Storyhill - Storyhill

Sometimes musical reunions are a good thing, and that is certainly the case with the acoustic harmonizing duo known as Storyhill. Storyhill is John Hermanson & Chris Cunningham (formerly known as Chris and Johnny). After taking a break in 1997, their fan base actually grew as loyal listeners spread the word online. Eventually, they decided to reunite in 2001 and began working on some new material.

I first heard these guys at an outdoor college festival in the mid 90’s. I’ve always been drawn to that “Simon and Garfunkel type” folk sound, and I remember really enjoying what I heard that day. It’s amazing how multifaceted a song can become with a couple guitars and harmonized melody lines.

I’ve owned and listened to a few of their previous albums, although none of them spoke to me as a whole the way their latest self titled album does. From the previous collections I remember, there were certain songs that stuck out as being radio worthy, but some of the others seemed to lack in dynamics and definitive melody. I’d often find myself skipping around to find my favorite tracks. With their newest album, I listen to it from beginning to end, and over and over again. I can’t pinpoint exactly what makes this one so different, but it draws me in and keeps me there for its entirety. For a while, I was unable to identify a favorite song, but now I’d have to say that "Love Will Find You" is my personal choice.

Storyhill’s unique sound and knack for sonic storytelling seems to have matured into who they are today. Some musicians start strong and whither, but this group seems to be gaining more momentum as artists the longer that they work at perfecting their craft.

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Danny & The Champions Of The World

I started Best Album of the Day almost two years ago and I think someone has been reading my posts, learning my likes and dislikes, and doing everything they can to get their album listed on this site. His name is Danny George Wilson. His original alt-country band is called Grand Drive and he's also done some solo work.

Danny & The Champions Of The World is the self-titled album by DGW and a bunch of other musicians from various English groups including Brakes, Goldrush (fantastic band!), Electric Soft Parade, and more. It's basically everything I could ask for in a single collection of songs: Great melodies, beautiful orchestration, desperate vocals, natural sounding acoustics, sonic experimentation that doesn't distract from the whole of the song, and a general "big" sound without sounding overwhelming.

There are hints of Golden Smog (many hints actually), Faces/Ronnie Lane, Big Star, Wilco, The Byrds, Bob Dylan, The Beatles (note the sitar work), and even some John Denver. Trust me, it's cool and you'll love it. You know a band is great when the first influence they list on their MySpace page is The Muppets, the greatest band of all time.

I'm marking this album for consideration as one of the albums of the year which we'll publish next January. It's that good. Listen to "Red Tree Song" and you'll know why I love this one.

And for some useless trivia, DGW's other band, Grand Drive, was once being considered for a record deal by Death Row Records' Suge Knight. Yes, they are a rock/alt-country band and are not hip-hop whatsoever. Amazing.

Even more amazing is that at the moment Death Row's Tupac Shakur was killed, he was listening to Grand Drive's "Tell It Like It Is" in his limo. The band was even invited to play at his funeral which they declined due to prior engagements.

Now you know, and knowing is half the battle (~GI JOE).

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Wood - Songs from Stamford Hill

I've meant to put this album up here for a long time now. It's one of the great albums that nobody has ever really heard (unless you know me - I made sure friends had a chance to hear this one!).

Wood were a band from the UK that released Songs from Stamford Hill, their only album, in 1999. Headed by James Maddock (who is now living in New York and has a solo career - nice guy too), they mixed flavors of Wallflowers, Neil Young, David Gray, Sting, etc. I think the only single that received US airplay was "Stay You," and attention was limited at best. The song is a bit cheesy but it's still a really good song.

If you were to give me my choice of five albums to take with me on a deserted island, this one would definitely be included. It's maybe not in my top five favorite albums of all time (close however), but I've listened to it over and over and it is impossible for me to get sick of it.

The song "Whole Lot to Think About" is undoubtedly my favorite on the album. There's nothing like an acoustic ballad in 3/4 time with some good pedal steel to make it complete. "You Make Me Feel Bad" and "Our Time Has Come" are also two of the best in my opinion.

It's a pretty mellow album so don't expect to put it in your iPod for working out or anything like that. But if you and your spouse are really wanting to make some babies anytime soon, throw this one in!*

*NOTE: If you are like me in your baby-making ways you'll want to make sure you've got your player set to "repeat" for this album.

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Pete Francis - Iron Sea and the Cavalry

Meet Pete Francis. I know nothing about this guy other than 2 things: 1) He used to be in the band Dispatch, and 2) His new album is awesome.

He's got a folk/alt-country type sound. Sometimes his voice sounds a little like Mason Jennings or Ryan Adams, but it's pretty unique so I don't have a good comparison there.

The songs on this album are really strong. My favorites so far include the title track and "Stowaway", which almost sounds like a mix between the aforementioned Jennings and John Prine. Great song!

This would be a perfect album for a road-trip across the Midwest. Enjoy!