MP3: Isobel & November - Bones long forgotten
I received a myspace friend request from Isobel & November a few weeks ago and saw that they were selected to support the mighty Wovenhand on tour in Sweden, so I figured they were probably worth checking out. My intuition doesn't always pay off -- having a nice looking myspace page doesn't necessarily mean your band is good, though it does at least show you care enough to put time into it -- but it did okay for me in this case because I&N are pretty darn good. No surprise that they take on Wovenhand/16 Horsepower's gothic country sound as a starting point, but that's exactly what I expected and hoped for, so I am not disappointed in the slightest. It's a small niche, one mainly occupied by wannabees and non-believers who try to lay on the righteous gospel all too thick. It's also especially embarrassing to hear Euros weakly trot out Old West clichés, but luckily I&N keep things a bit more on the reserved tip. Yes, those elements are there, but this particular song is more a horrorshow ghost story than raining hellfire and damnation. Either way, the feeling of dread and despair is there and that's what's important. The mood is paramount to the sound and they've got it down. I'm looking forward to hearing more from these guys.
Isobel & November - Bones long forgotten