Artist: The Seedy Seeds
Title: Count the Days
Website: http://www.theseedyseeds.com
Style: Electronica / Folk/ Rock
Label: Eurodorable Recordings
Rating: 8.5 out of 10
By C.W. Ross
The Seedy Seeds has a bit of an identity problem, as I was searching around the Internet to get some background information on the band a lot of the information related to them was conflicting.
A few examples of this is some sites say that, Count the Days is the band's debut release while others say that it's their sophomore effort with, Change States , that was released way back in 1999, being the band's real debut release. If that's true what vacuum did the group fall into during all of those missing years between releases?
Also I've found the band listed as a duo with just members, Mike Ingram and Margaret Darling, while other places list the group as a trio with an additional member with the first name of, Brian.
Whatever the real truth this Cincinnati, Ohio based bands, Count the Days release first seen the light of day back in October of 2008. With the release recently receiving heavy rotation on WOXY, and their well-received performances at both SXSW and CMJ the decision was made to re-release the album, only this time with wider distribution.
Count the Days is one of those releases that I probably wouldn't have ever heard if not for being a music reviewer, since I'm not usually drawn to music featuring an electronic element. This release though mixes its electronic element with folk and Indie rock music. After listening to Count the Days I might be changing my mind about electronic music because I really enjoyed what I heard in the 12 songs that make up this release.
The songs are filled with an explosion of instrumentation that includes; banjos, kazoos, accordions, bass, cello, hand claps, guitar, pen clicks, slide whistle, toy keyboard, mandolins and drums. Layer on top of that an assortment of electronic elements, via keyboard and computer generated synth parts, and you have the band's signature sound.
With all of that going on in the songs you would probably guess that the vocals would get lost in the mix but somehow the vocals still retain their rightful spot. The majority of the lead vocals are handled by Margaret Darling, although male vocals do take over that role for a few of the songs. Darling's vocal style is strong, without being over powering. Her vocals act as a steadying agent set against all of the instrumentation that's found in the songs.
Count the Days peaked my interest right from the first drum beats and electronic noises found on track-1, "Winter 04,"started jumping from my stereo's speakers. I knew right away that I was going to enjoy the rest of the music that lay ahead for me.
Track-5, "My Roots Go Down," is an interesting song that has a gospel arrangement featuring simple sing-along-with type of lyrics; the song also picks up the tempo as it moves forward.
Track-7, "Oh, Cincinnati," offers up some heavy bass tone beats that drive its catchy melody.
Track-12, I'm Asleep in All My Dreams," has the honor of bringing down the curtain on, Count the Days. The song is an acoustic guitar driven number that also features, cello,trumpet, and trombone parts along with electronic background noises that all add to its final sound.
The Seedy Seeds' Count the Days offers up a nice selection of songs filled with many different elements that somehow all worked together in the end to form both interesting and enjoyable music.
|
