We're midway through the week - which means we're closer to the weekend then we were yesterday. This is cause for celebration (in thegeneral's case a second cup of tea). Gentle readers of my blog, you know I always try and come up with the goods for you and I'm not going to let you down as we celebrate the eve of the eve of the weekend.
This week has been a maelstrom of DIY, of spending money and of other things which I cannot possibly tell you about without making you blush. In the midst of all this, I was delighted to get an email from PinDropPublicity's fantastic Seb, asking me to review this great new EP from My Crooked Teeth and that's what I'm going to do now.
First of all, you need to know how and where to listen. So, wend your weary souls over to the bandcamp page:
mycrookedteeth.bandcamp.com/
...and listen to the sounds.
"Watch The Darkness Stumble Home" is a beautiful collection of songs. Simply stunning. My Crooked Teeth is the solo project of Jack Olchawski, an Oxford based singer songwriter, who truly does have a unique and emotionally stirring voice. This EP is a labour of love, lovingly crafted and gently honed songs that have the power to really captivate. Its sound is a cross between alt-country and folk, it seems to straddle the two genres neatly, and it's the kind of music that demands you sit and listen to the lyrics just as much as you listen to the chords and guitar picks.
I know I'm reviewing this on Wednesday, but to me this is perfect Saturday-night-at-home music. It's the kind of thing you'd curl up and listen to with, with the person you love. It's got that kind of intense feeling to it. Opening song "A Better Edit" is a slow burner, a lovely way to start. Don't mind admitting that the lyrics did move me to tears at one point - "So tell it to me slowly, and I'll try not to flinch, when you get to that part about the people you miss, 'cos I've seen death at my window but never in my home, and arms length seems foolish, when you're praying for a moat"
Third track "Bullet Bill" is a rousing, strong number, it's the most stirring song on the EP, for me, anyway. That said, it's still lullingly gentle enough not to be intrusive.
Final track "Nightshift" to me, feels like the most country-fied song of the collection. It's the one that strays most away from folk territory and it feels like such a nice way to end the EP. It's a strong enough finish to leave you feel like you want to hear more.
I didn't want to start to make comparisons - it's something I really don't like to do if at all possible, but often I do, and to say the material is Dylanesque seems to just be so obvious a statement to make, but it is. And it is in the finest way. It isn't just carbon copy folk/country, however, it's original and sparky and has enough vibrancy about it to make it feel like it stands out from other acts who just seem to want to copy rather than develop.
If you want some stirring, rousing, yet moving and emotional music to listen to this weekend then you really have to look no further than My Crooked Teeth. It's well worth a download.
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