Thanks to NOISETRADE, I got 25 great “love songs” for
Valentine’s Day last week.
One of my favorites in the collection is “Idaho” by Brooklyn-based
songwriter Peter Bradley Adams and Vermont-native songstress Caitlin Canty.
In a world where the moniker “indie folk pop” seems to
vaguely describe every other aspiring musical act in the underground music
scene, it can seem nearly hopeless to search for an artist whose genuine acoustic folk stylings resonate with both sincerity and
bare aural beauty.
Enter Down Like Silver, the duo’s self-titled debut, a
six-song EP that seamlessly marries the pair’s melodically minimalistic
stylings, bringing out the best in both performers.
Here’s what a reviewer at THE MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN wrote
about the album:
Every phrasing and refrain is filled to the brim with the
raw, naked emotion of two dedicated songwriters pouring their heart into their
music. Good folk music tells the story – great folk music brings the listener
on the journey. This album paints the musical landscape with broad, sublime
strokes.
Perhaps the most ear-pleasing aspect of this album is that
it is nearly entirely “co-sung” – that is, as opposed to duets, the songs are
mainly sung by both Adams and Canty simultaneously throughout. It is one thing
to combine two vocalists with different styles and ranges into a cohesive
package – it’s entirely another to meld the two voices together in song as if
they’re one doubly emotive instrument. At times, Canty’s and Adams’ voices
sound less like two vocalists singing their own vocal lines, and more like a
pianist voicing two parts together.
As a result, the vocals on this album are both harmonically
rich and incredibly expressive, accenting the wise-beyond-their-years
songwriting abilities of both musicians.
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