By the Roads and the Fields

Picture the attic of an old Victorian – dusty, cold, echo-y, vaguely unsafe seeming so you don’t want to make any big movements or loud sounds, the sense of nostalgia for simplicity. Back to the CD. The bass is solid. Drums are mostly malleted, sometimes brushed, but rarely struck sharply. Vocals are timid to restrained. The occasional guitar or saxophone or organ filigree dresses up the minimalism of the songs. The lyrics are of the Nick Drake school – all nature and isolation. Nice. Crescent, who are members of Movietone and Flying Saucer Attack, have been doing this stuff irregularly for about a decade and this is a fine intro for newbies or continuation for fans.

1. Slow, with decrepit theater organ, and a gorgeous hook deeply buried
2. Muted guitar (possibly a classical, nylon string) runs a simple pattern, singer insistently makes his case, and organ swirls over the whole affair
3. Groovy rhythm, singer sounds a bit blasé, a bit of sax gussies up the tune
4. Loose, ramshackle, front porch tune
5. Say, a dub version of a front porch tune; melodica dominates the otherwise near-comatose arrangement
6. Folksy and pretty, in a modest way, except for the gnarly guitar chirping noisily in the background
7. English countryside gamelan
8. A relaxed jazz workout, though the sax does get a bit squirelly toward the end