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Golden Famile
S/T
Music for Cats
Records
File Under:
Canadian backwoods music
RIYL:
Ken Stringfellow, Papa
M |
Picture a storm slowly rumbling into the sky above you. You
see it coming, and you wait without being able to do anything about
it. Once it arrives, it brings darkness with it, pounding down upon
all that is below. It occasionally wavers, leaving respites of the
eerily calm sort, just before it plunges you into darkness again.
Well, not to be melodramatic, but that is kind of what Golden Famile
feels like.
Golden Famile is a band based out of Ottawa,
Ontario, Canada, and its members have been together for less than a
year, with this self-titled effort being their first album. In terms
of instruments, they each cover their own share of ground. Darrell
handles vocals, guitars, banjo, acordiorgan, organ, and some
percussion. Rich takes care of the remaining guitars, bass guitar,
organ, harmonica, ukulele and other percussion. Meanwhile, Mike is
in charge of the drumming and assorted other "shaky things."
Musically, they sound as if they came straight from the dark and
dreary woods of Canada, combining songs that seem to suit the
simplicity of being played on the back porch with those that are
built upon more complicated guitar dynamics.
Either way, at
the root of Golden Famile's charm is the band's simplicity. There is
plenty of rootsy folk flavor, as you could have probably surmised
from the list of instruments being used, but the odd blend of
instrumentation mixes nicely with the standard drums, bass, guitar,
and vocals to create something uniquely accessible for a group of
three guys that have barely gotten to know each other yet. Still, as
the band creeps out of those dark woods, each member brings a bit of
darkness with them, which is obvious in the eerie quality of the
music they create.
From the organ solo that is the opening
track, "Can't You See Me/Lost and Lonely," to the bizarre closer,
"Rattlesnakes," which is a quirky instrumental built around the
sounds of a frightening carnival, Golden Famile has an air of
intelligent uniqueness about them. The slightly out-of-time rhythms
of "Hipsters with Machine Guns" and a handful of other minor
slip-ups show a band that hasn't quite grown into its mold yet but
is well on its way.
- Eddie
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