Noah and the Whale
Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down

THE REVIEW

Usually, during summer afternoons, I crave fairly simple listens, engaging melodies that serve as a backdrop to relaxation moments; there's nothing better than some good modern Folk, I dare say. For some years now, the irresistible melodies and the incredibly original stories of the good Will Sheff have been resonating in my mind. He is the frontman of Okkervil River (yes, that very band from Austin arriving from a "random" label named Jagjaguwar), and besides them, the melodic genius of Jeff Mangum from the now-legendary Neutral Milk Hotel.

The Noah And The Whale are certainly not on their level of caliber and importance, but they are surely pupils who do not disobey the masters of the genre, and I am not just referring to those mentioned previously.

During the summer of 2008 (the same year it was released), I began listening to their delightful debut work "Peaceful, The World Lays Me Down", such a peaceful title fits perfectly and lets one infer what my auditory system desired at that time, of which this album remains to me as a sort of soundtrack.

Moments of carefree cheerfulness, alternating with slightly more melancholic tracks are what these Londoners led by frontman Charlie Fink (guitar and vocals) offer us - strangely but true, they don't come from the States, where this style is definitely easier to find.

Those who love the genre will probably already appreciate them just by watching the charming videos of the singles "Shape of my Heart" and "5 Years Time", tracks not very different in style from Sheff's band. The album contains pieces like "Give a Little Love", with a rhythm very reminiscent of Arcade Fire, to tracks like the title track where Fink's singing seems inspired by the latest works of Bill Callahan. Furthermore, Tom Hobden's violin could suggest echoes of The Decemberists. Whether Folk or Pop, several recent bands have quite personal styles and thus are somewhat generically lumped into the same pot, whether it's Indie, often erroneously, as this term has a very specific cultural and musical development, and nowadays there's a tendency to play too much with this label.

Who knows if these sounds will still be able to give us emotions in the future; they certainly have provided several over the past years. Another debut band I feel like recommending is The Rural Alberta Advantage, already reviewed.