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Source:Tiny Voices
Subject: Three Songs (demo)

There’s something very warm and inviting about this EP. Rather than coming out all guns blazing, the Birmingham indie-folkers have released three wonderfully understated tracks, each one requiring some degree of attention to be appreciated fully. On first listen, there’s nothing particularly remarkable about Shady Bard, but with repeated plays, the songs make more and more sense and you slowly realise you’re listening to something really quite special.

It’s also an EP, whether by design or not, which gets progressively better as it goes along. Opening track ‘Treeology’ builds beautifully from gently-plucked reflection to a quiet rush of instruments, all the while benefiting from the gorgeous balance of Lawrence Becko and Jasmin Hollingum’s respective vocal styles. ‘Bobby’ changes the focus, a slower piano-led beauty. Becko’s vocals are gloriously weary, without ever sounding anything less than 100% honest.

But it’s the final track, ‘Torch Song’, which really impresses. It’s a fabulously-crafted pop song, uplifting and with obvious links to Sparklehorse. For the most part, the instrumentation is very low-key, a discrete synth being replaced by a simple piano line and swooning guitars. This gives the song plenty of space to burst into life, which it does seamlessly around the two-and-a-half minute mark, as the vocals come back in to create a truly affecting climax.

There is a great human quality to Three Songs, which gives Shady Bard an edge over many of their peers. Their next release will be a 7” on Static Caravan in September. On this evidence, I’m sure there will be many people watching with great interest. 8/10

David Tandy

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