The Long Winters: Review

Posted by Kevan Breitinger Oct 2, 2006

The ever-consistent John Roderick holds your attention with his enigmatic, shadowy lyrics and crunchy effervescent melodies. The revolving door of musicians features Roderick, energetic bassist Eroc Corson, drummer Nabil Ayers, and multi-instrumentalist Jonathan Rothman who offer up eleven tracks of sonic delight. As usual, Roderick chooses to focus on the moments of life rather than mining whole slices.

Highlights on this self-produced big-pop-in-the-sky album include: the brightly appealing opener “Pushover,” hooky acoustic guitars under Roderick’s airy vocals; the stringed ecstasy of the melodic ballad “Seven”; the soaring rhapsody of “Sky is Open”; the gentle sneer of the guitar-wringing “Honest”; and finally, the dazzling masterpiece “Hindsight,” Roderick’s intelligently burning lyrics riding atop the luscious bed of background vocals, lilting guitars, and gently simmering Hammond B3. Roderick comes as close to cutting loose on “Hindsight” as he does anywhere, and it’s a beautiful thing, this understated and controlled power. Visit their website for more information on The Long Winters.