"Eveningland, the second album by Hem...sets allusive, haunting songs not only to mandolin and steel guitar but also to chiming celeste and mallet instruments like glockenspiel - countrypolitan trademarks - as well as passages of rich, emotive playing by a full orchestra."
"A collection of fairy-tale melodies fleshed out with idiosyncratic instrumentation... Eveningland inches toward the countrypolitan sound favored by seventies acts [with the] languid, fetching soprano of their front woman, Sally Ellyson."
"On their second album, this Brooklyn Octet weave together haunting melodies and delicate orchestrations to craft intimate country/folk lullabies. Sally Ellyson's vocals are as homey as a snow day spent with hot chocolate and a fleece blanket."
I know folks have different ideas about what kind of music will be playing in heaven. There are a lot of people who believe we'll all be standing 24/7 (unfortunately like many church services these days) with our hands raised or maybe even jumping up and down in place. I'm bettin' those folks are gonna be surprised. Something tells me the good Lord may just favor countrypolitan. And if that's the case, then there's no way in heaven you can be languid and fetching when you're standing up; nah, that calls for something like sitting barefoot in a porch swing or laying out in the cool grass around dusk. And raising your hands all day? Practically impossible with a mug of hot chocolate in one and the other grabbing a fleece blanket's Hem...
My thanks to Betsy Zabel over at Burnside for bringing them to my attention.
I like this album a lot.
ReplyDeleteYou forgot the hammock. ;)
ReplyDeleteHem rocks my world! Why are they not incredibly well known, loved and famous? Praise God they're not, maybe...
ReplyDelete