Elk City - Everybody's Insecure - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

David Sheppard first conceived Snow Palms as a vehicle for music played on mallet instruments (metallophones, glockenspiels, xylophones, marimbas, etc), devices that have featured intermittently across almost two decades-worth of the multi-instrumentalist's miscellaneous collaborative projects that include State River Widening, Ellis Island Sound, The Wisdom of Harry and Phelan-Sheppard, among a host of others. Snow Palms' 2012 debut album Intervals won a sheaf of approving notices for it's ineffably cinematic blend of polyrhythmic percussion and richly melodic orchestration, partly achieved in collaboration with arranger-composer Christopher Leary (aka Ochre). Two years in the making, the follow-up builds on the foundations of it's predecessor, with a heavy quotient of metallophones, glockenspiels and marimbas at it's core, but largely eschews the latter's chamber arrangements in favour of soaring synth-scapes and a palette of spectral ambient and electronic textures.

He brand-new self-produced album from multi-award winning Canadian / International vocalist Holly Cole. The ensemble that Holly has brought together to help create and perform on Dark Moon includes long time live performance / recording mates, Aaron Davis (piano), George Koller (bass), Davide Direnzo (drums) and John Johnson (saxophone). Add to that the brilliance of sometime accompanist's including guitar master and provocateur Kevin Breit and on harmonica two-time Grammy winner and original member of Bella Fleck and the Flecktones, Howard Levy and finally the wonderful three part 1950's Nashville style harmonies of the Good Lovelies. Together they define the absolute best in Inchensemble playingInch!

Elks - Destined for the Sun [COMPACT DISCS] date 09/13/2011