The Grass Is Singing is the debut album
from worldly trio Lonely Drifter Karen, a band taking their cues
from the musical landscapes of Vienna, Barcelona, and Spain. To
call it whimsical and imaginative might be an understatement.
The album is a beautifully crafted storybook, populated with characters
that are evoked with astounding care. This isn’t the music
of sitting idly, but of wandering and adventure. By the third
song, I had been put in mind of girls biking through the European
countryside, poppy fields, and busy market squares. Elsewhere
along the way I was taken through dark woods, before being deposited
in a smoky cabaret with a sparrow-voiced siren leaning against
a baby grand.
Melodic vocals drape across dexterous piano
work, which are lifted on springs of vintage Parisian accordion
sounds. Interspersed are choruses that are often operatic. Many
of the songs would not be out of place as the score to an Italian
or French film circa late 50’s/early 60’s. If someone
were to break out in song and start dancing in the street, this
could be the soundtrack to that outburst. There is a thread of
child-like innocence and wonder running throughout the album,
which is anything but naive. These are street wise folk tales.
Marc Melia Sobrevias’ skillful piano
work plays a large part in the rich scenery, at turns boisterous
and handled with delicate plinking. Drummer Giorgio Menossi’s
light touch helps lead the parade across the musical canvas. The
jewel of the group,Tanja Frinta, can be likened to a very eccentric
Doris Day, her voice smooth and lyrical. She is someone you can’t
imagine going many places without her guitar, always ready for
life to inspire more exceptionally imaginative lyrics.
Lonely Drifter Karen fills the listener
with easy optimism, opening our eyes to the magic to be found
all around us. Take a journey into this world, where the grass
is singing and there isn’t a cloud in the sky. (Angie Pardue)
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