A Bridge To Far. Midlake

After a string of singles in the past months announcing Midlake's new album, I find myself liking the album a lot better than I expected on the basis of these singles. During the first listening session with A Bridge To Far it became clear fast that the songs work far better in an album context. A Bridge To Far is another fine Midlake album.

Looking at the backlog of this blog, I found to my surprise a Midlake album from 2022, 'For The Sake Of Bethel Woods'. I had forgotten all about it. Reading the review I liked the album a lot, so what happened? Most likely an overload of new music, as there is so much coming my way in an average week.

Having had several sessions with A Bridge To Far so far, I have totally come around to the soft atmosphere that the band shares. Soft is something totally different from boring in this case. Each song comes with a host of intricate sounds that are sprinkled out over them. Midlake even choses to rock some here and there. What I also notice is an influence of Traffic, in the way folk is woven into the alternative music. The use of a flute is another sign of this. Chris Wood's ghost is not far away on some songs.

Midlake is one of the bands that has survived the leaving of its principle songwriter and singer. All three records released since Tim Smith left in 2012 have a level of quality that deserves the name Midlake. Although there has been a hiatus of nearly ten years between 'Antiphon' and 'For The Sake Of Bethel Woods', the band from Denton, Texas, has found its stride once again.

All throughout the album dreamlike female vocals can be heard. Madison Cunningham, Hannah Cohen, and Meg Lui make the album sound like a dream with their contributions. In a song like 'Make Haste' there is a huge lead guitar as well, but also here because of the way it is mixed into the song, it is like it comes from another dimension. A trick Midlake repeats a few times during the album. There's the band and then there's other stuff going on. It makes A Bridge To Far an album to listen to at different levels. It really is as if the music and background singing come from another dimension.

Of course, Midlake sounds like Midlake. Somehow Eric Pulido's voice makes Tim Smith's expendable and forgotten. The band undeniably has its own sound. And yet, A Bridge To Far is not an exercise in repeating itself. The album has a unique vibe and all these extras as I described just now. The music is of a richness that brings it closer to the mood on a Pink Floyd record from the mid-1970s, if you forget the symphonic stuff. It is that rich though.

With A Bridge To Far Midlake surprised me no little. Time will tell, but for me this could be the band's best album to date. This conclusion will take many more listening sessions. Don't worry, I will not forget to play A Bridge To Far a lot more than I did so far.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

You can listen to and order A Bridge To Far here:

https://midlakeband.bandcamp.com/album/a-bridge-to-far 

2025, week 45. 10 singles

This morning's sun has been replaced by grey clouds. Outside it is far from cold for a November day. Having finished the singles section for this week, I'm familiarising myself with Long Fling, the album by Dutch alternative pop/rock royalty Pip Blom and Willem Smit. Before listening my guess is that it's impossible to be a bad album. So I'm quite interested to learn more. In the meantime, I refer you to this week's selection. Enjoy! 

Vrijheid, Gelijkheid, Zusterschap. Sophie Straat
Sophie Straat heeft recentelijk een nieuwe plaat uitgebracht, 'Wie De Fak Is Sophie Straat', maar sinds heel kort is het dit nummer van haar plaat uit 2023, 'Smartlap Is Niet Dood', dat de aandacht trekt. Behalve het feit dat het een nummer is dat zo lekker klinkt dat het deze aandacht zeker verdient, is er een andere reden. Er schijnt een door AI gegenereerd nummer met een xenofobische tekst tegen AZCs en ongetwijfeld de bewoners ervan, de hitlijsten te bestormen. De aandacht voor dit nummer is de tegenbeweging, die ik van harte ondersteun. De tekst van Sophie Straat is het totale tegen alles wat wat-dan-ook-foob is ergens op de wereld. Dat begint met de titel uit de Franse revolutie, met een eigentijdse en tegendraadse twist erin. De tekst van het nummer is een droom over hoe de wereld er ook uit zou kunnen zien. Hoe zich dat verhoudt tot Franse koningin Marie Antoinette is niet helemaal duidelijk, behalve dat zij zich vrijwel alles kon permitteren. (Hoe actueel dat is, is dat Trump sinds Halloween met haar wordt vergeleken.) De Dolle Mina's roepen heel Nederland op om Vrijheid, Gelijkheid, Zusterschap zoveel mogelijk te streamen en zo te voorkomen dat het anti-AZC nummer op 1 komt in de Streaming Top 40. Mooi bijkomend feit is dat er dan zo maar een keer een rock song op 1 komt te staan. Opnieuw merk ik dat het met de geschiedeniskennis van Sophie Straat wel goed zit. Ik neem dan ook aan dat ze weet hoe het met Marie Antoinette is afgelopen. (Ik schreef eerder over dit nummer op 22 maart 2022.)

Well, Whatever It Was. Joyce Manor 

Another album announced for 30 January is 'I Used To Go To This Bar', Joyce Manor's new album. With Well, Whatever It Was the band releases a great pop song that fits with a lot bands like Blur or Supergrass released in the 90s and mixing it with music from the same era from the U.S. like Weezer and Nada Surf. In other words, Well, Whatever It Was is a pop-rock song that is totally infectious and kind of superior to a lot of other music being released. The only thing it is not, is original. When a song is as good as, it doesn't matter, does it?

Liminality / Dream State Return. Elder

A duo single that with its 18 minutes plus length is more of a mini album. The two songs make Elder have its debut on WoNoBlog. Guitarist and singer Nick DiSalvo can be found here in one of his other band incarnations. With these two songs, Elder has worked on parts and pieces that had been left behind on the studio floor over the years. The greatest example of that is most of side B of 'Abbey Road' of course. Liminality / Dream State Return will not become that famous but certainly can be ranked as a very successful blend of leftovers. The band, Nick DiSalvo, guitar and lead vocals, Jack Donovan, bass, Mike Risberg, guitar, keyboards and Georg Edert, drums, blends several styles into one. From prog/symphonic rock to stoner and metal. All these elements come by in the two compositions, while at the same time the band finds the melodies even in the loudest parts. Then on keyboard, then on guitar or both. 18 minutes can be quite long, but not with these two songs. So much is going on, that it's over before you know it and probably with so many elements still left to discover. A very nice introduction to Elder this "single" is.

Antarctica. Marta del Grandi

The name Marta del Grandi can be found on this blog, but only as a part of two 'Kairos' radio shows reviews. Today, she makes her "solo" debut on the blog. Marta del Grandi is an Italian singer-songwriter who will release her new album 'Dream Life' on 30 January next year. Antarctica immediately drew my interest, as it in a way reminds me immediately of the Ohmme/Finom duo, because of the way she recorded her harmony vocals and the rhythm of Antarctica. That is also where comparisons stop. Del Grandi uses totally different instruments and more sparingly. The rhythm is like an irregular game of hopscotch, where instruments fall into and out again. Just like a vocal line can jump in out of nowhere, to leave the jumping game just as easily again. As if just passing through the street and participate on route to somewhere else. That makes Antarctica a very intriguing song, that besides that is good as well.

Hunter's Mark. Howling Giant

Anyone who listens to Hunter's Mark for the first time and then is told that Howling Giant is from Nashville, Tennessee will think it to be a mistake. Howling Giant is a stoner rock band that has a thick sound with a wall of guitars and huge drums kicking things even more to life. That drummer, Zach Wheeler, is also (one of) the singer(s). That may explain a little about the prominent position of his drums in the middle of the mix. Fact is, Hunter's Mark is a very much alive song. The duo guitarists play these huge riffs and only allow for a short burst of a solo near the end, after which both riff the song home. Howling Giant, Tom Polzine, guitar and vocals, Zach Wheeler, drums and vocals, Sebastian Baltes, bass and vocals and Adrian Lee Zambrano, guitars and synthesizers, released its third album, 'Crucible & Ruin' on 31 October.

EP #1. Corin Ashley

In May of this year Corin Ashley found himself for the first time on this blog with his single 'Empathy Centre'. What I wrote there still counts: his collection of 60s records fell over and assembled themselves into this new song. On his EP #1 Ashley releases three new songs. In 'The Sun Is In Your Eyes' he sounds like Roger Daltrey after a rough night. He has that same rasp in his voice but forty years after Daltrey's heyday of the 1960s and 70s. Fact is that it is not that hard to hear Daltrey sing this song and that it has a quality that the The Who veteran singer would not have minded to add to his oeuvre. Delving deeper into the EP, it's clear that the single is an odd one out. Corin Ashley left the pop vibes behind and went more into rock territory, where The Who comes forward in my mind most. In the final song, 'Monkey', the voice of Kay Hanley adds a nice layer to the song. Where 'Empathy Centre' is a nice tip of the hat to a host of 1960s bands, the rest of the EP is a showcase on how its still possible to rock convincingly in 2025. Corin Ashley hits all the right notes alright.

Forever Elsewhere. Weird Nightmare

The name Weird Nightmare rang a bell, and rightly so. Single 'Searching For You' can be found on this blog in March 2022. Weird Nightmare is still the solo project of Metz' Alex Adkins. Together with co-producer Jim Eno (Spoon) he created a single that ends up somewhere between punkrock and powerpop. Both genres can be heard nearly equal in Forever Elsewhere. The song is full of energy, with loads of guitars and a drummer, Loel Campbell of Wintersleep, who is playing in the "Animal" variety. Everything that can be hit, is hit for most of the time and hard at that. This track is an infectuous one. The sound is huge, the intent is huge and the impact is huge. Forever Elsewhere is the kind of song I want sing and dance to. More news may follow soon.

Hollow (feat. Jef Neve). Ramkot

What a surprise. In the songs I know so far by Ramkot, o.k., I missed the band's 2024 album, the band tried to ram the kot to pieces, only to start all over again in the next song. With Hollow the trio, assisted by pianist Jef Neve produces a fantastic ballad. A rock ballad, of course, but it shows a totally other side of the band and what a fantastic singer Tim Leyman is. Hollow is an atmospheric track that allows the piano to meander all throughout the track, while Leyman's guitar plays a riff in the verses responding to his vocal. Later on the song gets more body, but without losing the mood of the song, mostly because of the echo on Leyman's voice that is mixed over all the instruments. At the end all drops away for a beautiful ending to the song, where pianist Jef Neve shines again. What a beautiful song Hollow is.

I Know. The Vices

Since The Vices left Mattan Records to sign for V2 Records, the band's new music does not reach me any more. Only the announcement of said. That results in less attention. With I Know The Vices announces a deluxe re-release of its 2025 album 'Before It Might Be Gone'. This version of the song, that was written with Charlie Andrew of Alt-J and David Gilmour fame, rocks pretty hard. Now with The Vices I always asked myself the question 'what does this band want to be'?, as its albums often were so diverse in musical styles. I'm not sure that question will ever be answered. All I know, is that I like this version of The Vices a lot. Rocking, raw and exuberant. In December the Ziggo Dome awaits the band, as support act for the revived Kensington. Another highlight, but selling out its own headlining tour this fall will be far more fulfilling. With songs like I Know that should come into reach.

Rally 'Round. The Chelsea Curve

Listening to Rally 'Round, the Chelsea Curve's latest single, memories of decades of powerpop songs swirl around my head. I notice the song ticking all the right boxes in there and trying to settle for its own spot in between all these great song of the (recent) past. In my mind, living thousands of kilometers of sea away, Boston is a city where everyone loves these musical styles and every second inhabitant plays in at least three bands playing this kind of music. (The rest is fan of Dropkick Murphies.) It is even more surprising that the consistent quality coming from the city's bands is so high. Of course, you won't find me having written that Rally 'Round is an original piece of rock music. No, it contains every trick in the book that makes this music so attractive. However, when it's played at this level, a new song is more than welcome. So, let's rally 'round The Chelsea Curve and "Let's have a toast to, Cheers to all of us". Well deserved at that.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght 

Fatal Optimist. Madi Diaz

Madi Diaz koos op haar vorige album op geslaagde wijze de afslag richting een wat toegankelijker geluid, maar laat op het in oktober verschenen Fatal Optimist horen dat ook het soberdere werk bij haar in goede handen is.

Ik heb Madi Diaz inmiddels al een aantal jaren hoog zitten, want ondanks dat het feit dat de Amerikaanse muzikante flink varieert met haar geluid, levert ze altijd kwaliteit. Dat doet ze ook weer met haar nieuwe album Fatal Optimist, al haar zesde of zelfs zevende album. Het is een album waarop Madi Diaz haar songs terugbrengt tot de essentie. De meeste tracks hebben genoeg aan een gitaar en de stem van Madi Diaz en het resultaat is song na song prachtig. Door de sobere inkleuring komt alles neer op de zang van de Amerikaanse muzikante en de zang is op Fatal Optimist echt indrukwekkend mooi. Ik was best onder de indruk van haar vorige twee albums, maar deze vind ik nog wat beter.

De Amerikaanse muzikante Madi Diaz leverde begin vorig jaar met Weird Faith een bijzonder leuk album af. Het is een album dat een stuk lichtvoetiger klonk dan het in 2021 verschenen History Of A Feeling, dat vooral sober ingekleurde folksongs bevatte. Op Weird Faith flirtte Madi Diaz ook opzichtig met indiepop en indierock en dat beviel me wel. 

Een paar maanden na de release van het album zag ik Madi Diaz alleen met haar gitaar in het voorprogramma van Kacey Musgraves, maar in een warm en rumoerig Paradiso bleef er helaas maar weinig over van de prima songs van Madi Diaz. Toen ik vorige week las dat de Amerikaanse muzikante op haar nieuwe album kiest voor uiterst sober ingekleurde folksongs was ik daarom niet direct enthousiast, maar het deze week verschenen Fatal Optimist had niet veel tijd nodig om me enthousiast te maken. 

De berichten die aan het album vooraf gingen blijken te kloppen, want Fatal Optimist is inderdaad een bijzonder ingetogen en zeer spaarzaam ingekleurd album. Volgens de credits waren er nog wel wat extra muzikanten en twee producers, onder wie de topproducer Gabe Wax, betrokken bij het maken van het album, maar ook bij beluistering met de koptelefoon hoor je buiten wat subtiele accenten niet veel meer dan gitaarakkoorden en de stem van Madi Diaz, die één keer kiest voor de piano en alleen in de slottrack wat meer instrumenten toe laat. 

Dat er een producer van naam en faam heeft gesleuteld aan de songs op Fatal Optimist hoor je overigens wel, want het album klinkt veel mooier dan het gemiddelde sober ingekleurde singer-songwriter album. Ik werd eigenlijk direct gegrepen door het van alle franje ontdane geluid op het nieuwe album van Madi Diaz. 

De Amerikaanse muzikante had zoals gezegd niet veel meer nodig dan gitaren, maar zowel het akoestische als het elektrische gitaarwerk op het album is prachtig. De instrumentatie op Fatal Optimist is spaarzaam of zelfs Spartaans, maar wel zeer trefzeker. Het biedt bovendien een prachtige basis voor de stem van Madi Diaz, die echt prachtig zingt. 

Haar stem deed het vorig jaar uitstekend in de lekker in het gehoor liggende popsongs op Weird Faith, maar ik vind de zang op Fatal Optimist nog een stuk mooier. Madi Diaz is een getalenteerd verhalenverteller en heeft voor haar nieuwe album een aantal persoonlijke en vaak wat melancholische songs geschreven. Het zijn songs die ze met heel veel gevoel vertolkt, waardoor de zang op het album flink binnen komt. 

Er zijn momenteel niet veel muzikanten die een uiterst sober album als Fatal Optimist durven te maken, maar ik ben blij dat Madi Diaz het wel heeft gedaan. Wanneer in de slottrack en tevens titeltrack van het album toch nog wordt gekozen voor een wat voller geluid vind ik de muziek van Madi Diaz direct een stuk minder onderscheidend en verlang ik terug naar de ruwe eenvoud van de tien eerdere songs op het album. 

Ik was op voorhand nog wel bang dat de sobere setting na een paar songs of na een paar keer horen van het album zou gaan vervelen, maar dat is zeker niet het geval. Integendeel zelfs want de sobere prachtsongs op Fatal Optimist worden me alleen maar dierbaarder. Het is een moedige keuze om een puur en eerlijk album als Fatal Optimist te maken, maar het pakt prachtig uit.

Erwin Zijleman

 

Je kunt Fatal Optimist hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://madidiaz.bandcamp.com/album/fatal-optimist 

In Lichem Fol Beloften. Zea & Drumband Hallelujah Makkum

Met Zea is het moeilijk voorspellen hoe de nieuwe plaat zal klinken. Dat geldt ook voor In Lichem Fol Beloften (Een lichaam vol beloften). Zea is Arnold de Boer en reeds een aantal decennia actief onder de naam Zea. Nieuw is dat hij zich laat begeleiden door de Drumband Hallelujah Makkum. Het is een onderdeel van de harmonie van Makkum, actief sinds 1894.

De aanpak van Zea op deze plaat doet mij sterk denken aan een Friese variant op broeder Dieleman. De dwarse muziek, de gesproken woorden. Tonnie Dieleman is daar nog rigoureuzer in dan De Boer. De kenner weet echter voldoende, want het betekent een album vol verrassingen.

Het maakt wel dat In Lichem Fol Beloften zich moeilijk laat beschrijven (en nog moeilijker verstaanbaar is). Wel beviel het album direct bij de eerste beluistering. De arrangementen zijn uiterst inventief, juist daar waar een aantal nummers op zich niet meer zijn dan een repeterende notenreeks. Vervolgens worden alle variaties die mogelijk zijn over die paar noten verkend door verscheidene blaasinstrumenten. Zo avontuurlijk als er wordt gemusiceerd, zo lekker is het om al die wendingen te volgen. En het gaat echt ruimschoots voorbij aan conventies en mijn eigen voorstellingsvermogen, zonder dat het overgaat in gefreak of extreme piep-knor muziek, zoals dat bij ons thuis heet.

Tegelijkertijd staan er ook meer klassieke liedjes op In Lichem Fol Beloften. Gewoon een akoestische gitaar waarover De Boer een lied zingt, begeleidt door een cello. Een alternatieve Boudewijn de Groot, zo kan 'pine en tijd - 1' wel getypeerd worden.

Het album is opgenomen in twee kerken. Arnold de Boer, clarinettist Xavier Charles, cellist Harald Austbø en drummer Ineke Duivenvoorde namen het album op in de kerk van Ketlik. De drumband werd opgenomen in de doopsgezinde kerk van Makkum. Verder draagt ook de dichter Tsead Bruinja werk voor. Dat het verschillende opnames betreft, valt niet te horen. Dat is goed ineen gemixt.

Door de arrangementen is In Lichem Fol Beloften geen rustige plaat. Daarvoor gebeurt er teveel afwijkends. Ook al wordt er in het Fries gezongen, dit is geen 'In Nije Dei' of Twarres. Toch is het een album dat de luisteraar in een situatie van rust prima tot zich kan nemen en zeer waarschijnlijk zeer rustgevend is. Daar staat tegenover dat 'ik til dyn bonken op' en 'pyin en tijd - 2' (bijna) rocken, een kwalificatie die enkel voor dit album en deze stijl een passende omschrijving is. Met de rust is het wel gedaan.

Foto: Annelies Verhelst

Met In Lichem Fol Beloften heeft Zea mij totaal verrast en op een zeer positieve wijze. Door broeder Dieleman ben ik dit soort albums gaan waarderen. Zea & Drumband Hallelujah Makkums muziek valt dus op uiterst vruchtbare grond. Het is een nagenoeg indrukwekkend album.

Als laatste verdient het artwork van dit album ook alle aandacht. Geen cd-systeem waar dit in gaat passen, maar wel prachtig om te bezitten. Denk aan de uitingen van De Kift. Dit boekwerk past wel in een gemeenschappelijke doos met een sigarendoos en een order.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght

 

Je kunt Een Lichem Fol Beloften hier luisteren en bestellen:

https://zeamusic.bandcamp.com/album/in-lichem-fol-beloften 

2025, five EPs

Listening to ten singles sometimes does not allow me enough time to listen to full EPs and mini albums as well, while they are of a quality that does allow for a spot on this blog. So, instead of a full album, today we present five shorter albums by a very diverse set of artists. So, enjoy!

No Heavy Goodbyes EP. Scarlet Rae 

Based on the two singles having been released before the release of No Heavy Goodbyes, my best guess was the EP would be an ink black affair. It is not totally so, as Scarlet Rae does supply us with a ray of light here and there. Allow me to start with the fourth song, 'Light Dose'. It is not an easy song, nor has it an easy rhythm, but the acoustic guitars starting the song and her soft way of singing allow the sun in. The piano "solo" has the same effect. Slowly but surely some darkness creeps in and then the distorted guitars take over the song and black paint is smeared on the walls and windows in thick blobs, shutting all light out, no matter how hard that piano roots for another result. 'Light Dose' does show the world how Scarlet Rae can play with moods extremely successfully. Although I like the EP as a whole this song is the beacon of the EP. The contrast between her soft voice and guitars that can cut like a sword from 'Kill Bill' are so huge. Scarlet Rae has a voice for the sweetest pop songs, where innocence and fantasy for teenage girls would ooze from the record (or stream of course). Pop and teen fantasies are as far removed from her mind as possible, leading to dark and brooding, but above all rocking songs. A song can be moderately loud like opening song 'A World Where She Left Me Out' to a trailblazer like the final song 'Call Off The Day' is. Ms Rae gives this EP her all. Don't forget to check it out. 

Till The Well Runs Dry EP.  Nate Perry & Ragged Company

Another debut on this blog. With its second EP Boston outfit Nate Perry & Ragged Company finds itself for the first time here. There's no denying, that this music sounds familiar to anyone with some musical bagage from the past decades. Nate Perry C.S. combine rock and Americana in a way a band like Gin Blossoms was so good at circa thirty years ago or Dan Baird, etc., etc. The surprise is how fresh the songs on Till The Well Runs Dry sound. It's quite clear that it may be a while before this music will. There are bands that play roots music and there are bands that take that music to the same or next level like their heroes played it and then add their own originals to the existing pile. Nate Perry & Ragged Company band did exactly that. With its tough sound, joined by a warm Hammond organ and a singer with exactly the right tough edge to his voice, Till The Well Runs Dry hits the nail on the head. I simply love listening to this EP.

Inauguration EP. Proles

With Inauguration this post moves once again towards the dark side of music. Proles loves to dwell in the dark recesses of 1980s postpunk. Where I found the early Simple Minds and bands like it always far too mechanical sounding, let alone The Gang of Four and is ilk, Proles is not afraid of playing organic sounding music throughout that darkness. Where the opening song, 'Inaugural', on the one hand is meant as the most open sounding song, it also is the most scary, with the screaming background vocals, mixed "softly" into the whole. Later on on this seven song mini album, Proles gets more into its stride and mixes the postpunk with the sound of bands like Killing Joke and The Cult. By now that music is circa forty years old. It keeps attracting many young musicians and musicians who are still inspired by the music and went back to it after life caught up with them somewhere in the past thirty years. The result is a strong EP like Inauguration. The music may be dark but the fun of playing it shines through the whole of the seven songs. Just listen how 'The Slumber' plays out. A little Tubeway Army synths has the lead but with a lead guitar accompanying it in a way Gary Newman would have abhorred. Boston's Proles, Gretchen Shae vocals, synths, Jason O'Blivion vocals, guitar, Daniel Denied bass and Nikki Severen drums, have found their stride together and deserve this debut on WoNoBlog fully, completely.

Moments In The Sun EP. Dotsun Moon

From darkness to light is but a small step on WoNoBlog. After single 'Never Had A Heart', Richard Flierl, he is Dotsun Moon, finds himself once again on this blog with the EP Moments In The Sun. The Buffalo, New York based musician's output on this EP can be placed in the 1980s as well. More in the Simple Minds from 'Don't You (Forget About Me)' onwards period than in the heavy postpunk scene. The music is far smoother, more elegant and certainly more mainstream. Not that this EP contains a song of the magnitude mentioned just now. The four songs each are very much worth your while though. Flierl manages to provide his songs with so many details. Take the way the guitar solo in 'Army Of Me' is offset with the piano notes playing through the solo. This provides a great listening experience. The EP ends with 'Piano Trailer 5', which is the piano piece like it promises. Dotsun Moon's Richard Flierl may love to dwell in the musical past, like so many other artists do. He manages to step into 2025 with songs of his own that matter. Moments In The Sun brings exactly what its title promises: a moment of rest in a busy schedule to warm to and relax with.

like you used to EP. Nathalie Miller 

Through her single 'kansas', Nathalie Miller is no stranger to this blog and now her second EP, like you used to, finds itself here as well. The music is certainly identifiable as pop music, but not like what I hear occasionally on the radio my love likes to listen to. The song announced as the current number 1, was as dull as I've seldom heard them. Really nothing memorable happened during the whole song! Rest assured, you will not find anything like it on like you used to. Even the song that comes closest in my ear, 'Witches Don't Burn', has so many twists and turns, that the listener has to be on his/her toes the whole time. Nathalie Miller, living in Brooklyn but from Massachusetts, manages to sound interesting the whole time. Dynamics is a tool she and her producer Brian Charles have used to great effect. Just listen to how 'Sit And Stew' plays out. The way extra instruments come in and are added tells all. Between the five songs themselves there is more than enough diversity that makes listening to like you used to an interesting experience. The end comes as a total surprise. It's like a very old recording has been polished by digital tools and an added modern vocal was mixed in. The title song gives the EP again something extra. Nathalie Miller wants to be far more than just a pop singer. So far, she succeeded in my book.

Wout de Natris - van der Borght