Editor's info:
Lewis & Clarke takes us on a "Post-Folk Neo-Baroque" journey through the intricate mysteries of creation. The experience is one of pure subtlety and mind-altering vision, focusing on "the path" rather than obvious hooks, snares and entrapments. Nylon stringed and bowed instruments are set to transcendental verse and laced with future-primitive synth melodies, transporting us from structured chamber folk into meditative passageways. Contributions from members of Man Man and Rachel's. Cover painting by Erika Somogyi.




pitchforkmedia.com
; Rating: 6.8
Lewis and Clarke, fronted by singer-songwriter Lou Rogai and here helped by Eve Miller of Rachel's and Russell Higbee of Man Man, have for several years quietly glorified the sound of strings. This second full-length is a pared-down complement to 2005's blues-inspired Bare Bones and Branches. Blasts of Holy Birth is at times cloying, weepy, and overly familiar, but at others it's a naturalistic vision that creates a hunger for some the simple, rural images conjured by the instruments.

Sometimes words get in the way, as on "We Think We Have Eyes", a song thick with a generalized guilt and self-awareness. Greed is a perfectly apt subject from a ruminative musician, but the lyrics here are delicately trampled upon, potentially forgettable and incidental, perhaps because Rogai's voice has all the force of a light breeze. While his tone complements the soothing guitar and occasional cello, it's less successful as the carrier of a message. Still, the song's undulating chorus recalls the rare beauty of Matt Pond PA, who's also a contributor here. Rogai's lyrical dive-off just before this moment is perfectly executed, the words punching out their meaning in time to the strings.

Tara Jane O'Neil has a command of atmosphere similar to Lewis & Clarke, the way she showcases the string family without overindulging how instinctively .......
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