San Franciscos Last Of The Blacksmiths craft Americana of the traditional variety, but ease their folk through haunting lo-fi, indie-rock filters. Heavy with space, the sparse tunes that populate this disc are sorrow filled and bare, dark and lonely, rich with plaintive, but well-harmonied, vocals. They draw inspiration from traditional folk as well as modern indie rock. "Columbus Stockdale Blues" is a longstanding traditional tune, and their performance keeps it straight, with the exception of swelling Hammond B3 and a bandy lectric guitar solo. In contrast, tracks like "Pushing Down" jump from the haze with its soulful groove and explosive guitar. Among a small handful of guests, youll find Jolie Holland dragging bow across viola and violin for a couple of tunes. Many of which feature doleful electric piano and lazy, percussive drumming, while some have mandolin and other light touches of intrigue. (self-released)
