nicely from phrase to phrase. But to me the most important part of this song is that it’s unhurried; it’s a song that takes its time in expressing love. It’s not a metaphor because it’s an actual song with all of those characteristics. But maybe it’s also a metaphor about how love is steady… and unhurried.
