(Valve)

Weird prog-folk from femail duo aliases 

Lloyd & Michael, despite the rather masculine names, are in fact two women who met at college in Portland, Oregon and found cult success as Dear Nora. In their latest incarnation, the duo look set to maintain their underground following with this entertaining and rather odd record. The Christian rock title and Carpenters-on-acid album photo, not to mention the lengthy vintage synth sounds at the beginning of opening epic Towards A Dark Castle make you wonder if you’re being inducted into some mysterious, creepy sect. When the haunting vocals kick in, however, you’re in danger of being seduced by their dogma if, indeed, it actually exists. Of course it doesn’t, but there’s a subversive element to this cross-legged and otherworldly collection of folk pop that’s both accessible and utterly odd. Recycle is a great example of their strange, likeable ways, with its unconventional but also unforced shift of mood and tempo – it occasionally brings to mind the more esoteric tracks buried halfway through Breeders records. But the strangeness doesn’t prevent sheer, unashamed beauty to sneak in, particularly in the form of the lovely When The Morning Comes.

***˝

MATT THROWER

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