I Would If I Could
I love John Roderick's voice. It's light and husky, like a field of corn. And while at times he can clunk a phrase, he can turn one too. He also shreds a little bit on the guitar. Now that the air conditioning is working in my office, and shit's cold as an alaskan crab boat captain, I'm finding myself drawn to this record. It's a pop rock record of the highest quality. Barsuk's done it again.
The Long Winters are one of those bands that just keeps surprising me. I remember when When I Pretend to Fall came out in 2003, right around the time music on the internet was really taking hold. It was around the same time that the Postal Service, Shins, Iron & Wine and all that was in play. Their record sort of got lost in the shuffle, though I remember "Scared Straight" getting some spins on my ipod. So I was really surprised when they dropped the Ultimatum EP earlier this year -- the title track was absolutely amazing.
Now I've got their new full length -- Putting the Days to Bed on Barsuk, and it's wonderful. Roderick is coming into his own as a songwriter and the band just sounds great. This is the type of song that kicks off mixtapes, or launches your Friday commute home as you head out to see your girl. The beat just kicks and the guitar's locked in. The Long Winters are quickly becoming one of my favorite bands.
The new record is definitely worth picking up. it drops in about a month (July 25th), and you can pre-order the sucker over at Barsuk's country store. Highly recommended.