The lines within music are blurring more and more, blurring between folk and indie, between hip-hop and electro. It’s all a good thing. It makes for new recipes of music, something our ears get to bite into that’s different from before.
There’s also the blur of what actually constitutes a band. Can one person be called a band without causing the vision of a guy wrapped up in various instruments, along with symbols tied between his legs? It’s nothing new to have one person in the band take responsibility for all the songwriting and then tell all his mates what to do when they get in the studio. But more and more I’m starting to see soloists using a band name as opposed to using their own. No big woop. Just an observation.
Such is the case of Alex Brown Church, or Sea Wolf, as it says on the nice, brown paperbag-like cover of his new EP, Get To The River Before It Runs Too Low. Imagery of a lone chair, reflected with faceted colors gives you a bit of glimpse of what’s inside; delicate songs sprinkled with cello, violin, with a folk-ish touch, blended together with catchy, indie guitars.
As if reading from his journal, “I Made a Resolution” is one’s struggle to keep from having a pity party, even in the wake of family and love troubles, to shake free of the penchant for sad songs. Those violins sing with optimism, and the drums pound with perseverance. We will all make it to smile another day.
“You’re a Wolf” is a classic indie ditty, crafted with subtle hooks, putting a spotlight on Church’s chardonnay rich vocals, complemented with a delicate balance of plum and cherry strings. “Ses Moments” is a perfect road trip song, bouncing with fresh air and billowing, puffy cloud skies.
Vintage keyboards, the kind you would expect to discover at an abandoned theater, is the heartbeat of “I Don’t Know if I’ll Be Back This Time,” a melancholy, heartbreak of a song, “Sometimes I wish that it were cold/I had someone warm to hold/To watch the clouds move through the skies/To keep my feelings occupied…my apartment feels so small/When I come home no one’s called.” You just want to give the guy a big hug.
You may get a chance to if you are so inclined, as he plays, with a band actually, this Tuesday, May 22 with Dodos, Rachael Pollard, The Beebs, and Golden Brown at Larimer Lounge.
