Over the Rhine - Ohio

Official album art, courtesy of Google Image search

Back when lights didn't make the music, it all sounded like this. Today, this particular breed of folk lounge music is nearly extinct.

Even though this band has been around since before I was born, and this album was released when I still in junior high, the music is priceless. The music features that familiar relatability that comes from writing about life and universal experiences that are sure to bring you back to a more familiar, comfortable part of your life, whether you are 16, 25, or 60. The voice of lead singer Karin Bergquist captures your ears right from the first note, and leaves you waiting patiently for more during the instrumental parts, featuring a factor of repeatability that I would comfortably accept as the endless backtrack of my life.

Birdmonster - From the Mountain to the Sea

Official album art, courtesy of Bandcamp

It's probably not a surprise to those that regularly read this blog that I am in love with folk music. If you were ever wondering why that is, Birdmonster is that reason.

In no other area of music can you find so many unique and multifaceted band as folk music. For me, folk music brings out the roots of sound, and captures a feeling that transcends the boundaries of music and lyrics, to carry an emotion from one heart to another. As cheesy as this may sound, Birdmonster does just that.

Sitting in a dimly lit room, this album brings me back to a time when music was performed round a fire in a back yard, or on the front porch on a humid afternoon, rather than on a portable metal stage put up in some arena or ballroom, backed by guitar amplifiers and sound mixers. Don't get me wrong, music should definitely be a shared experience, but this band reminds us all why we need house shows, unfinished basements, and acoustic guitars.

The Low Anthem - Oh My God, Charlie Darwin

Official album art

First off, I have to apologize for my absence this week. For the past two weeks, I have been either under a pile of work, or passed out from extreme sleep deprivation. This entry, in a way, comes directly out of that experience.

The desktop of my computer is covered with albums that I need to listen to, and I never seem to have time. This is one that has been on my desktop for a long time now. For past posts, it has been overlooked when time came to decide on an album. However, this week, the unique qualities of the music really stuck out in my lifestyle.

Under extreme sleep deprivation, sleep gets really hard for me, and even though I am tired, my mind won't let me fall asleep. This is when I turn to music, and find an amazing band such as The Low Anthem. This album always puts me in a trance state, in which my body feels asleep, but my mind stays lucid, and lost in the music. Even though I looked passed out, my mind heard every beautiful note of every song.

Artist Feature: Jen Miller

Photo courtesy of MySpace

Hey guys. I have to apologize again for completely running out of time this week. I am supposed to be doing homework, even as I type this, but I needed a quick fix of this girl, so I figured I might as well introduce her to all of you.

Jen is from my home town, and yet I am sad to say that I have never met her (Jen, if you read this--play shows!!!!). I have been following her on YouTube pretty much since she started her channel. Why you may ask: well, it's the voice. Even on Jen's old webcam videos, her voice sounds like pure jazz--sometimes I dream of her singing old Billie Holiday songs.

Another reason to love this music is that Jen writes songs about life. She writes down those small little feelings that others take for granted, and sings them to notes often picked out on the ukulele. All those little emotions show also show up in the corners of her mouth when she sings, and crack through her voice--all the more enhancing the experience of her beautiful music.

Roma di Luna - Casting the Bones

Official album art, courtesy of Google Image Search

I fall more and more in love with this band, the more I listen to them. Usually, I don't want to go too much into band history in these album reviews, but I think it's story time.

Roma di Luna was founded by a husband and wife duo, Alexei Casselle, a local Minneapolis rapper, and Channy Moon Casselle, a classically trained violinist. They started this band as a wedding gift to each other, and it quickly developed into a deep study of traditional folk music. They started out making money by busking on street corners, learning and playing dustbowl folk and gypsy songs.

Somewhere along the way, the magic started to happen. They started writing songs--mostly to each other. Their roots began to show through, with songs featuring both the traditional duende of gypsy folk music--the strong emotion portrayed by the singer, which makes gypsy music so strong and charismatic--as well as thematic elements noticeable in the music of Crescent Moon, Alexei's rapper moniker. They managed to fuse all of these elements into a unique style, with haunting vocals by Channey Moon, classical violin and folk guitar melodies, and sweet and subtle baselines to bring all of the music together.

Lauren O'Connell - The Shakes

Official album art, courtesy of Google Image Search

After the last post, I wanted to go back to something that is a little closer to my roots. Even though I have had this album for a while now, I want to take the time and review it for all of you, because this girl could use all of the exposure she can get.

Lauren O'Connell became one of my favorite artists almost instantaneously. As soon as I found a link to her YouTube channel, I knew I would fall in love with her music. From then on, I have been listening to her music as much as I possibly can, both as the acoustic, single guitar YouTube versions and the full band album versions. Really, you can't go wrong with anything this girl records.

Though she may not be the seasoned musician and songwriter that everyone may crave, Lauren O'Connell manages to her own life and her own feelings as well as any of the giants in folk music. Lauren is also nothing if not creative with her music, focusing not on always having the most expensive and fanciest instruments, but rather on having the most appropriate sound to accompany her haunting and methodical lyrics, often employing familiar instruments in uncommon ways--such as playing a banjo with a bow, or drumming on a tennis racket topped with pennies with a spoon. Even though I listen to Lauren O'Connell all day long, she is one of the few artists that I feel comfortable falling asleep to, and having her melodies swim around my head as I dream.

Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz

Official album art, courtesy of Bandcamp

This album actually comes out on Tuesday, but I was sent an advance copy, so I figured I should get this up for all of you to enjoy a little early. I know, I am a little late to the game, since it has been available as a download to those who pre-ordered it for quite some time now, but those of you waiting for the album will probably be interested in this.

I have to start off by saying that there was a time in my life during which I lived and breathed Sufjan Stevens. His music was very close to my heart, and to this day, I cannot listen to those same albums without reliving that part of my life.

With that said, Sufjan Stevens has more or less been gone since 2005, with the release of Illinois, and its subsequent tour. It should be duly noted in this argument there was an official Illinois Outtakes album, titled Avalanche, released, as well as the Christmas pack and the BQE; however, none of those were full-fledged project like we are all used to, and they do not provide the Sufjan fix that true fans need.