Search - Mandolin Orange :: Quiet Little Room

Songs that stay in your head all day

Bryan Gilmer | Durham, NC USA | 06/07/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I consider this duo one of my great discoveries of the past couple years of attending music festivals. I saw their set two years ago at Festival for the Eno, and I approached Emily Frantz after the show to buy their first EP, an artisanal thing, a self-burned CD-R with a handmade cover. I've been enjoying that one ever since. So I was excited to find Quiet Little Room for sale on Amazon's MP3 store.



The main attraction here is two perfectly matched voices. Their harmonies are tight and beautiful; transcendent. Emily's voice has an astonishing palette of textures: country lead alto; pretty, vibrato-free soprano; and in many cases, just a highlighting backing vocal adding dimension to Andrew Marlin's singing. His voice is absolutely distinctive. He can't be much past 20, but his laconic, weary baritone sounds like it should belong to a dirt farmer who had one bad harvest after another -- and trust me, that's a good thing. His vocals lend sincerity and emotion to the songs, most of which he wrote. Themes are decidedly retro; this record could have played on the radio in 1945 or maybe 1845. It's a paradox how his singing can sound so, what? Reluctant? Weary? But also, paradoxically, rhythmically precise and pitch perfect. Mandolin and fiddle and guitar playing are lovely, but they've wisely decided to let their instruments hang toward the background and let the vocals enjoy center stage in the mix most of the time. The record sounds professionally produced.



The album title is apt: These are quiet little songs that require you to stop and really pay attention. There's not a bad song, and Life On a String and the waltz Night Owl and are particular highlights.



Talent like this won't be denied. I am positive the next release will be from Nonesuch or Rounder or some Music Row label. Go for this one. If you like country/roots/folk/bluegrass, it's money well spent. I promise. Buy it now."