Last of the Blacksmiths
Self-titled CD
Self-released
Genres: folk rock, Americana, alt
country
December 2005 |
Moody noir-ish storytelling folk for smoky taverns
and dusty rural days. That's my way of encapsulating Last of The
Blacksmiths' style, which combines country, Americana, and pop
into one pleasant (though not entirely groundbreaking or original)
combination. I'm reminded somewhat of Okkervil River (who
they've performed live with) but this is a much less melody-centric
and climactic release; instead, LOTB tends to move along at
their own pace, bringing lyrics to the forefront and instilling a
moody structure in each of their songs. One of the record's key
successes is the inclusion of a soft but lovely organ in many of the
songs; this makes tracks like "Pushing Down" and "Saloon Song" some of
the strongest and most unique on the record. Meanwhile, other
standouts include the drearily pretty "Knowing Me" and the hip and
moody "Out At Night". Often a strong Will Oldham and
Anomoanon influence can be heard, especially on "In My Hands" and
warm "The New Way". Overall, this is a very mature record from a band
that we'll hopefully hear a lot more from in the future; this is
nearly an hour of pretty modern folk that stays true to its roots
without dragging along too much.
82%
Matt Shimmer
[Vitals: 12 tracks, 54.7
min, distributed by
the label, released 2005] |