Artist JBM opened for Alt-J at the Blind Pig with a very mellow, progressive folk music set. His music comes from the same sway-inducing style as Grizzly Bear meets Radiohead, somewhat spiritual through repetition.
After a
much needed break, he relocated to a remote cabin in the Catskills and started the long process of writing and recording
Stray Ashes, his followup to 2010's Not Even in July. Like a
twilight journey through canyons, with noctilucent clouds on the
horizon, these songs flow with refined grace and raw force.
Next, John Congleton joined the
project for additional recording and mixing. Congleton's
contributions help to define a sonic space throughout Stray
Ashes that perfectly cradles Jesse's earnest vocals, as do the
additional performances of McKenzie Smith (of Midlake, Drums),
and Macey Taylor (of A.A. Bondy, Bass) on several tracks, which
were recorded by Congleton in his Texas studio. The gauzy sonic
blanket Marchant and Congleton have created provides a
foundation for the mysterious collection of songs on Stray
Ashes. We don't have to fully understand them to be moved by
these shining beacons guiding us through a mellifluous fog.
Propelled by Marchant's voice, songs like "Winter Ghosts" and
"Keeping Up" seem to effortlessly fill the room with an
addictive somber haze, while Marchant seems to implore us to
return to something true and meaningful on other standouts like
"Ferry" and "Only Now."