We’ve been covering a lot of folk here on TBW recently, and for good reason. There are just so many good folkish bands appearing on the radar. One blog that if it had any theme might be a good folk leaning is that of Song, by Toad and lo and behold, Matthew’s little spin off record label put out another gem in a split 12″ of two delightfully different folk bands in Loch Lomond and The Builders & the Butchers (MySpace). I can’t give him all the credit for this release as it is a UK re-issue of one put out by the equally impressive Bladen County Records from Portland, Oregon from where both of these bands hail.
The first four tracks of the release are Loch Lomond showing off their soft, moving folk sound with strings fleshing out their haunted vision. Now the band can’t pronounce Loch Lomond properly (yes, I used to live pretty near the one just outside Glasgow), but I just can’t bring myself to hold it against them.
The second half of the record by The Builders and the Butchers then swings in and takes their folk sensibilities in the completely opposite direction with a lot more foot-tapping, nasal vocals and catchy melodies. Their open track “When it rains” even manages to find a rhythm that wouldn’t have sounded out of place in a mariachi band, but fits the song perfectly.
As any split release will force some competition I would say my favourite song on the whole release is The Builder’s and the Butchers’ “Vampire Lake” which you can hear below, but my God that is a close contest and you couldn’t find a more difficult apple v orange contest that somehow stays within the same genre.
Loch Lomond – Field Report
The Builders and the Butchers – Vampire Lake
BUY the 12″ vinyl direct from Song, by Toad Records (and they’ll even throw in a copy on CDR for good measure)
…or if you’re in the US you can still buy the US release from Bladen County Records
