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Holopaw is a folk-rock ensemble hailing from Florida, led by singer and
songwriter John Orth, whose mournful tone of voice propels the
acoustic folk ballads of Holopaw (Subpop, 2003).
The quintet excels at stately, tragic, intense tales such as
Abraham Lincoln and Hoover (that offer an unlikely combination
of alt-country and latter-day Pink Floyd).
The tuneful and heartfelt compositions are kept together by discrete
arrangements of cello, mandolin, slide guitar, piano.
Occasionally (Pony Apprehension) they evoke the naive lyricism of
early Neil Young. The music is never predictable or trivial. In fact,
the surreal frenzy of Igloo Glass and the
slow dirge of Cinders, punctuated by trumpet and electronics and then
minced in a nightmarish coda, are positively avantgarde.
A more conscious and expert use of arrangements and sonic effects compensates
the lack of emotion on Quit +/or Fight (Sub Pop, 2005).
The best songs
(Losing Light,
Velveteen,
3-Shy-Cubs,
Holiday,
Ghosties,
Curious)
try all sorts of combinations of acoustic, electric and electronic instruments.
Far from being overwrought, they come through as ephemeral and evanescent,
precisely because they never build up to the instrumental climax that is
within the band's reach. They end too soon, but then that is the very
quality that makes them interesting.
And Orth is one of the few vocalists around who does not make a big deal of his
songwriting or of his vocal skills and is content to blend into the
instrumental sound.
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